Finding My First Full-Time Job in Camping

By Laini Wargo 
Program Director, Detroit YMCA Camp Nissokone
TSCS Emerging Leader Cohort Member, Fall 2019

My camp story is one that you’ve probably heard before – a longtime camper turned seasonal staff and leadership team member. Camp was the most important place for me as a child. As I grew older and stepped into the role of counselor, camp helped shape who I was as a person, and who I aspired to be in the future. 

As I entered college, I studied what I thought I should – a science-related field at a decent sized university. The semesters were full of all the things a family hopes to hear about around the Thanksgiving table – rigorous courses, extra curriculars, a part time job, etc. The busy semesters made my escape to camp each summer that much more exciting. Aside from an oasis in the busyness of college, my pilgrimage back to camp was a journey for meaning and purpose, doing work that I felt mattered in today’s world. 

It was my second summer on staff when our Camp Director asked the question, “Have you ever thought about a career in camping?” At the time it was a question easily ignored or at least set to the side. In my mind I thought “A camp job? Me? Never.” I had my plan and my science-filled degree, and a future that I had been working toward. That summer came and went; the days lasted forever while the weeks flew by in a blink – time works differently at camp as we all know. I went back to college, filled with the impactful memories of another summer spent at camp. 

During that year I attended my first professional camping conference, learning what the industry looked like on a bigger scale. At that point my Camp Director asked again, “Why not a career in camping?” The following summer was life-changing for me; I experienced the great responsibility and joy of building and directing our Leader-in-Training Program with almost 40 amazing teens – future leaders of this world. When the summer finished my Camp Director asked the all-important question again. My protests grew weaker as time went on; camp provided a million new reasons every summer as to why I should say yes. 

 As I completed my degree in the spring of 2018, I decided one last trip to camp was in order before venturing out into “the real world.” During that summer, the best one I had ever experienced, I had my epiphany while leading a backpacking trip for a group of teens. Living out of a backpack and having unforgettable moments with these campers was enough to make me finally realize that camp was the future for me. This planned out life I had imagined, was missing one key thing – meaning. Later that year, a full-time position opened up at my home camp, a dream job for me really. I applied and was given the job a few months later. 

In looking back at the journey to my first full time job in camping, it was a reluctant discovery. Through it I have come to realize that we, as an industry, need to discredit one primary argument in order to make camp a professional option for other young and talented people – “Camp isn’t a real job.” 

When thinking about my own experiences, I know that a few key moments made all the difference in changing my mind. As a camping professional now, I focus on these three things when encouraging my seasonal staff to stick with camp: 

1.    Explain the benefits and reality of a job in camping – Often times camp offers free accommodations onsite, provides food during the main season, and full-time health and retirement benefits. Camp can be a pretty sweet gig if they are suited for it.

2.    Show them what a job in camping looks like – A full time job in camping isn’t the same fun-filled summer that seasonal staff experience…but it’s still pretty incredible. Explain what the real responsibilities are in different full-time roles, take the time to show them different sides of camp – from operations and finances to program development and marketing.

3.    Be persistent, invest, and advocate – Just like my Camp Director did – ask, and ask again, (and maybe one more time). Bring candidates into the process and invest in their development by providing new opportunities for growth and feedback. Advocate for camp jobs every opportunity you can.

 My path to a full-time job in camping wasn’t a straight path, it was full of ups and downs, zigs and zags, clarity and confusion, but most of all, it was full of the passion and love that only a place like summer camp can inspire. When we believe in the power of camp, we have the ability to bring more people into our collective community. And at the end of the day that’s the magic of it – an experience that doesn’t just belong to a single person, one that belongs to all of us.

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Laini Wargo is the Program Director at YMCA Camp Nissokone in Oscoda, Michigan. She specializes in teen programming, off-site wilderness trips, and staff mentorship. Laini joined The Summer Camp Society in Fall 2019 as part of our Emerging Leaders program. Contact her at ewargo@ymcadetroit.org.  

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Looking for a full-time job in camping? Join Sarah Kurtz McKinnon for “Launch Your Camp Career”, a four-part online seminar of how to do it, including a personalized resume workshop and mock interview with feedback. Learn more here. Starts February 11, 2020.