Photo by Matan Kogen
At Jewish camps, many counselors started as campers themselves. They credit their leadership and mentoring skills to their years at camp.
Zach Mittelman, 20, is one such counselor. He serves as a counselor to counselors-in-training at Camp Airy in Thurmont. He prepares them to be staff counselors the following year.
Mittelman is a junior at the University of Richmond, double majoring in psychology and leadership studies. He said he strives to set a good example for when campers become CITs and counselors at the overnight camp.
“When I was a camper, I always looked up to these older counselors for not just leading by example, but also for giving really good advice,” he said. “Now you just want to be that person for them, whether they’re 17 or they’re 6.
“We want to give them the best possible summer, just being there when they need it most,” he said. “We’re trying to prep them into being great counselors for the future.”
Madelyn Brown, a recent high school graduate, is a counselor for 10-year-olds at Camp Louise in Cascade. For 10 years, she was a camper, then she transitioned to a counselor.
“I’ve always looked up to my counselors, and I wanted to give other campers the same opportunities that my counselors gave to me,” said Brown, who is going to Penn State University in the fall. “Mostly to be your authentic self and be exactly who you want to be, free of judgment.”
Hana Feig, 19, head of music at Ramah Day Camp in Germantown, enjoys being with kids and getting on their level.
“I love to share my love of Judaism and music, playing my guitar and doing tefillah and seeing them get into it,” said Feig, who is entering Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania in the fall as a Jewish studies major and music minor. She plans to go to rabbinical school.Meital Siegel, 17, is a head counselor at Ramah Day Camp and a rising senior at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville.
“It gives me a lot of joy to make connections with kids over the years. I just get to watch them grow up,” she said.
Ian Toppall, 18, of Fairfax is a junior counselor at Camp Ramah in Palmer, Massachusetts. The first time he came to camp he was 9 years old. He likens the counseling experience to working at Disney World.
“You’re no longer there to experience the magic,” he said. “Instead, you’re creating the magic for other people. I had a really influential couple of counselors during my last few years as a camper and I try to emulate the experience they gave me for the campers I have now. It’s awesome.”
Toppall graduated from Robinson Secondary School in Fairfax and will be attending Columbia College in Chicago in the fall. He plans to major in comedic writing and performance. Toppall believes that the leadership experience at Ramah prepares a counselor for the business and organizational world.
“It’s very collaborative within a structured leadership system,” he said. “There’s a line of command, which is really interesting.”
Kate Falls, 26, has worked in inclusion services at Lessans JCC Day Camp in Rockville since 2015. Now she is the program’s year-round director.
“It was my first job, and I ended up just falling in love with it. It was just the most impactful experience that I’ve ever had,” she said.
“I’ve had an incredible support system that’s taught me how to do better and how to be better,” continued Falls, who has a college degree in special education. “Camp is unique because it takes these teenagers who don’t have any experience and we give them the coaching and the mentoring and the space to make mistakes and the space to do better. It gives you a set of professional skills that you can’t get in other places.”
Marnie Hackman of Bethesda grew up going to Capital Camps in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, starting at age 10. She has risen through the ranks and is now, at 24, the coordinator of counselors-in-training.
“I love helping them transform from camper to counselor,” she said.
“Most of the counselors want to work at the camp because they had such a good time growing up in camp and they experience these full circle moments,” said Hackman, who is entering the master of social work program at the University of Pennsylvania in the fall. “As a counselor, what motivated me was the positive experiences I had at camp and being able to give that to younger campers,” Hackman said. “I’ve been able to watch them grow up and now give the gift of camp to future campers, l’dor va’dor.” ■
Ellen Braunstein is a freelance writer.