Blog Winter
So… what do you do the rest of the year?
For those working in the camp industry, this is both a common and sometimes triggering question. Everyone knows we must have to do some work in between camp seasons, but the fact people ask implies that most people really don’t know. Maybe…just maybe…we might be out sailing out at Cherry Beach or jamming out to Music Fest songs in the theatre from September to June.
Just kidding! But let’s talk about some of the stuff that happens around camp in the “off-season…”
While our campers and staff are fully immersed in their lives at school, work and home, your Bayview Glen Camp directors are busy as ever. Let’s face it, even though we love every minute of it the period from May to August tends to grueling for camp professionals. If you run an overnight camp, most staff essentially work twenty-four hours a day for seven days a week. Can you think of another organization that has such demanding hours? As for day camps like Bayview Glen, staff are onsite well before campers arrive for the day and are still there after they leave at the end. By the time September hits we’re exhausted, and the pace of the camp season would be unsustainable year-round. At Bayview Glen Camp, we consider ourselves particularly fortunate because in addition to getting to spend the summers with our camp community, we also get to welcome campers for a two-week period during March Break. Winter goes by quick as we eagerly wait to welcome back the Bayview Glen Camp community in the spring. Even though office work may not be as exciting as camp life, it’s unquestionably essential for the successful organization of the Summer Camp program.
The summer months move so quickly that the off-season is a great time for dialing in all aspects of camp. We have the ability to be thoughtful and creative in the way we envision and organize the upcoming camp season. This allows us to ensure that each camp season builds upon the previous season’s successes. All the hard work that happens in the off-season is centered around that opening day of camp. That glorious day where all our staff are trained and ready to provide our campers with the best possible Summer camp experience.
The key to our mission is our staff!! We dedicate a large portion of time (beginning in November) to hiring the approximately 100 staff members needed to make camp possible. During this time, we facilitate around 300 staffing interviews/check-ins. What other companies do you know that run that many interviews on a year-to-year basis? Our goal is always to hire amazing camp staff that provide their campers with an amazingly positive and immersive Summer Camp experience. The more staff we have the chance to meet, the more likely it is that we are able to accomplish this goal.
In addition to recruiting staff, we are always looking to spread the word about the amazing Bayview Glen Day Camp experience to families that are not already part of our camp community. Developing strategies to reach these families takes hours of brainstorming, organization, and implementation. Whether we are creating new brochures, attending camp fairs/open houses, placing ads in various city-wide publications, answering emails and/or messages from our website, growing our camp community is always a focus for BVG!
That being said, ensuring that all campers have an unforgettable summer with us will always be our top priority! That’s why we begin planning new strategic partnerships and program offerings in September. Even if we have been extremely proud of the program we offered in past Summers, we will always strive to evolve and grow the overall camp program. We start confirming our 3rd party program before the turn of the calendar for the upcoming camp season. We try to find the best program partners who can elevate campers experience from good to straight awesome! In doing so, we ensure our program providers share similar philosophies when it comes to immersivity and skill-building. We also collect feedback about our camp program through parent surveys and staff follow-ups. These allow us to continue to build upon past successes when planning for the upcoming Summer.
Oh, and don’t forget the constant communications with our camp families! We strive to update our camp community with any, and all, important camp information. From registration dates to program updates to staffing updates, the best way to show our camp families we are always thinking about you is to provide timely updates what’s going on at camp. Social media posts, blogs, newsletters, and emails are just a few of the ways we are constantly reaching out to connect with our community. We are more than aware that, without the ongoing support of our camp families, all the work we do in “the off-season” would be for not. So, thank you for your continued support of Bayview Glen Day Camp!
You get the idea…we’re taking care of the behind-the-scenes details that help to make camp great. You’ll find a best-in-class facility where your family will develop friendships, make connections and create cherished memories. We hope to see you there for Summer 2023.
Resources
https://www.acacamps.org/sites/default/files/resource_library/2020-Camp-Research-Forum-Book-Abstracts.pdf
https://www.acacamps.org/sites/default/files/resource_library/2021-Camp-Research-Forum-Book-Abstracts.pdf
https://www.acacamps.org/news-publications/blogs/camp-connection/working-summer-camp-can-be-more-fun-skill-development
https://www.acacamps.org/resource-library/articles/because-i-worked-camp
https://www.acacamps.org/resource-library/articles/summer-camp-jobs-why-work-camp
https://www.truenorthcamps.com/blog/benefits-of-working-at-a-summer-camp
https://www.teenlife.com/blog/being-camp-counselor-good-summer-job-your-teen/