Ramapo Country Day Camp - There's no place like it. ramapocamp.com
Oh boy! It has been a while since I posted a blog! I have wanted to post this for a while now, but life has been busy lately, but better late than never! Here it is….
This summer, I worked at Ramapo Country Day Camp in Airmont, New York. This camp lasted from June 27th-August 19th of 2022, and this was my first year working at a summer camp. In past jobs, I worked at various companies, Bingo Hall, Stop&Shop, Dunkin, work-study, etc. This last job as a counselor was incomparable to all previous jobs that I’ve held; however, I consider it more as a positive than a negative. I wanted to try something different and gain experience with opportunities to grow as a person and to connect with others in different areas of life. Before I dive into the various positions I worked in, I do want to address what Ramapo is and why I chose to work there in the first place.
The story behind Ramapo is insightful and captures the owner's challenges in making Ramapo possible. More than fifty years ago, a guy named Mike Kulchin dreamed of opening his own day camp. He grew up going to camp for his whole life and dreamed of being a camp director of his own. He also wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps and was willing to take over his position as camp director. His dad ended up retiring a lot later, and Mike had to find another way to make his dream a reality. He and his wife, Michele, put a ton of hard work into creating Ramapo. When they first stepped onto the Ramapo grounds, all there was in the moment was an empty field. Over time, they managed to bring Ramapo into a place full of many fun-filled activities. They also shared this experience with their two daughters, who were there since the very beginning and are now working with their parents at this amazing camp. They, of course, have helped create the program with friends who put their time and effort into making Ramapo possible as well.
If you want to read this in more detail of this story, please check out Ramapo’s website for more information. https://ramapocamp.com/
After hearing this story, I couldn’t help to understand this camp even more in detail and see what it offers. After researching the site, I discovered how enjoyable it looks to work with kids and how much you earn from it. Not with the money I receive but with the satisfaction of creating a fun environment for kids and the bonds I make with them and the co-counselors I work with. Ramapo uses this quote, “There’s no place like it.” which is true. Reading the behind-the-scenes to make Ramapo possible to where it now makes this camp unique in every way.
When I began working there, I covered two positions at Ramapo (a bus supervisor and a fourth-grade camp counselor), I will share my experience with these encounters. With being a bus supervisor, I was assigned to be the person in charge of the EpiPens for the children who need them. There were other supervisors and a head supervisor with us who also had different jobs (attendance, phone person, and name tags). As the Epipen person, all I needed to do was gather the EpiPens from the parents who dropped them off at the bus and bring them to the nurse at the end of the bus ride. Toward the end of the day, I grab them back from the nurse and bring them to the parents at the end of the day. Sounds easy enough, but there was way more to know about being a bus supervisor than just the primary duty you’re assigned. During the bus ride (there and back), we had to socialize with the kids and make them feel comfortable as they headed to and back from camp. In past experience, I never really had to speak with kids one on one before, and in all honesty, I had no idea how to start off conversations with children. On the bus ride, you meet many kinds of kids who are a mix of shy, talkative, confused, or all of them together. Of course, we went through training sessions before camp began, but it’s different hearing all of it compared to experiencing it in real life. For most people I know, I am a visual learner, and to get used to something, I have to experience it firsthand. There were some instances where I had talkative kids who liked to carry the conversation, but I also had some shy kids who needed an adult to talk to in order for a conversation to start. Of course, being the adult, I had to be the one who had to do that, and I am not always good at making conversation. Throughout the summer, I improved and managed to create good interactions with the kids. I also managed to get to know them better than I initially thought I would. Not only I engaged with the campers but also with the co-supervisors I was working with. There were some moments when a (or more) supervisor(s) was absent and had to take over their position, which was sometimes challenging. Still, it also developed a better understanding of what everyone else does to keep everything in line. For example, there were moments when our attendance person was absent, and I had to take over the sheet when he was gone. It was tough at the beginning because I had never done it before, but over time, it got easier.
The second position was my counselor position. I was a counselor for fourth-grade boys with one other person. I was very glad I had a co-counselor because, as a new worker, I had no idea what I was doing and where to go most of the time. After the weeks went by, I managed to get used to the area and got to know the kids very well. Eventually, I learned everything about the kids I was counseling (like their favorite food, hobbies, color, etc.). Of course, it was a bit of a tiring job, but I got used to it and it felt very rewarding in the end. You create a bond with the kids, and the satisfaction of happiness with the children makes the job experience everlasting. With working with a co-counselor, that made the job easier because we had each other to watch our backs. I also enjoyed how the day was structured too! For a bit of an insight into where I am at with the counselor position, nine counselors (including myself) were in charge of a section (two/three counselors for each section) of the fourth-grade boy group (also known as B4). I was in charge of a quarter of the campers with one other. The person in charge of all the campers in the B4 group is the division leader who keeps everything in check. I really did enjoy that structure because it helped me to know who to speak to when there is a problem or question regarding anything that happens throughout the day, which I found helpful.
So, the question is, will I work there again? Short answer, yes! Long answer, yes but it depends on my living situation. As many of you all may know, I go to school at Misericordia, located in Dallas, Pennsylvania. One of the reasons I took this job is because I was home in Jersey City, New Jersey, where it was convenient for me to work at this camp because of the bus transportation from Manhattan. This upcoming summer, I will most likely be staying at my school for the summer and living at an off-campus apartment. Those plans may change, and there could be a chance I will be living in Jersey City, but as of right now, I am leaning towards being at school for the summer. If I end up being in Jersey City, I would like to work there again! The community, atmosphere, and job itself were very memorable, and having this opportunity available will be great to have again! I also made great connections with the people I worked with, and it will be great to work with them once more! We shall see where I am next summer, and hopefully, I will be given this opportunity next summer.
This summer, I worked at Ramapo Country Day Camp in Airmont, New York. This camp lasted from June 27th-August 19th of 2022, and this was my first year working at a summer camp. In past jobs, I worked at various companies, Bingo Hall, Stop&Shop, Dunkin, work-study, etc. This last job as a counselor was incomparable to all previous jobs that I’ve held; however, I consider it more as a positive than a negative. I wanted to try something different and gain experience with opportunities to grow as a person and to connect with others in different areas of life. Before I dive into the various positions I worked in, I do want to address what Ramapo is and why I chose to work there in the first place.
The story behind Ramapo is insightful and captures the owner's challenges in making Ramapo possible. More than fifty years ago, a guy named Mike Kulchin dreamed of opening his own day camp. He grew up going to camp for his whole life and dreamed of being a camp director of his own. He also wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps and was willing to take over his position as camp director. His dad ended up retiring a lot later, and Mike had to find another way to make his dream a reality. He and his wife, Michele, put a ton of hard work into creating Ramapo. When they first stepped onto the Ramapo grounds, all there was in the moment was an empty field. Over time, they managed to bring Ramapo into a place full of many fun-filled activities. They also shared this experience with their two daughters, who were there since the very beginning and are now working with their parents at this amazing camp. They, of course, have helped create the program with friends who put their time and effort into making Ramapo possible as well.
If you want to read this in more detail of this story, please check out Ramapo’s website for more information. https://ramapocamp.com/
After hearing this story, I couldn’t help to understand this camp even more in detail and see what it offers. After researching the site, I discovered how enjoyable it looks to work with kids and how much you earn from it. Not with the money I receive but with the satisfaction of creating a fun environment for kids and the bonds I make with them and the co-counselors I work with. Ramapo uses this quote, “There’s no place like it.” which is true. Reading the behind-the-scenes to make Ramapo possible to where it now makes this camp unique in every way.
When I began working there, I covered two positions at Ramapo (a bus supervisor and a fourth-grade camp counselor), I will share my experience with these encounters. With being a bus supervisor, I was assigned to be the person in charge of the EpiPens for the children who need them. There were other supervisors and a head supervisor with us who also had different jobs (attendance, phone person, and name tags). As the Epipen person, all I needed to do was gather the EpiPens from the parents who dropped them off at the bus and bring them to the nurse at the end of the bus ride. Toward the end of the day, I grab them back from the nurse and bring them to the parents at the end of the day. Sounds easy enough, but there was way more to know about being a bus supervisor than just the primary duty you’re assigned. During the bus ride (there and back), we had to socialize with the kids and make them feel comfortable as they headed to and back from camp. In past experience, I never really had to speak with kids one on one before, and in all honesty, I had no idea how to start off conversations with children. On the bus ride, you meet many kinds of kids who are a mix of shy, talkative, confused, or all of them together. Of course, we went through training sessions before camp began, but it’s different hearing all of it compared to experiencing it in real life. For most people I know, I am a visual learner, and to get used to something, I have to experience it firsthand. There were some instances where I had talkative kids who liked to carry the conversation, but I also had some shy kids who needed an adult to talk to in order for a conversation to start. Of course, being the adult, I had to be the one who had to do that, and I am not always good at making conversation. Throughout the summer, I improved and managed to create good interactions with the kids. I also managed to get to know them better than I initially thought I would. Not only I engaged with the campers but also with the co-supervisors I was working with. There were some moments when a (or more) supervisor(s) was absent and had to take over their position, which was sometimes challenging. Still, it also developed a better understanding of what everyone else does to keep everything in line. For example, there were moments when our attendance person was absent, and I had to take over the sheet when he was gone. It was tough at the beginning because I had never done it before, but over time, it got easier.
The second position was my counselor position. I was a counselor for fourth-grade boys with one other person. I was very glad I had a co-counselor because, as a new worker, I had no idea what I was doing and where to go most of the time. After the weeks went by, I managed to get used to the area and got to know the kids very well. Eventually, I learned everything about the kids I was counseling (like their favorite food, hobbies, color, etc.). Of course, it was a bit of a tiring job, but I got used to it and it felt very rewarding in the end. You create a bond with the kids, and the satisfaction of happiness with the children makes the job experience everlasting. With working with a co-counselor, that made the job easier because we had each other to watch our backs. I also enjoyed how the day was structured too! For a bit of an insight into where I am at with the counselor position, nine counselors (including myself) were in charge of a section (two/three counselors for each section) of the fourth-grade boy group (also known as B4). I was in charge of a quarter of the campers with one other. The person in charge of all the campers in the B4 group is the division leader who keeps everything in check. I really did enjoy that structure because it helped me to know who to speak to when there is a problem or question regarding anything that happens throughout the day, which I found helpful.
So, the question is, will I work there again? Short answer, yes! Long answer, yes but it depends on my living situation. As many of you all may know, I go to school at Misericordia, located in Dallas, Pennsylvania. One of the reasons I took this job is because I was home in Jersey City, New Jersey, where it was convenient for me to work at this camp because of the bus transportation from Manhattan. This upcoming summer, I will most likely be staying at my school for the summer and living at an off-campus apartment. Those plans may change, and there could be a chance I will be living in Jersey City, but as of right now, I am leaning towards being at school for the summer. If I end up being in Jersey City, I would like to work there again! The community, atmosphere, and job itself were very memorable, and having this opportunity available will be great to have again! I also made great connections with the people I worked with, and it will be great to work with them once more! We shall see where I am next summer, and hopefully, I will be given this opportunity next summer.