Working at Camp Starlight for a summer is fun, challenging, and rewarding. You have the opportunity to live in a bunk with our campers on our beautiful campus in the endless mountains of Northeast Pennsylvania. You will work with campers during each of our six activity periods. However, you will be with the kids so much more often than that. In fact, you’ll be with them from wake-up to bedtime.
Mealtimes. Rest Hour. Shower Hour. Activity Periods. All-day long, you have the chance to interact with our amazing campers. And as lucky as you are to be with them, they are equally fortunate to have you as one of our amazing staff members.
Through all the time that you spend with your campers, it only takes a single moment…a single moment to change a child’s life. This may sound like something out of a fantasy novel, but it is absolutely true. We can all think back to a single conversation we had with an adult when we were younger that still impacts us today. The strangest part about this “moment”? You will never know it’s happening, and neither will the child. You may say something that seems inconsequential to both of you. Then, days later, that child is still thinking about it and you have long since forgotten about it. Years later, you’ve changed that child’s future based on a single conversation, and while they frantically search for your phone number to say “Thank You,” you may hardly remember that camper.
At the conclusion of my third summer at Camp Starlight, I received a Counselor Appreciation letter from a camper who wrote about something that had happened the summer previously. The letter detailed a very intellectual and emotional realization that the camper had due to an interaction we had. However, this interaction wasn’t a profound conversation or a disciplinary issue. This interaction was me turning off the water while he brushed his teeth. He turned it back on. I turned it off. We went back and forth several times, and, amidst our laughter, I finally convinced him to leave it off once I left the bathroom. In my mind, that was the end. However, for reasons he explained in the letter, this was genuinely a meaningful moment in his life that he still thought about over a year later. Without his Counselor Appreciation Letter, I would have never known this “moment” existed.
As a counselor at Camp Starlight, we only ask that you come as you are. Athletic, quirky, nerdy, shy, outgoing, or anything in between. We’ve seen it all and appreciate it equally. As a staff member, we don’t expect your summer to be filled with life-changing moments. In fact, looking for these moments would be counterproductive. By simply being yourself, you will build strong relationships with your campers.
So, don’t search for this “moment.” Embrace your individuality and cherish the summer with these amazing children because as much as you can impact them, they will certainly have an impact on you.
For some, leadership is an inherent trait. For others, it is learned. However, all of our campers can learn and develop leadership skills. At Camp Starlight, our Leagues Program provides our campers with a great opportunity to hone their leadership skills.
As we celebrate the New Year, we can’t help but look back on all that was sweet last summer at Camp Starlight. We take this time to appreciate the beautiful gifts that camp gives all of us.
We envision the beauty of Camp Starlight. We recall the feeling of driving down the mile-long road, lined with trees on both sides and the feeling you get when you wrap around the corner and see the image of camp after waiting 10 months. The endless mountains and the reflection of the beautiful sunset over lake as the day nears the end are so clear in our minds. Finally, we picture the stars that twinkle above our summer home. We think about the wish we made on a shooting star, that will hopefully bring us all home next June.
Under the rec hall is a state-of-the-art program area known at Starlight Studios. The Studios are specifically for unleashing your creativity in many different ways.
Sunday night marked the fourth production in the Starlight Playhouse, The Jungle Book. This family-oriented musical tells the story of Mowgli (Simon B), and his journey through the jungle. He is guided by Bagheera the Panther (Mikayla T) and Baloo the Bear (Rory M) as he learns valuable lessons about life and about himself. Crowd favorite songs included the beloved classic, “The Bare Necessities” as well as “Trust in Me” and “Overture”. The hard work of the juniors surely showed when the audience was offering a standing ovation to congratulate them on a job well done. An honorable mention is also in order for the adorable elephants, played by our very own day campers!
It’s safe to say that on the eve of July 20th, the bunks at Camp Starlight were filled with pure excitement and energy. Visiting Day is one of the most anticipated days of the summer, and with good reason; it’s the day where campers and their families are finally reunited, in a party of laughing, crying, and eating.
We are thrilled to be welcoming Courtney back as our camp photographer for her second summer at Camp Starlight! Read below to see some of her favorite photos from summer 2018. 