We just found this video made by Camp Tecumseh in Indiana. It was so good I immediately wished we had made it.

The nice thing about the camping industry is that enlightened summer camp professionals know that there are enough campers out there for us all to be successful. In turn, if one of creates something this good. Its ok to share as long as you give credit back. So thanks Tecumseh!

Getting to the Point: Summer camp employment is not for everyone. You need to have patience, endurance, imagination, and be ready to help other people. Watch this video and if it doesn't move you to want to work at a camp, then do not apply. 

Lets say you want to work at a camp, Camps are special for both our campers and staff. Be prepared for what could be a fundamentally life changing experience. Additionally, its the perfect place to test yourself, take the lessons learned, and apply them to other opportunities.

If you are interested in applying at Oswegatchie for a summer job, following the link below. Let it be known that applications are due in early February. If you do miss the deadline, a phone call can determine if any opportunities still exist.

Hello Oswegatchie Enthusiasts;

Oswegatchie is in the startup stage of the 2014 summer camp season. The biggest thing I get done in February is summer camp hiring.

I am looking for responsible individuals who will be at least graduating high school in June. I am will be hiring everything including counselors, dishwashers, food service assistants, firewood workers, and cleaning staff.

There is a significant change in attitude needed to be successful as staff as compared to a camper! You are no longer here for yourself, you are here for the campers. This is a "make or break" point.

Applications can be downloaded at the following link http://www.oswegatchiecamp.com/employment.html , and they are due on February 1st. I can accept late applications, but no promise I will do interviews. Still,  It is better to be late and have a chance then to not be in the system!

Please share this with as many people as you see fit.  We thank you for your help as our best spokespersons for what we accomplish as a community!

http://www.oswegatchiecamp.com/employment.html

Excelsior,
Bill Waite
Summer Camp Director

As a summer camp director, I have the privilege of working with many fantastic young people; I am responsible for hiring 30 people to fill different niches on summer staff. I hire many young adults that were campers themselves and are moving on to colleges and university. We do whatever we can do to give them a professional work experience. For many of these young pups, this is their first true work experience. It’s a great opportunity for Oswegatchie to provide to them, and hopefully they value their camp experience more because of it. 

In most situations, individuals are best served by Oswegatchie for 4 summers. In that time frame, we can give them good opportunities as a counselor and some vertical promotion into certain specialties like equine director, ropes specialist, or water safety instructor. 

After 4 summers, most staff is encouraged to experience new jobs at other facilities. It’s entirely in their best interests. Speaking from personal experience, there is tremendous culture shock when you start work elsewhere. That adjustment is a powerful lesson and crucial in making staff better people and a part of our alumni family.

While staff is here with us and they prove they can handle the basics, we start to watch the staff for 2 things: Initiative and how they handle Opportunity! It takes very little opportunity to test the initiative of almost anyone. When you have a chance to take on a special task, whether it be for an entire summer or for day, how you use it speaks volume. If you give it the right stuff and its shows, you will be rewarded, It maybe the opportunity that gave you the chance, but its your initiative that gives you the opportunities of the future. The rest is up to you.

In the 4 years you may have at camp, it’s crucial to seize opportunities and make the most of them. It’s what determines who gets more opportunities and your own legacy as time moves on.

As far as female enrollment goes, The biggest 2 changes to camp occurred in 1968 and 2001. In 1968, girls were first allowed to join the FFA and attend camp. That first year, there was 1 female camper. This slowly changed till the gender split equaled out in the 1980s. This required more female staff and changed the culture to be less male oriented and more nurturing and beneficial for younger campers, male or female.

In 2001, Oswegatchie had a major surge in enrollment. That year we picked up 115 additional campers over our yearly average. At this point, the male / female split started to dramatically shift. We started to hire more female counselors and less male counselors. Within a few years, we would have 3 female campers for every 1 male camper. Not every week is so lopsided, but as the camp continues to grows, the quantity of female campers continues to grow.

I can safely say that the increase in females has given us a bigger pool of quality staff to draw from. If you could look at our staff, our non-counselling staff has become more female, and by default, more of the leadership at the camp has become female. 

Lastly, one of our best female staff members in the last decade is a young lady named Morgan Shaver. In general, she is an over achiever in everything she does. She is a Cornell student, world traveler, and energetic force. She comes from a family with terrific parents and sincerely loves working with youth. The video was made for Morgan as she was in a highly competitive run for National FFA Office. She was not elected, but received a tremendous amount of support from the FFA community, which was filled with people she worked with at camp. 

Morgan Shaver is a prime example of the quality female staff that work at Oswegatchie. 

I hope you enjoy the video.

Sincerely,
Bill Waite 
Camp Director

Since 1998, Oswegatchie has slowly been building itself up to offer great opportunities for campers and guests. There was plenty of boot strapping to get buildings and programs up to their current levels. With more success, the more work there was to accomplish. Even today, we are working tirelessly to make Oswegatchie a better place. 

Todd Lighthall has served as the camp's leadership since 1993. Much of the work accomplished today was his hard work and sacrifice to get Oswegatchie to its modern state.Thanks to Todd's hard work, Oswegatchie was able to increase its capacity and eventually offer full time employment to 3 employees.  Currently, all 4 full time employees work diligently to improve the total Oswegatchie experience. 

The advantage of full time staff can be summed up with the word "CONSISTENCY"! Before Oswegatchie had full time staff focusing on key parts of our operation, seasonal employees would do their very best with what resources they had available. Unfortunately, most of the experience and knowledge that someone would accrue over 3 summers, would be lost when they would move on in life. You would see "Good Intentions, but Bad Ideas" recycled every few years. So much effort, energy, and funds would get wasted. 

Once full time staff were hired, it was very easy to start making serious progress in how summer camp operated. Little savings one year would make bigger savings the next year. This systematic approach to management has led up to making a very safe and growing camp for hundreds of youth.If you look back. Camper management, food service, and our physical plant have all improved with this strategy. Even staff hiring and training are better as we learn from the past and make better decisions regarding employees.

If you want to read our staff bios, click here to read about our great full time staff.

Excelsior,
Bill Waite
Summer Camp Director