Picture the Camp Magic
Picture boating on a beautiful lake, flying down the zipline or visiting the goats. Picture the laughs as you share the memories of your day with your campers over dinner. Picture the smiles as you high five your camper after they do something brave.
These are all typical things you’d picture when you think of camp, right?
More Than Just a Summer Job
Now, what if I told you that you could have all of this plus career experience or even internship credit in some cases. Working at a special needs camp is an amazing and rewarding way to spend your summer regardless of what your career goals are, but if you’re hoping to work in the medical, social care, teaching or mental health field then it is a perfect opportunity to get hands-on experience that employers love. Where else would you spend nearly 24 hours a day and weeks at a time with the people you’re caring for? There’s nothing quite like it. Camp is a great place to grow your skill set regardless of the type of camp but special needs camps have even more to offer.
Starting Out With Uncertainty
When I first got placed at my camp in 2022 I was really nervous. I wanted so badly to go to camp but I had never worked specifically with neurodivergent kids before and I was very unsure about it. I had such a narrow idea of what Autism was and I was really confused. Would I still have the ‘camp experience’ that I’d heard so much about? Would I be able for the work?
Finding My Camp Family
Looking back now while being here for summer number 4, I can’t believe I ever thought this place could be anything other than amazing. It’s been everything I ever imagined from a summer camp experience while also helping a marginalised group of people. I now absolutely adore the kids I work with and can’t imagine ever working at a typical camp. In my opinion our kids are the best ones!
A Moment I'll Never Forget
I want to tell you about one of my favourite memories that for me sums up what working at a special needs camp means for me. It was closing day of my first summer, which for my camp is the day that parents will come see camp and pick up their kids. I had a camper in my bunk who had been so shy and nervous when he first arrived, so scared of being a burden. Over the three weeks he was here I watched him make friends in our bunk and beyond that, I watched him thrive in activities and then on the final night I cried like a proud mom watching him in the camper play. He couldn’t stop telling us that it had been the ‘best night ever’.
For me, all of that was and would’ve been enough to solidify why I loved the work I was doing but it got even better. I met his parents on visiting day and his dad told me with tears in his eyes that his son had never introduced him to his best friend before. He went on to explain to me that in his 15 years of life his son had never made it past the acquaintance level of friendship but after his time at camp he had a whole group of friends and one very best friend in our bunk. That October, when our camp newsletter came out I saw that the two of them had met up in one of their cities and that they were still in touch.
Why I Keep Coming Back
For me, that’s why I work at a special needs camp. Summer camp is all about helping your campers have fun and form connections but when you work at a special needs camp it means that bit more when you’re helping kids that otherwise struggle to form those connections.
The Reward Is Worth the Effort
Now, don’t get me wrong, working at a special needs camp is hard work. It takes a lot of training and more supervision and counselling than a typical camp but it is all worth it when you see those special connections forming between your campers. In my opinion there is no better place in the world to work and I wouldn’t swap my camp for the world.
The Best Decision I Ever Made
I’m so happy that I took the leap in 2022 and decided to take a chance on a small, tight knit, rural camp for neurodiverse campers because working here has been the best experience of my life to date.
