Alumni

This weekend camp hosted the first ever (that I know of) Staff Alumni Reunion. A woman contacted me last October and said she wanted to organize it and asked if it would be possible to do at camp. After 62 years of camp, there are a lot of staff alumni out there, and it would make sense that someone, at some point along the way would have kept track of them so that we could hit them up for money and support and such. But like all things at this camp, of course that hasn't happened, so I was thrilled she offered. We will start small and build and eventually get a good list and maybe even an Alumni Association that sends out newsletters and hosts events and raises money for camp... Someday...

Despite my excitement for reconnecting, I was kind of dreading the weekend. With only 15 people expected, it wasn't even going to be that much work, but I was still looking forward to it being over. Myself and three of my summer staff cooked lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast today. My staff is very hard working and totally on top of things, so there was very little for me to do.

A big part of my job is being the face of camp. I am outgoing and can make conversation with pretty much anyone. I'm comfortable in front of a crowd (I love being the center of attention actually) and I understand that the most important parts of being the face are creating a welcoming environment (customer service, customer service, customer service) and expressing gratitude often and to as many people as you can. I enjoy this aspect of my job, but by nature, I am an introvert, and just the thought was exhausting.

My dread was really for nothing- the weekend was wonderful. The alumni were excited to be at camp and needed very little from me to stay entertained and happy. And it was fun to sit around the campfire and at meals and listen to stories about what it was like when they were here. And their level of enthusiasm was SKY HIGH, and I am confident that we can and will be able to create an alumni association soon. They want to make this weekend an annual thing and, though exhausted, I think it is a wonderful idea.

As a staff alumni myself (not for this camp, but the camp I worked at for 6 years), I know what is like to go back to "your camp" and how you feel strongly about changes, and it's weird to see things different than how it was when you were there. One of the gentlemen approached me and said, "I was nervous to come back. You have a life changing experience and you hold onto those memories for so long and the longer you are away, the better you remember things. And I was worried I would get back and it wouldn't be as great as I'd remembered, but camp looks beautiful, even nicer than when we were here. I'm impressed and happy to see it's in such good hands." That was the nicest compliment I've gotten so far, and it was even nicer when the group nodded in agreement. The whole weekend was full of compliments about how great camp is and I was really proud to hear that from people who have been here, lived what I am living now and truly understand camp.

I'm exhausted, but it was a wonderful weekend.