In the spring, a group of 11 high school students traveled to Potosi, Missouri with the sixth graders to be counselors at Camp Lakewood.

“I think that I benefit just as much from the camp as the kids do,” senior Amanda Weisman said.

This was Weisman’s third year as a camp counselor.

“Some of the benefits of being a camp counselor include seeing the cabin grow as a unit and some of the more reserved or uncertain campers come out of their shell,” Weisman said.

The week is made up of units which divide the activities into categories that include educational and team building activities. Team building activities included a ropes course complete with a zip line and tire and swings.

“I think the kids learned a lot about the outdoors as well as interpersonal skills like how to get along with others,” junior George Bohn said.

The educational units focus on studying ecosystems and relationships with the  environment. This included a water unit in which the campers built a dam, and a survival unit that consisted of fire and building.

“The kids learned a lot about themselves and the other people on the team,” junior Clayton O’Hanlon said. “They also learned a lot from the units.”

Going to sixth grade camp at the YMCA’s Camp Lakewood has been a tradition for over 40 years at Parkway Central Middle. However, there have been a few changes, such as the units and the switch from a five day week to a four day week.

“The units are different from when I went,” O’Hanlon said. “There is no cave unit and no fur trading unit but they replaced them with some other cool units that the kids really liked.”

One of the traditions that still exists at the camp is the bead ceremony. Throughout the week, the campers earn beads for accomplishments and good participation, and at the end of the week each cabin dedicates one of their beads to something they learned, achieved, or gained.

“My favorite part of the week was the final bead ceremony,” Weisman said. “My cabin dedicated their bead to teamwork and friendship and I was glad to take part in the creation of that.”
In addition to the sixth graders learning from camp, the counselors said they also benefitted from the experience.

“It helped me learn how to be a leader and look after other people,” senior Kendall Fitter said. “For this whole week these 10 girls are my responsibility and whatever happens to them is on me. It’s cool in the end to look back and think ‘wow, I did it.’”

In addition to the sixth graders benefiting from the experience, the camp counselors also agreed that they learned important skills. Although they had to overcome a  few challenges such as rain and thunderstorms, they agreed it was worth it.

“Throughout my three very different years at camp I have benefitted a lot,” Weisman said. “I have learned that no matter the opposing personalities or differences of the kids, they were always able to overcome any obstacles and become a successful unit.”