Adventure Trip Staff Member: Cherie Haseltine

Cherie to the Rescue!
Cherie to the Rescue!

Cherie was part of our Adventure trip staff this past summer. She is currently a student at Brevard College. She heard about Rockbrook through Clyde Carter, who is the Chair of the Outdoor Department throughout the school year and also Rockbrook’s Outdoor Director during the summer. Before coming to camp, Cherie did a 21-day paddling and backpacking trip with school. She also received a certificate in Wilderness First Response and Water Safety. Cherie lived at camp, in the cabin known as “Dilly”, that is built right next to a creek.

Blast Off!
Blast Off!

Throughout the summer, campers and staff often serenaded Cherie by singing, “Cherie, Cherie Baby”, usually when she was coming up to announce a rafting, climbing or backpacking trip after a meal. Her main duties included packing the food, raft guiding, belaying and making sure campers stayed safe. When she wasn’t out on a trip, she helped at the Alpine Tower, and occasionally offered roll clinics in the lake. And of course, in the evening she’d dress up for that night event!

Working with Older Campers

Why  I Enjoy Working with Seniors

By the time campers are Seniors (13 – 15 yo), they’re self-sufficient enough that they can take care of their basic needs on their own, and as their counselor you can focus on getting to know the person they are becoming. It’s a hard age, and being around Seniors is like taking a time warp to watch yourself as you were growing up. You’re just close enough to their age to remember exactly what is was like, as as their counselor you are in the perfect position to give them the helpful or encouraging word you would have liked, needed or even did get to help you through all the crazy transitions of adolescence.

IMG_7614
Seniors
Seniors

Working with Seniors in your activity has the potential to be incredibly rewarding, because you can go past teaching basic skills and get into more of the technique and finesse of whatever i you teach. Watching a senior’s growth is amazing, because it’s often by leaps and bound you l have thought possible.

That being said, it’s important to remember that seniors are still campers. They still get homesick, sometimes forget to do their chores, refuse to get out of bed in the morning or go to bed at night and have their bursts of teenage sarcasm. But seniors are also funny, have interesting personal histories, and are just starting to articulate their goals and dreams to themselves – and maybe even to you, if you take time to listen. Every line has its own unique wonder, but working with seniors has helped me grow this summer in ways that I would not have imagined. Thank you, Senior Line!

Written by 1st time Senior Counselor, Kiva Nice-Webb who attends Elon University.

My Favorite Memories— Jill Purcell

The fabulous CA's waiting to greet surprised campers
The fabulous CA’s waiting to greet surprised campers

“Camp is a place to make countless unforgettable memories. You will often find, both Rockbrook campers and staff start stories with the phrase, ‘this one time, at camp’.

While I’ve made several wonderful memories this summer, one memory in particular that will stay with me always was the 24 hour period in which my campers, co-counselor and I set up and carried out 3rd session’s banquet.

Every wall of the dining hall was covered in theme posters like this one

Banquet is a HUGE deal to not only the CA’s ( the older campers who come up with the theme, plan and run the banquet) but to the entire camp. Personally, I wanted to do anything I could to help my campers put on the best banquet in Rockbrook history! The night before Banquet, my campers and I worked through our exhaustion by rockin’ out to Brittany Spears, Lady Gaga, etc., as well as maintaining a sugar rush from cookie dough and candy. The look on the girls’ faces after they had finished setting up was priceless – they were amazed with all that they had accomplished, as was I. Banquet itself was a great success and I was extremely proud of my fabulous CA’s. Every memory I’ve shared with them was unforgettable but Banquet was an especially great memory.”

ceiling decoration
The ceilings were decorated, too.

Being a Camp Leader

Leadership for Summer Camp Kids

One important mark of leadership for the staff at Rockbrook is their ability to model personal character for the girls at camp. We strive to hire cabin counselors and activity staff members who exemplify good character and thereby can serve as role models for the campers. It means a lot to children to see others they admire make good decisions. It’s just a crucial part of building character— having positive relationships with others who embody exemplary habits and attitudes. When we talk about “leadership” at camp, this is what we mean: being that sort of exemplary person.

But what is exemplary character, how do you recognize it, and how do you encourage its development? We’ve found the approach taken by the Josephson Institute to be extremely articulate and practical. It’s “Six Pillars of Character” is a well thought out resource. Essentially, the “pillars” are fundamental principles and values that serve as a core for ethical decision making. They are:

  • Trustworthiness
  • Respect
  • Responsibility
  • Fairness
  • Caring
  • Citizenship. 

Without appealing to religion, politics or ideology, we strive to realize these six values in our camp community.

There’s a lot of good stuff in all of this, so go learn more about character.

2009 Lovely Lineheads

Every age group, or “line,” has a head counselor known as a linehead. This year we have a stellar lineup (pardon the pun ;-))!

messy fun staff women
Christine in the middle

Juniors: This will be Christine Alexander’s 14th year at RBC! She loves to paddle around the lake and share her love for camp with everyone. She is attending George Washington University in DC.

funny messy women staff
Lexie and Katie going all out

Middlers: This will be Katie Cheney’s 5th year at camp. You’ll find her lifeguarding down by the lake this summer during 1st session. She is currently attending Penn State University. Lexie Sears will take over as linehead 2nd and 3rd session after returning from a study abroad trip to Australia. This will be her 9th year at camp! Lexie loves to climb and shoot guns down in riflery.

Smiling Sarah at Dolly''s after a game of Dress-up Bowling during orientation
Smiling Sarah at Dolly”s after a game of Dress-up Bowling during orientation

Seniors: Sarah Thompson joined our staff last year and quickly became an enthusiastic leader. She will be graduating from Emerson College in Massachusetts this May with a degree in Literature. She’ll be heading up the sports activity this year.

Thanks Ladies! Here’s to another great summer!

Is Camp Employment for You?

Summer Camp Employment

There are so many things a college student can do in the summer; camp employment is just one option. So why choose to work at a summer camp? Well the most obvious reason is a camp job is way more fun than most other short term jobs. You’re outside a lot, you’re goofing around with kids pretty much all day, and you get to live in a beautiful part of the country. It’s also true that being employed as a camp counselor helps you develop leadership skills, communication and organization skills. As you help the campers grow and learn new activities and personal skills, you do too. Working to make a difference in the lives of children, makes one in your own as well.

But perhaps the best thing about working at a summer camp is joining the tight-knit community of people that makes Rockbrook so special. It’s just so easy to make friends, you end up enjoying everything that much more. Sure, camp is employment and you’ll earn (and save!) some money, but it’s so much more. Rewarding, definitely rewarding, all around.

Spotlight on Jeff

Summer Camp director Jeff Carter

Jeff Carter began his Rockbrook career in the 1980s. Over the years he has served camp in more capacities than most staff members. Hired by previous owner Jerry Stone, Jeff planned and led hiking and climbing trips in his first summers at camp.

During this time he pursued many education opportunities including his degree in comparative religions from Davidson College, where he was also an All-American high jumper on the track team. Then he received his masters degree from Harvard followed by his doctorate at the University of Chicago. He spent a year living in Nigeria on a Fulbright Fellowship completing his studies.

After marrying Sarah (at Rockbrook!) and teaching at Davidson College, he returned to Brevard to help Jerry start the Castle Rock Institute (a college humanities program run at camp). During this time, Jeff continued to work behind the scenes at camp leading trips, keeping us technologically up-to-date, and fixing everything!

While Rockbrook is in session, Jeff continues to be our “Jack of all Trades.” Combining his outdoor knowledge with his goofy sense of humor, he is always up to something new. During the off-season, he works on key staff hiring, website maintenance, health and ACA standards, camp improvements, and the list goes on. Also, when Jeff isn’t busy with camp director duties, he enjoys being outdoors: biking, hiking, and climbing. Typically he brings his two daughters, Eva and Lily, along for an adventure!

Co-Counselors: Dynamic Duos

Abby and Elyse as Mountain mamas!
Abby and Elyse as Mountain Mamas!

Every counselor has at least one co-counselor. Together they help create a the framework which helps generates the sense of community among the cabin. Chore wheels, guidelines, cabin meetings (i.e. powwows), cabin day activities, eating together, staying up late to talk with someone who’s homesick, and just hanging out during free swims with their cabin group are all ways these fabulous pairs make their campers’ summer amazing!

The relationship formed between co-counselors is another ways that being a camp counselor at Rockbrook is THE most rewarding things you can do with your summer. It is not only great fun. It also teaches you how to work as a team with someone, to have a positive collaborative attitude, and to communicate and compromise to achieve a common goal. These are all life skills that help you achieve greater success in the future. Every job requires this kind of maturity, focus and productivity.

dynamic camp counselors
Michelle and Alice didn’t win the shaving cream fight -or did they?

Spotlight on Sarah

Sarah Reed Carter is the Director of Rockbrook Summer Camp for Girls

Sarah Reed Carter is the Director of Rockbrook. She grew up in Winston-Salem, NC and began her Rockbrook career in 1985. Sarah thought it would be fun to be a CIT (Counselor in Training) while her older sister was a cabin counselor. So at 16, she had her first camp experience not realizing what a big part of her life Rockbrook would be years later.

Sarah returned to camp year after year while attending Trinity College in Connecticut and until starting graduate school at Vanderbilt University for her Masters of Education degree. She taught drama, worked as a lifeguard, and served almost every age group as a cabin counselor. Along the way, she met her future husband Jeff, who at the time worked as a hiking and climbing guide for camp. Sarah and Jeff were married at Rockbrook in 1996.

For the next 8 years, Sarah taught elementary school in Nashville, TN, Concord, NC, and Asheville, NC.  After returning to Brevard, she became the director of a local preschool for 2 years before returning to Rockbrook to be a full-time director with Jeff.

While camp is in session, Sarah oversees camp life and communication with parents.  During the off-season, she works on camper recruitment, communication with Rockbrook’s camp families, and child specific issues.  She also loves spending time with Jeff and her two daughters Eva and Lily.