5 Lessons I Learned as a Camp Counselor

Written by McKenna 'Fig' Runde

If there’s one thing I know from my time as a camp counselor, it is that camp changes you. It bolsters your confidence, deepens your laughter, breaks down your walls, creates forever friendships, and changes lives for the better (not just your own)! 

It also empties you of yourself. It requires more self-sacrifice than you may have ever given before. It pushes you past your comfort zone and encourages trust in the working of the Holy Spirit. It stirs a desire in your heart to serve and love boldly. It empties you of yourself and directs you toward something bigger. It’s the best job in the world, and it teaches you some important life lessons.

Here are 5 'simple' things I learned during my time as a camp counselor:

1. See the good in all!

Some campers have a fear of the dark, others have a rough case of homesickness. Some are self-conscious and others are loud and boisterous. We all have our ‘things’ (wounds and weaknesses), and we also all have an incredible innate goodness. After all, we were each created in the image and likeness of God!! Serving as a camp counselor showed me the patience necessary to meet each person where he/she was and see the good in all, regardless of the baggage they carry or the wounds they wear.

2. Really listen

Being a counselor gives you the unique opportunity to grow in relationship with your fellow staff members and the hundreds of campers you’ll encounter throughout a summer. Get to know them. Listen to their stories. Listen to their emotions. Hear them. Everything they’re saying and not saying. They will remember it.

3. It’s not about you

If you’re joining summer staff because you want to have the time of your life and the tan of your life, you might be in for a little perspective shift. This summer is not about you, but it IS about giving of yourself to those around you. You’ll sacrifice and ‘do it all for the campers’ and pour out your heart ... And you might just find that through your gift of self, you end up having the time of your life.

4. Flexibility is key

Very rarely do things go as planned at Camp. That’s part of the beauty and magic of this place! We fly by the seat of the Holy Spirit’s pants! Plans change, storms come, cabin 7 boys lose their camp tee right before the all-camp photo … we roll with it! The best memories come from the unplanned moments.

5. Camp friends are the best friends

Find your people and never let them go! The relationships formed at Camp can withstand any storm … heck, these are the people who have your back when you get 4 hours of sleep with a sick camper. They’re the ones who brush your teeth blindfolded as a fun skit to make the campers roar with laughter. They cry with you in the hard moments and in the moments when your joy is just overflowing.

There were more than a few times in my camp counseling career when I woke up in the back of cabin 3 to a camper knocking on my door and thought to myself, “Wow, I think this is the 16th time I’ve been woken up for a bathroom break tonight.” And there were even more times when I woke up to sunshine and chirping birds and thought, “Wow, this life is a beautiful gift. Thank you, Jesus.” 

Thank you for the time I was given to spend as a camp counselor. Thank you for the memories gained and the lessons learned. Thank you for the people I met and those I grew from. For the tears and the laughter and the songs and the stories. For Your presence, in all of it. Thank you, Jesus.