New counselors get acclimated
BIG BAY -- Bay Cliff Health Camp is now brimming with about 150 eager campers with special needs. To prepare for their arrival, new counselors attended orientation, familiarizing themselves with the camp, its rules, and its staff.
"I've been excited about it for a couple of weeks, but I'm also really nervous, like I've done some work with kids, but not this intense," said one eager counselor.
"I wait for the kids to get here to meet them and get started," said another.
They come from all over the country, most of them college or graduate students training for a career in medicine or therapy, and they hope to learn a lot while doing a lot to help others.
"I like to apply what I learn so, like, seeing the kids, seeing what their problems are, trying to help them out and learning what I can from physical therapists and other staff who've been here before; I can take all of that with me," said new counselor Libby Sheahan.
The counselors are broken up into specialized units based on age group, gender, and disability. Each unit spent a week adapting to Bay Cliff with tours, assemblies, and ice breakers. Each activity is important as counselors hold a huge responsibility with campers for seven weeks.
While counselors learn a lot at orientation, camp reps say that they pick up the most once campers arrive...the best way to learn is to dive right in.