{"id":2563,"date":"2025-07-05T10:12:47","date_gmt":"2025-07-05T14:12:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/?p=2563"},"modified":"2025-07-05T10:13:07","modified_gmt":"2025-07-05T14:13:07","slug":"campfire-tales-the-first-to-walk-the-path","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/campfire-tales-the-first-to-walk-the-path","title":{"rendered":"Campfire Tales | The First to Walk the Path (7\/4\/25)"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Aaron Selkow, Owner\/Director<\/pre>\n
The first week of camp is wrapping up, and if you\u2019ve ever been part of a camp community, you know what a big deal that is. That first week is everything. It sets the tone. It\u2019s when friendships are sparked, trust is built, routines take shape, and the air starts to feel like summer in a way that only camp can deliver.<\/p>\n
And here at Chestnut Lake, the first week has been, in a word: amazing<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
The kids have been all-in, trying new things, making new friends, showing kindness, and cheering each other on. The staff have been exactly what we hoped for \u2014 present, prepared, and full of heart. Even the weather has smiled on us, which is not something we take for granted in the Poconos. We\u2019ve had some of those golden summer days that feel like they were tailor-made for running around, lake excitement, and community campfires.<\/p>\n
But what\u2019s really made the week stand out isn\u2019t just the fun or the sunshine. It\u2019s something deeper.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s leadership<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
\"\"<\/a>Leadership is one of those things we talk about a lot at camp \u2014 not because it\u2019s a buzzword, but because it\u2019s a living, breathing part of everything we do. At Chestnut Lake, leadership isn\u2019t about being the loudest voice or the one with the most experience. It\u2019s about presence. It\u2019s about intention. It\u2019s about knowing that your energy affects others in your cabin group, the people at an activity, and choosing to make that energy positive.<\/p>\n
And this summer, we\u2019re seeing that kind of leadership show up in all corners of camp. We\u2019re seeing it in counselors who kneel to talk to a camper with kindness and empathy. We\u2019re seeing it in Division Leaders who stay up late to make sure everything\u2019s just right for the next day. We\u2019re seeing it in quiet moments \u2014 when a program leader includes a camper who\u2019s standing off to the side, or when a staff member picks some trash up off the ground without being asked.<\/p>\n
But there\u2019s one group that I want to highlight, because what they\u2019re doing is not only meaningful \u2014 it\u2019s brave.<\/p>\n
This summer marks the beginning of our revamped Leadership Training (LT) Program<\/strong>, and we have eight returning young men who stepped up to be the first to walk this new path. These are campers who have grown up at Chestnut Lake. They know the traditions, the way it feels<\/em> to be a camper here. And now, they\u2019re in the in-between: no longer campers, not quite staff, but something entirely new.<\/p>\n
They are trailblazers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
That word \u2014 trailblazer \u2014 feels right. Because what these boys are doing isn\u2019t just participating in a program that already exists. They\u2019re building<\/em> it. With the help of a dynamic team of staff members, they\u2019re shaping what this program will become for years to come. They\u2019re leaning into the unknown. They\u2019re choosing to lead without needing credit, to serve without needing recognition, and to give without expecting anything in return.<\/p>\n
On their very first day, we asked them to reflect on what kind of leaders they wanted to be. They were given a simple prompt and a big question. What they gave back was something honest and real.<\/p>\n
\n
\u201cWe\u2019re learning to lead by doing. We want to be patient and calm but also assertive and clear. We want to show up, be open-minded, and work together. We want to lead by example, by choice<\/em> \u2014<\/em> not just because someone tells us to.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Those aren\u2019t the words of teens pretending to be leaders. Those are the words of young adults who are becoming<\/em> leaders.<\/p>\n
\"\"<\/a>This week, they\u2019ve helped our cabin staff, supported younger campers, and quietly stepped into moments that needed care. They\u2019ve practiced being calm when things get loud. They\u2019ve worked behind the scenes to make camp stronger. They\u2019ve stayed curious and thoughtful, and reflective. And perhaps most importantly, they\u2019ve paid attention. And today, they even navigated how you can serve Snow Cones without a Snow Cone machine.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s something powerful about being the first. It means you don\u2019t have a blueprint. It means you take a few steps into the dark, trusting that something good is on the other side. And when you do it right, you don\u2019t just find your way \u2014 you leave something behind for others to follow.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what these eight trailblazers are doing. They\u2019re not just walking a new path. They\u2019re building one. And they\u2019re doing it with courage, character, and a lot of heart.<\/p>\n
As we close out Week One, I\u2019m filled with gratitude. For our campers, for our staff, for the sunshine and the silly songs and the sound of kids laughing under the trees. But also \u2014 and especially \u2014 for the leaders in the making who are reminding us of what it looks like to grow into yourself, right here in the middle of camp.<\/p>\n
The trail they\u2019re walking is one worth following. And I can\u2019t wait to see where it leads next.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Aaron Selkow, Owner\/Director The first week of camp is wrapping up, and if you\u2019ve ever been part of a camp community, you know what a big deal that is. That first week is everything. It sets the tone. It\u2019s when friendships are sparked, trust is built, routines take shape, and the air starts to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":2569,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15,19,41,20],"tags":[18,31,35,23,37,22,16,25,24,29,30,2],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2563"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2563"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2563\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2570,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2563\/revisions\/2570"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chestnutlakecamp.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}