Because of Camp. . .™
The
possibilities are endless By Marcia Ellett
For almost 150 years the camp community has had a secret. Not
a well-kept secret, mind you, because you can see it in your
neighborhoods, in your office buildings, on your favorite TV
shows — you can see it at sporting events and hear it on
your radios. But just in case it's still a secret to you,
it's time for the camp community to shout it from the rooftops.
When your kids come home energized from their summer camp experiences
with that confident, exuberant, knowing smile you've never
quite seen before broad across their faces, it's because
camp has given them more than happy memories. Because of camp
they'll have lasting friendships, understand the value
of empathy and compassion, know how to be a valuable and contributing
member of a team, and have developed critical-thinking skills
to stand them in good stead as future leaders and responsible,
community-minded adults.
"Simply put, camp changes lives," says Peg L. Smith,
American Camp Association's® (ACA's) chief executive
officer. "Camp, and the experience of camp, define us,
even as adults. Camp has changed many lives, introduced people
to new passions and broadened horizons."
The proof is indeed everywhere.
Just ask Olympic gymnast Kerri Strug. Best known for landing
a critical vault on one leg after injuring her ankle in the 1996
Olympics and helping to secure the gold medal for the U.S. women's
gymnastics team, Strug credits camp for teaching her how to be
a team player.
Ask 18-year-old actress Emma Roberts, who took on the role of
literary icon Nancy Drew, starred in the movie Hotel
for Dogs released earlier this year, and is set to appear in a number
of other films in the coming months. For some in her position,
it might be difficult to stay grounded, but, she says, "Because
of camp I learned to make lasting friendships with people I still
keep in touch with today."
Ask professor and Emmy award-winning journalist Frank Sesno.
His work for news giant CNN has taken him around the globe and
given him the opportunity to interview dignitaries including
four American Presidents, the late Palestinian leader Yasser
Arafat, and former Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu.
But it was at camp as a boy, he says, that he "learned
to navigate the world."
Ask singer and songwriter Lisa Loeb, who says, "Because
of camp, I play guitar." And with her guitar and acoustic
melodies in tow, she went on to garner a No. 1 single, gold records,
and Grammy nominations. In fact, she was so inspired by camp
that she released a children's CD of camps songs in 2008
titled Camp Lisa and launched the Camp Lisa Foundation to help
raise money to send kids to camp.
Or, ask actor and author Hill Harper, who currently stars on
TV's CSI: NY. He says, "Because of camp, I learned
about self-esteem." He poured that crucial lesson into
Letters to a Young Brother: MANifest Your
Destiny, a book of
advice for teens that won the American Library Association's
2007 prize for Best Book for Young Adults.
While not everyone who goes to camp will end up famous, everyone
who goes to camp can learn the life skills and find the fortitude
needed to follow their dreams. The secret is out: Camp changes
lives. So here's to every child having the opportunity
to experience the wonders of camp. And to every adult echoing
the words of actress Lisa Raye, who says, "Because of camp,
I turned out just fine."
Writer Marcia Ellett believes that because of camp and the encouragement
she received there to spread her creative wings she found her voice
and now enjoys writing about the camp triumphs of others.
