\Sports play a significant role in the lives of boys and girls across the country. Many children are encouraged by parents and teachers to try a sport, make the team, and be the best. Although the intentions are good, many children and teenagers get burnt out quickly due to the pressure put on them by well-meaning adults. They quickly feel obligated to perform instead of finding the joy in the game. And while this is not the case for all children, it is becoming more and more of an issue across the country.
Camp Starlight takes a slightly different approach towards kids and sports. Many campers come to camp with a predisposition about what sports they are good at and which ones they aren’t. They assume that since they’ve played soccer since they were 4, they are exclusively soccer players. They don’t realize that although they’re familiar with soccer, it’s not the only thing they are allowed to try and enjoy. Camp Starlight encourages athletes to try new things, to branch out from their comfort zones and get active in a sport that is new to them. Gymnasts at home become volleyball players at camp. Basketball players discover their love for golf. Camp gives campers a chance to try new sports that may not be offered in their schools or communities. And of course, for those who are passionate about their sport, camp gives them the entire summer to do what they love, perfect their craft, surround themselves with other athletes who are passionate about the sport. At Camp Starlight, campers have the opportunity to be on multiple sports teams where they can either show their passion or play any sport competitively for the first time.
Sports at camp are different than sports at home because the pressure is off. Sports are played to teach teamwork and sportsmanship. Sports are played to give campers a healthy way to relieve stress, to get in a good workout, and to practice goal setting. Sports at camp are designed to bring campers together through healthy competition. Participating in sports builds confidence and strengthens relationships, and provides a safe outlet for campers to try new things without judgment or pressure.
Team sports like baseball, basketball, flag football lacrosse, soccer, and softball bring campers together towards a common goal. These sports encourage campers to work together on the field or court, which then translates to working together in other areas of camp life too. Playing a team sport allows campers to connect with other campers whom they may not have met otherwise.
Individual sports like aerobics and figure skating still puts campers in group settings but allows them to focus on their personal skill set, goals, and abilities. No matter what type of sports campers play, they’re always surrounded by people who encourage them to be their best. There are no stressed-out parents to worry about, no crazy coaches screaming from the sidelines. Just friends, playing together for the fun of it.
Campers can engage in sports as much or as little as they want to at camp. Seasoned athletes can work on new skills and improving their current skills, while new athletes can feel safe trying something new surrounded by the encouragement and support of their counselors and fellow campers. Camp Starlight has built a reputation for offering an incredible sleepaway camp experience that combines art, music, sports, good food, great friends and the beautiful outdoors in a way that every camper will easily fall in love with.
Sixteen is not an age you would associate with a summer camp. When you think of a sixteen year old, words like “rock n roll,” “rebellion,” and “sleep in extremely late” flash like snapshots of your own teen years into your head. Teenagers typically want to get away from it all and live in the moment, but at Camp Starlight, sixteen year olds break these stereotypes as Counselor Assistants. Pushing the limits of responsibilities and taking the initiative to embrace upcoming adulthood, Counselor Assistants spend another summer at Camp Starlight in the in between stage of camper and counselor. Not yet counselor, not entirely camper, these kids enter a role entirely their own on campus and even though it is a unique role, these kids enter this sphere for a reason.
For many campers, Camp Starlight becomes a second home, a special place that welcomes you back every summer like family and supports you to be the best person you can be. Camp Starlight becomes a staple in many campers lives’ and for a few of them it becomes a home they never leave when they decide to return as counselors. When they left Camp Starlight they realized they didn’t want their last summer as a camper to be the last time they get to watch a sunset over the lake or sing a song around the campfire, they wanted to continue to live through those traditions. After spending eight summers as a camper that gets to experience all the playful fun of camp, campers will transition to the role of counselors to experience summer camp in a whole different way. Former Camper Counselors return to Camp Starlight so they can help campers live the same amazing summers that they once did. These counselors recognize that when they were campers, their own counselors were the ones to push them out of their comfort zone and pick them up every time they were down, helping them become the individuals they are today. This is why so many campers return to become counselors, they want to change lives the way their own lives were changed. They want to help a camper find their passion and make them realize that Camp Starlight is their home when they feel homesick. They want to help campers understand how special of a place Camp Starlight is and that the happiness they find here will guide them for the rest of their lives, but most of all, campers return as counselors because they want to spread the love they have received from every summer spent at Camp Starlight.
An iconic element of summer camp is the experience of sleeping in a bunk every night of the summer. Cozy wooden cabins house the campers for the entire summer and these bunks often times host the best memories a camper makes. What makes sleeping in a bunk one of the most fun aspects at Camp Starlight is that every night is a giant sleepover with your best friends. After all the evening activities are over, campers still have enough energy to get excited to return to their bunks. They know they get to slip into pajamas, climb into their beds and still have fun with their friends, whether they are just talking about the day or laughing and joking around with each other. It’s like every night is a pajama party and the fun doesn’t stop until you have to leave camp. In the bunk, no moment is ever dull. The campers get to share their thoughts from the day with each other and take the time to decompress as an entire bunk. The bunk helps these campers transform into a family, spending quality time with each other at the very start and the end of each day. As a family, they learn how to take care of each other, clean the bunk and work as a single unit to enjoy every single night of summer. Sleeping in a bunk every night is how the friendships these campers form throughout the summer are so strong because living together all summer encourages them to care for one another, support one another and love one another as a family.
The staff at Camp Starlight is comprised of a wide range of people that hail from countries scattered all over the globe. Camp Starlight becomes a placed infused with so many cultures and new traditions in the summer when staff come from places such as New Zealand, England, Mexico and South Africa. When all these people come to Camp Starlight it can provide campers and other staff members with valuable insight into different lifestyles and help them learn about cultures that differ from their own. It is so valuable to have these international staff members because it helps Camp Starlight become a summer camp enriched with new ideas and cultures. Internationals can help bring new songs to sing around the campfire and new types of friendships bracelets to make for your friends, mixing up the regular everyday American camp customs. They also inspire people to travel and experience new things, broadening minds on different opportunities to take advantage of across the world. It is so important to have international staff so that the campers can still keep learning even in the summer. Even though summer camp is supposed to be a break from school, campers are learning so many important lessons and things about all these different cultures when they come to Camp Starlight. International staff helps campers remain curious and ask questions about things from all over the world, making Camp Starlight a better place for campers every summer. 
When you think about why Camp Starlight is the best place to spend a summer, usually exciting memories from Olympics flash in your head or a relaxing moment watching an iconic summer sunset over the lake floods your thoughts. The moments that make the biggest impression are typically the most anticipated special events, the ones that make you bubble with energy and want to jump up and down with excitement. There is no denying that these big moments affect a camper’s summer experience, but what is different about Camp Starlight is that it’s actually the little things that impact a camper the most. There are many rules at Camp Starlight and one of the smallest ones is the ten feet rule which indicates that wherever you go, if there is someone within ten feet of you, you say hello. It is a very simple concept, just saying hi to someone if they are in ten feet of you and the rule is small, but the effect is massive in the best of ways. The ten feet rule encourages everyone at camp, regardless of what your job entails or who you work with, to be friendly and kind. When everyone at camp practices this rule it creates the most welcoming atmosphere to be in because everyone is so kind to one another. This rule helps friendships form between people who usually never cross paths due to their specialty or division and helps bridge the gap of unfamiliarity, giving everyone the chance to branch out and share positivity. This rule is what can make a camper’s summer so memorable because Camp Starlight is a place where everyone is friendly and eager to make a new friend. The ten feet rule is a small rule in retrospect, but when the results create the welcoming and warm atmosphere that makes a camper feel at home at Camp Starlight, it proves that it’s truly the little things that matter most.
When you spend eight summers of your life at the same summer camp, you get to reflect on all the magic you’ve experienced and memories you have made at a place that is so special and unlike anywhere else. At Camp Starlight, Upper Senior campers truly get to experience every single aspect of summer camp, transitioning from summer to summer with more responsibility and more fun. Upper Seniors get to see every angle of Camp Starlight and experience every special activity, they really do it all. However, when the last night of the last summer comes, it always arrives too quickly for these Upper Seniors. Reflecting back on every summer spent at Camp Starlight, here are the things that Upper Seniors will miss most about Camp Starlight when they have to say their final goodbye.
