YOUR CAMPER As a Counselor, you are assigned a Camper. You will receive a file with information on your Camper at Orientation. This information file will give you the "low down" on your Camper. The information you receive from this file is confidential information, so please be sensitive to this fact. You have the opportunity to consult your Truly Awesome Team Leaders regarding the information in the file. Ask any questions of your Truly Awesome Team Leaders for they are here to guide you through an amazing roller coaster ride of a week. The Campers will arrive on Sunday afternoon with overwhelming excitement. From that time on you will be together with your camper - 24/7 - until their parents return to pick them up on the following Saturday. You will have the responsibility of caring for your camper and his or her physical as well as emotional needs. This is a great responsibility and a great challenge, but you are not alone. Your Truly Awesome Team Leaders, Truly Awesome Camp Administrator and Truly Awesome Staff members are here to help you.   MEDICATIONS Your first responsibility is to introduce yourself to your Camper and their parents and take them on a tour of Marywood. Remember to show your Camper and his or her family where their room is located. Your Camper will need to wear the camp T-shirt, so let them put it on right away. This is your opportunity to ask the parents any questions you might have and to make careful mental notes of any instructions they give you. You then take your Camper and their parents to the nurses' station to check in. All drugs, even non-prescription drugs such as aspirin, are kept in the nurses' station. This includes medications you may have for yourself. The safety of the Campers is always our first concern. You need to learn the medication schedule of your Camper and make sure you have your Camper in the nurses' station at the correct times. This is extremely important!   HEALTH You are responsible to keep watch over your Camper's health and let the nurses know if you have any concerns about your Camper. You must also remember to let the Camp Administrator know of any major concerns and problems! All injuries, however slight, must be noted in the nurses' records. Be aware of any physical limitations your Camper may have and think ahead of what safety precautions you may need to take.   MEALS You accompany your Camper, fellow team members, and your Truly Awesome Team Leaders at meal times. Your Camper's file will indicate if he/she has any food allergies or dietary restrictions. Campers may need encouragement to eat well and may need assistance in feeding themselves. As a Counselor, you shan't throw food, spit food, blow bubbles in your beverage, sling spit balls across the room, or any such actions. Remember, you are to be a good role model for your Camper!   PERSONAL CARE Some Campers need help with personal care such as bathing, dressing, shaving, toileting, and brushing their teeth. They may need supervision for any of the above and help with remembering to change into new clothes daily. If you have never assisted a person in this type of care, you may feel awkward at first. Your attitude of good will is important in helping your Camper to be comfortable with you. Your ingenuity in learning to encourage cooperation in a non-dictative way will help both you and your Camper. If you are very nervous or unsure when it comes to taking care of these needs, ask your Truly Awesome Team Leaders for assistance. They will be more than happy to help you but remember, they cannot do it for you all week long!   SCHEDULES You will be moving with your team and your Truly Awesome Team Leaders to the different locations of the Camp activities. It is important that you do whatever you can to keep yourself and your Camper on schedule; be at the right place at the right time!!! If for some reason you need a break or rest - contact your Truly Awesome Team Leaders and they will be more than happy to assist you.   PARTICIPATION In order for all the Campers to really enjoy Camp, your modeling of an active involvement in the program and encouragement of your Camper will make a great difference. Sing, dance, take part in a skit, paint a picture, and move creatively. Your enthusiasm will be contagious. The best way to coax a reluctant Camper into participating in an activity is to be e good example and lead the way! The Program Instructors work very hard to put together their classes and they need your undivided attention and heart felt participation.   CAMP PROGRAMS SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT PROGRAM Campers and Counselors participate together in an exciting daily Mass and evening prayer. There is a class each day on a theme taken from scripture. You and your Camper may be called upon to role play a story or help your team make up a story that relates scripture to everyday life.   JOURNAL The families of our Campers enjoy written documentation of the week at Camp. It is important that you help the instructor in making this a time of fun as well as a time of reflecting on what we have done at Camp. We will try to incorporate personal things about the camper and his or her counselor as well as cultural things learned throughout the week.   TEAM TIME This is the time for teams to work on Team Appreciation for the following day. You can also tie up any loose ends that you need to take care of. Be creative in your ideas but also remember to be neat! The Program Instructors are not there to clean up your mess!   ART Most Campers need assistance with the daily arts and crafts projects. The important thing to remember is to assist, do not do the project for your Camper. Think of creative ways to make the most of whatever abilities your Camper may have, even if it is only to indicate to you their choice of colors.   CULTURE The Culture Program is designed to teach the Campers as well as the volunteers about the various aspects of the culture related to the theme of Camp. Please be respectful of the culture and give the instructor your undivided attention. As in all the programs, your cooperation is vital to the Campers positive experience at Camp. In this program you may be asked to role play or to sing or dance, be enthusiastic because your attitude will be felt by all.   MUSIC Re-Creation's special Campers usually "love" music yet they often have difficulty singing. Learning the Camp Song is very important. It may take your Camper much longer to learn the song than it takes you. Repetition is the name of the game. If your Camper is nonverbal you can work with them to express themselves through gesture. Ask the Music Program Instructors for some sign language gestures. Many of the songs we sing regularly at Camp incorporate some form of sign language. Don't worry if you have trouble at first, your Camper will more than likely be able to help you out!   GAMES The Games program is designed for the Camper's enjoyment. Your enthusiastic participation will help everyone enjoy the activity. Alternate activities will be available for Campers who cannot participate in team sports for one reason or another. You must remember to keep safety in mind at all times as well as your Campers abilities. Remember that you are here to see to it that your Camper has a fantastic time at Camp.   SWIMMING The Swimming Program is held at the outdoor pool of the Motherhouse of St. Joseph. Be sure that your Camper is properly equipped with swim wear, shoes, sun screen, and a towel before you board the bus for the short ride to the pool. You are responsible for supervising your Camper while at the pool. When you return from the pool, see that the wet towels and swim wear are left in an appropriate place to dry off. A good place would be the open window in your room.   RESPONSIBILITIES AS A TEAM MEMBER COOPERATION Each team has two Truly Awesome Team Leaders. The Truly Awesome Team Leaders have the responsibility for the well-being of the whole team. Your cooperation in being in the right place at the right time with the rest of your team is essential. Your attendance and attentiveness at team meetings are important. Your willingness to help out as needed makes all the difference in the Camp experience of everyone at Camp. Your Truly Awesome Team Leaders reserve the right to call a team meeting at any time.   ATTITUDE Your attitude affects everyone around you. You can drag the team down or you can help to build it up. Of course, we want you to build up the team: scream and yell! You will earn a great deal of respect if you develop laryngitis. It is easy to predict how your attitude will affect the group: happy, moody, enthusiastic, bored. You have the flexibility to choose how you relate to others even when you may not be feeling all that great.   ACCEPTANCE OF PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY The job of everyone at Camp - Program Instructors, Team Leaders, Counselors, Kitchen Staff, Lifeguards, Bus Drivers, Nurses, Photographers, and Gofers - is to provide a high quality Camp experience for our special Campers. As a Counselor, you are responsible for attending to all the needs of your Camper and for cooperating with your Truly Awesome Team Leaders. Maintaining your own health - eating nutritious and balanced meals, getting enough rest, and maintaining your personal hygiene - are part of your unselfish commitment to Camp. You are also responsible for keeping the Volunteer Agreement.   CHRISTIAN COMMITMENT Through your kind and patient caring, the Campers will fully experience the deep love Christ has for them. Our Lord, Jesus, gives each of us the desire and the ability to love unconditionally this way. As a Counselor, and a child of the Lord, you are asked to let your true colors come shining through this week and display what it means to be a true follower of Christ.   Return to Home Copyright © 1998 Catholic Charities, Inc.