Camp Staff Introductions
With just a couple of weeks before the summer camp season starts. We are still looking for a few more staff to help run our program down at Cedar Lake. We need male counselors and a kitchen assistant. These are NOT volunteer positions, each staff person at camp is paid, with meals and housing provided. This is a great opportunity to spend 6 weeks during the summer connecting kids to the natural world around them. For more information on the positions and to apply please visit http://www.mucccamp.org/about/staff/.
Each year we hire 24 staff to run our program. I am looking forward to what each person can bring to the table this summer.
Starting at the top, we have a new Camp Director Max Bass joined MUCC in November and is eagerly awaiting the arrival of his first batch of campers at Cedar Lake. From the beginning, Max’s main goal for camp has been to keep all of the campers safe and having fun, while they are learning about all the different skills our program can offer including hunting, fishing, wilderness survival and conservation science.
This year our Assistant Director Joe Jaczkowski joins us from Saginaw Valley State University. Joe is studying biology and has been a conservation educator at camp for the last two summers. He is looking forward to his new administrative role and continuing to teach campers outdoor skills with knot tying being high on his favorite program list.
Next, we have our Camp Nurse Kennedy Gardner. Kennedy has been a camper, a junior counselor, and a conservation educator. As a camper, she went through our Counselors in Training Program. MOOD Camp has been a big part of her life and we are lucky to have her joining us in a role with new responsibilities.
On the range, one range office is Savana Shellman who has also previously been a conservation educator, jr counselor and camper at Cedar Lake. The other is Delanie Bruce who is joining us from Nebraska.
In the Kitchen, returning for his 6th year is Jose. We were extremely lucky to find Jose in 2014 and the camp bug bit him immediately. A teacher overseas in Spain when he is not at camp, he loves challenging himself in the kitchen to provide fun meals for the campers and staff.
Our Maintenance and grounds person is Josh Mitchell. Josh was a camper and then worked for me as a Jr. Counselor in 2015 and 2016. He took a few years off while working on his engineering degree and has decided to come back in a new role. Josh is looking forward to spending some time on the 0-turn lawn mower this summer.
Brittany Kuykendall will be supervising the waterfront this year. She is returning for her third year at Cedar Lake where she was a jr. counselor and conservation educator. She is excited to be our lifeguard and we are happy to have her skill set while our campers are swimming, fishing and boating.
Our conservation educators this year are all new faces. We have female educators joining us from Texas, Michigan and New York. While our male educators are from a couple of different locations around Michigan. They seem excited and will be arriving at camp on Monday the 17th to start training week. We could still use a few more male counselors to complete our education team.
This year our Program Assistants are Madelyn Moore, Avery Webster and Sara Garland. All three of these new staff members were once campers themselves. They have worked their way through the ranks as campers to join the team and be paid this summer!
With staff, representing many different parts of the state and a few joining us from out of state our diverse team will be able to provide an exceptional experience for the campers this summer.
Whether your child is into hunting, fishing, wilderness survival, kayaking or conservation science MOOD Camp will be an exciting experience for them.
