“I’m Bethan and this is my fourth year at Camp Starlight in the Girl’s Waterfront. This time four years ago I was so scared, but also so excited. Camp Starlight is a place that knows you better than you know yourself and every decision they make is always for a good reason.
Camp Starlight has become a home away from home for me and provided me with so many opportunities that I would have never dreamed of. Camp Starlight has given me lifelong friends that I have been able to visit all around the world, and that I look forward to seeing again every year. We all have our best friends at home, but it is important to feel like you can turn to someone here if you need to, as more times than not, people will be feeling exactly the same. Yes, it is amazing to be able to talk about your experience when you get home, but there is nothing wrong with having that little part of you that is made up of camp memories that friends and family at home may not understand.
One of my favorite things about Camp Starlight is that I can put my phone away for two months, appreciate these beautiful surroundings and have the opportunity to make lifelong friends.
Camp Starlight allows you to completely be yourself and dance around like a fool at all times of the day, finding things out about yourself that you never knew. You get to live in the most amazing, unforgettable bubble and experience amazing things with amazing people for two months. It is impossible not to get back down year after year.
For me, the main reason I come back every year is the kids. They are incredible and truly become family to you. Each year I get the opportunity to become a big sister to 12 girls and be the best role model for them. During my first year at Olympics, I remember I finally got the opportunity to see my girls excel in what they were amazing at. During the senior girls basketball game I cried because I couldn’t believe how talented they were. As someone who doesn’t have younger siblings, it was the first time I really felt connected and proud. It is the hardest things saying goodbye to the kids at the end of the summer, but for me I knew it wasn’t goodbye forever, it was just goodbye for now.
Four years ago I promised my first bunk that I would be here for their first year as counselors, and now I’m lucky enough to be experiencing the summer of 2017 with two of them.”
