Camp Counselor

Who We Are: 

BYM Camps is a family of four summer camp programs spread along the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia and Maryland, serving approximately 600 young people between the ages of 9 and 17. Operated and stewarded by the Baltimore Yearly Meeting Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), these four programs are unique and distinctive but tied together by a belief in the importance and value of every person. From hiking to canoeing to rock climbing, from organic farming to creative arts, from group games to group work, our campers develop the kind of self-knowledge and self-esteem that leads to personal, emotional, and spiritual growth. These four programs provide a meaningful and unforgettable summer experience, but more than that, they produce in campers a lifetime of lessons, confidence, and connection.

What You’ll Do: 

The Counselor, who reports to the Camp Director(s), is responsible for the following:

• Living with campers and being their daily go-to support person. Looking out for campers’ safety and whereabouts at all times and providing a source of protection for children.

• Working collaboratively to organize and lead a variety of small and large group activities each session, including crafts, art, nature, singing, games, swimming, rock climbing, hiking, canoeing, etc.

• Planning and carrying out safe, challenging and invigorating multi-day wilderness backpacking or canoeing trips.

• Setting and maintaining clear, appropriate boundaries with campers.

• Attending staff meetings and working together with all counselors and staff to foster a youth-focused environment and an inclusive, supportive, and fun experience for campers.

• Enthusiastically leading group chores at meal times- these tend to be some of the most raucous, spirited parts of our day! 

Who You Are & Keys to Success (the must-haves):

To be successful in this job, you will excel in four areas:

• Relationship building and interpersonal communication: You communicate clearly, empathetically, and directly with your fellow counselors, campers, camper families, park rangers or staff at trip destinations, directors, and in-camp staff. You give and receive feedback that strengthens your own leadership skills as well as fostering the growth of your coworkers and of the camping program.
  

• Flexibility, adventure, and creativity: You live in rustic cabins and lead campers on rugged outdoor trips overnight. You respond to camper needs, weather events, and scheduling adjustments with a positive, collaborative frame of mind, centering the safety and experience of campers. You make creative use of available supplies and your environment to create engaging, enriching activities.

• Youth empowerment and development: You center the safety, wellbeing, and development of campers in your work. You hold appropriate boundaries and keep everyone safe while also offering challenges that encourage emotional growth and self-esteem. You are a positive and uplifting presence and you reflect back to campers their worthiness, capability, and inherent value.
  

• Commitment to equity and justice: You believe that a truly diverse camp community makes us stronger, wiser, and more resilient. You recognize that the Quaker value of honoring the divine in every person compels us to not just build an environment that is welcoming, but to build one together, incorporating the voices and lived experiences of all campers and staff, centering those that have been historically marginalized. You build age-appropriate social and emotional curricula for campers that includes structured opportunities to build meaningful relationships and transform conflict across difference.

If you were here right now, you would be: 

• Co-leading a hiking or rockclimbing trip along the Appalachian Trail

• Co-leading a workshop about a craft or skill you are excited to share and explore with campers
  

• Sitting at the fire circle, listening to campers speak out of the silence about their experiences on the challenging, fun backpacking trip you planned and took them on this week, reflecting on the growth and connections you helped foster.
  

• Helping campers scrub out a bathhouse while laughing, singing, and encouraging everyone.
  

• Working with a homesick camper, listening to their feelings and helping them find ways to plug into the camp environment and feel connected and supported while they’re away from home.

• Working together with a member of in-camp staff to transform a conflict between campers, helping them talk through what happened and how to move forward and have a great time at camp.

What Else You Should Know:

BYM Camps is an equal opportunity employer. We strongly encourage and seek applications from people of color, including bilingual and bicultural individuals, as well as women, and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. 

The position is seasonal and on-site in the summer, from mid-June to mid-August. Specific dates will be shared by your Director. The salary starts at $2200 for the summer. 

To apply, go to the BYM Camps Staff Portal, and submit an application there.