Camp Changed My Life

This week’s blog entry if from Jenna who has participated in Camp on the Move with North Star Reach for the past four summers. As an experienced camper, Jenna shares some of her favorite moments and best advice with us.

4 Years at Victory Junction Changed My Life

Advice to New Campers

When I first arrived at Victory Junction (A SeriousFun Camp in North Carolina) in the summer of 2011, everyone was smiling and exceptionally loud. They were all so eager to talk to anyone they could, and this became a little overwhelming. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced before.

If I were to give advice to the campers facing their first day, I would encourage them to just be themselves and hold nothing back. Campers are allowed to be silly, loud, or anything they please, and they are never judged for it. Something I always tell new campers is to sing, dance and have the time of their lives. It is important for every camper to open up, and step out of their comfort zone in a place that is totally safe.

The more experience, the better! I was eager to be involved in as many activities as I could! I would advise other campers to do the same! There is no such thing as “can’t” at camp. Try everything! If you don’t like it, that’s okay, but you’ll never know if you don’t try!

Favorite Camp Memories

Cabin time was one of my favorite memories from my experience at Victory Junction. During this time, campers and counselors could talk about anything, from our diseases and troubles to what we would fill a swimming pool with if we could. Interacting during cabin time was memorable because that’s where I opened up the most about things I had never felt comfortable talking to other people about before.

I learned that to make friends at camp you have to engage and experience things with everyone around you. If I had never gone to camp, I would have missed out on making a lot of really good friends. I met Marie and Amy during my first summer at camp, and the three of us became inseparable. Bonding with these girls through everything we did together the past four summers has built lifelong friendships. I have these friendships and all of these life-changing experiences, all thanks to camp.

Greatest Takeaways from Camp

Before attending Victory Junction, I was incredibly shy. Talking and meeting with new people was never my forte. Stepping out of my comfort zone at camp has allowed me to grow as a person in ways that my family and I had never imagined. I have talked about my camp experiences at many North Star Reach events in front of as many as 300 people! Camp has helped me conquer my fear of talking to others. These skills I’ve learned through camp have helped me become a lot less timid and more willing to step out of my comfort zone.

Camp is the place where our medical limitations do not exist. Camp is like heaven on earth, take it all in and be yourself.