Volunteering Takes the Helm, Marine Science Camp

Sep 1, 2016
2 min read

This summer, I was the marine camp management intern. When I was in elementary and middle school, I came to camp here, and so it was an awesome experience to come back and learn about the other side of camp. Throughout the summer, I learned about how the camp is run and what goes into making a successful summer camp. I worked with the camp manager to create schedules so that up to nine groups of campers would never run into each other. I also helped to prepare everything that would be needed for the summer camp to run, including binders with curriculum, as well as all the activities that would be used throughout the camp. Once camp began, I helped to make schedules for each day, make sure everything needed

was set up in the morning, and generally help counselors and instructors to make sure everything went smoothly. I also looked through all the pictures taken of campers through the week and created a slide show for each week of camp. It was interesting to see how much work went into everyday of camp. When I came to camp, I was always excited about what was going on and was definitely always busy. Now I see how many different activities and field trips are planned, and how much work goes into making a busy week of marine science camp. During the summer, I felt that my main job was support for the instructors and counselors, helping them have a fun, smooth camp experience. In the mornings, I would help to make sure that all the kids were here and where they needed to be, and that field trip or boat trips had everyone and were ready to go. Then, during camp, I would help to make sure all the various stations were set up, and teams had the supplies that were needed. I would make sure there was enough to get through the summer, and that people were set up the way they needed to be. This summer, I would set thing up before kids got to camp, and make sure it was ready for them when it came. So I got to see the opposite side that I did when I was younger, and I got a more full picture of what goes on at this camp. I learned a lot about management and logistics for a group of people with a lot of moving parts, and I learned how much works it takes to make an awesome camp run for nine weeks a year.