Staff
Welcome Dyresha Harris, new Catoctin Director!!
We would like to welcome Dyresha as the new director of Catoctin Quaker Camp. Dyresha has been a part of the Catoctin Community for the past 33 years. We are excited to announce this new role for Dyresha and BYM Camps! Dyresha first joined the BYM camping community as a staff child in 1988. She was a camper for 8 years, and worked as counselor and assistant director for 11 years. In 2010 she started the Working Group on Diversity at Catoctin. Outside of the camping program Dyresha has worked with young people of all different backgrounds and ages for over 10 years. Originally hailing from the heart of Washington DC, she now works in a community center in her West Philadelphia neighborhood. She has been studying and practicing diversity education for seven years and facilitates professional development trainings throughout Philadelphia. Dyresha earned her BA with a double major in Sociology & Political Science and a Master’s in Urban Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. In her free time, Dyresha enjoys travel, crafts, dance, creative writing and spending time with her partner, camp alum, Eo Trueblood.
General Staff Information
All staff are 17 years old or older. A large majority of the camp staff are former campers. Because so many are former campers, they have had many years of camp experience already! We love to hire from outside the program as well.
All staff go through at least one week of training prior to camp. In addition, staff from each of the four camps come together for Skills Week which is a weeklong specialized training. Then each camp has a week of mandatory pre-camp training for their entire staff. We certify many staff members each year in CPR. Skills Week trainings, offered in rotation, include:
• Canoe skills and whitewater safety from CKAPCO (2007, 2010, etc.)
• Wilderness First Aid offered by SOLO (2008, 2011 etc.)
• Lifeguarding from the American Red Cross (2009, 2012, etc.)
In addition to these, some staff at each camp are certified rock climbing instructors trained through Earth Treks Climbing Center. Some staff are also trained as Wilderness First Responders.
Want more information? Contact Jane Megginson, Camp Administrative Secretary or call the BYM office at 717-481-4870
If you are interested in being on staff at one of the BYM camps, click on the link below to go to our online application.
For more information, contact the Camp Administrative Secretary, Jane Megginson: 717-481-4870.
The deadline for applying for best consideration is February 15. If that date has passed please apply or call BYM to inquire about openings.
Resources for Current/Returning Staff
Skills Week Training 2012: Sunday evening, June 17th - Friday, June 22nd. This year's training will be Lifeguarding, held at Opequon.
Pre-camp training 2012: Friday, June 22nd training begins at each camp for all counselors.
Additional Trainings: If you are interested in locating a training or certification that we do not offer or are not offering this year, use the resources below to find information about local classes that may be available. If you have other good sites or trainings to recommend, please let the Camp Administrative Secretary know.
• Wilderness First Aid: SOLO
• Canoe instructor and whitewater safety: American Canoe Association
• Lifeguarding and CPR: American Red Cross
• Rock Climbing Instructor: Earth Treks Climbing Center, Columbia, MD
Other Resources:
• American Camping Association - choose "education" from the menus on the left and then "education and training."
•Association for Experiential Education
Join the BYM Camps Yahoo! Group
This group is designed as a forum for counselors, staff, alumni, cooks, nurses, handy-people, parents, and others associated with the Baltimore Yearly Meeting Camping Program. Sorry, it is not intended for current or potential campers. (But, please, feel free to start your own group.) It is simply a way for us to keep in touch with each other throughout the year, to share what is happening in our lives, to organize reunions and get-togethers, to share ideas about camp, etc. Any user can post a message to the list. This is a fairly low traffic list so don't worry about being inundated with e-mails. We hope this forum is useful and fun. Enjoy!
Click here to join the group or enter your e-mail address below and click "Join Now".
A NOTE ON OUR PROGRAMS:
Our goal is to foster the kind of self-esteem that facilitates spiritual growth. Opportunities for such growth are created in the process of supporting campers through challenging experiences. Success in negotiating rapids or exploring artistic creativity offers a deeper strength from which to accept the challenge and risk of turning inward toward the Light. Typically, a camper goes home a more competent, confident person whose spiritual roots have deepened and whose ties to the broader Quaker community have strengthened.
