Healthy Living
Youth volunteers bring leadership, enthusiasm, and their hearts to YMCA Summer Day Camps
29 August 2018 - by Lucy Schmidt
If one thing is understood by staff and campers at Milton E.C. Drury Y Day Camp (besides the fact that Wet Wednesdays are the best!), it’s that April is a volunteer that you can rely on.
“Where there is work to be done, that’s where April will be,” says Roya, E.C. Drury camp director. We find April, a soon-to be-ninth-grader, in the storage room cleaning up. “She’s always one step ahead,” Roya says, beaming. “She finds a job to do without needing to be asked.”
April agrees to give me a tour of the camp. It is clear that she knows the place like the back of her hand. In each new space we enter, April tells the story of an event or activity that she is reminded of. She informs me that at the beginning of the summer, she worried about finding her place and fitting in with the new staff. Would they be interested in her ideas, even though she was a volunteer? But the staff, April assured me, made her feel like part of the team, and so she was happy to dive in and become involved in any way she could.
Each year, about 100 volunteers like April bring their time and skills to 27 YMCA day camps. Their contribution is essential to helping the day run smoothly, and they can be seen assisting camp staff, helping with set up and take down, and serving as mentors to the children. They bring fresh enthusiasm and offer an extra layer of support for staff and campers. Some volunteers, like April, choose to come every day for all nine weeks of summer!
April is humble, but as she shows me around, I see her influence all over camp. She’s made art walls displaying the children’s work and has used her artistic abilities to create a mural of the camp mascot — a giant, friendly-looking moose. But the real impact is something that I know I cannot see. April says the most rewarding part of camp is working one-on-one with children. Campers who struggle in a big group setting can count on April to get to know them and help them feel less nervous.
“When working one-on-one,” says April, “you can see a child’s needs and what they are comfortable with. It becomes a bond and there is more trust.” She says that it was her counselors who inspired her to make a difference. “It was seeing kids grow and change. Seeing how one person could help them. I wanted to do that too.”
April is an inspiring example of how youth, through volunteering, can learn dedication, responsibility, and compassion. Check out our current listing of volunteer opportunities to see how you can get involved in shaping your community!
“Where there is work to be done, that’s where April will be,” says Roya, E.C. Drury camp director. We find April, a soon-to be-ninth-grader, in the storage room cleaning up. “She’s always one step ahead,” Roya says, beaming. “She finds a job to do without needing to be asked.”
April agrees to give me a tour of the camp. It is clear that she knows the place like the back of her hand. In each new space we enter, April tells the story of an event or activity that she is reminded of. She informs me that at the beginning of the summer, she worried about finding her place and fitting in with the new staff. Would they be interested in her ideas, even though she was a volunteer? But the staff, April assured me, made her feel like part of the team, and so she was happy to dive in and become involved in any way she could.
Each year, about 100 volunteers like April bring their time and skills to 27 YMCA day camps. Their contribution is essential to helping the day run smoothly, and they can be seen assisting camp staff, helping with set up and take down, and serving as mentors to the children. They bring fresh enthusiasm and offer an extra layer of support for staff and campers. Some volunteers, like April, choose to come every day for all nine weeks of summer!
April is humble, but as she shows me around, I see her influence all over camp. She’s made art walls displaying the children’s work and has used her artistic abilities to create a mural of the camp mascot — a giant, friendly-looking moose. But the real impact is something that I know I cannot see. April says the most rewarding part of camp is working one-on-one with children. Campers who struggle in a big group setting can count on April to get to know them and help them feel less nervous.
“When working one-on-one,” says April, “you can see a child’s needs and what they are comfortable with. It becomes a bond and there is more trust.” She says that it was her counselors who inspired her to make a difference. “It was seeing kids grow and change. Seeing how one person could help them. I wanted to do that too.”
April is an inspiring example of how youth, through volunteering, can learn dedication, responsibility, and compassion. Check out our current listing of volunteer opportunities to see how you can get involved in shaping your community!
