Great NSC Road Trip Stop #1 - Athens, OH

I always look forward to the end of January and then February because it means travel for staff recruitment as well as the American Camp Association National Conference. You can check out the different stops that Andy and I will make over the next several weeks. On this current road trip Andy will join me in St. Louis on Friday, but I am flying solo to our college staffing fairs. Stop #1 was Athens, Ohio and Ohio University.

This is my first visit to Athens and Ohio U. Many of my campus visits are staff fairs or info tables, but the folks in the Outdoor Recreation and Education Department gave me a special opportunity. One of the instructors in the department invited me to speak to a few of her classes as well as a few other classes in the department. I was excited about gaining the additional exposure and the opportunity to sell a captive audience on the values of working at camp. When I was sent the schedule of classes, I was told that not only could I make an announcement, but for two of the classes, I was being asked to speak for the entire class period.

I pondered the idea of wearing a tweed sport coat and doing my best professor impression. That aside, It was really neat to be able to speak first to a senior seminar and then to a primarily  freshman/sophomore intro course, telling them about the summer camp industry. Only one person during my four presentations fell asleep, so I felt that it was a success.

Over the course of the remainder of the day I had an info table set up in the Baker Union. Campus visits are always a bit of a roll of the dice and sometimes several people stop by, other times you sit there and figure out creative ways to pass the time, because no one is biting. Thankfully today was one of those days where we have some serious candidates as well as others who wanted to learn more about jobs at camp. 

One of the things that Andy and I truly believe is that while some folks are going to do a great job at a camp, it may not be at North Star. It may be that the job seeker wants something closer to their home. We also talk to lots of female students who want to be cabin counselors. We are happy to do all that we can to help them find their fit. Selling the value of working at a camp was a great honor, and hopefully we'll have a few OU Bobcats working at North Star this summer. 

My time in Ohio continues through Wednesday before heading to Western Illinois and then Mizzou at the end of the week. Keep an eye out for more reports from the road!

2015 January/February Travel Schedule

January/February 2015 Travel Schedule

1/26: Ohio University - Athens, OH

Info Table and Classroom Visits

12pm - 6pm  ■  Baker University Center

1/27: Hocking College - Nelsonville, OH

Info Table

11am - 2pm  ■  Natural Resources Building, 1st Floor Lobby

1/28: Ohio State University - Columbus, OH

Summer Job and Internship Fair

10:30am-3:30pm  ■  The Ohio Union, Archie Griffin Grand Ballroom

1/29: Western Illinois University - Macomb, IL

Summer Camp Job Fair

10am - 4pm  ■  University Union, Grand Ballroom

1/30: University of Missouri - Columbia, MO

Info Table
10am - 2pm  ■ MU Student Center (facing Kate & Emma’s in the food court)

1/31: Summer Opportunities (camper) Fair - St. Louis, MO

10am - 3pm  ■  Whitfield School

2/1 - 2/6: American Camp Association National Conference - New Orleans, LA

2/9: Marquette University - Milwaukee, WI

ACA Mini Fair

10am - 2pm  ■  Alumni Memorial Union

2/10: Ball State University - Muncie, IN

Campus Visit

2pm - 6pm  ■  Student Center, near Tally Restaurant

2/11: Indiana University - Bloomington, IN

IU Summer Camp Jobs Fair

11:30pm - 3pm  ■  Indiana Memorial Union, Alumni Hall

2/12: Purdue University - West Lafayette, IN

Camp Recruitment Day

9am - 3pm  ■  Stewart Center, Rm 214 B (T-06)

2/16: University of Wisconsin Madison

Information Booth

11am - 3pm  ■  Education Building, Morgridge Commons

2/17: University of Wisconsin Stevens Point

Summer Camp Job Fair

10am - 3pm  ■  Dreyfus University Center, Laird Room

2/18: University of Wisconsin La Crosse

Summer and Part Time Jobs Fair

10am - 3pm  ■  Cartwright Center, Valhalla

2/19: Winona State University - Winona, MN

Camp, Internship and Volunteer Fair

11am - 3pm  ■  Kryzsko Commons Student Union, East Hall

2/23: University of Wisconsin Parkside - Kenosha, WI

ACA Mini Fair

10am - 2pm  ■  Main Place: Indoor common area in front of the library, within Wyllie Hall

2/24: University of Wisconsin Whitewater 

ACA Mini Fair

10am - 2pm  ■  The University Center

The Siren: Kicking off New Staff Hiring Season

Today marks the unofficial kick-off of our new staff hiring season. We’ve actually been hiring new staff for a few weeks now. This is on top of a great returning staff that we are putting the finishing touches on as well as a great group of Counselors in Training. While we have already hired new staff members, tonight is the yearly kick-off event for us. From 6-8:30pm, we’ll have a table set-up at the Summer Opportunities Fair at the University of Chicago (In the Quadrangle Club).

Truth be told, we haven’t hired all that many staff from UofC over the years, but we go every year for a few reasons. We enjoy talking to prospective staff, the fair is free of charge, and Andy and I usually visit Medici, a restaurant best known as President Obama’s local pizza place in Hyde Park. Most importantly, the Summer Opportunities Fair is our version of spring training. We get a chance to polish up our staff fair skills before hitting the road later this month.

Along with our returning staff, some of whom are back for year #2, others back for #20, we put a lot of energy into recruiting the new staff that we hire. We believe that having a great crew of new staff is vital to North Star’s success. Having a balance of returners and new staff means that we’re able to keep a stronghold on great traditions and North Star values while injecting each summer with fresh ideas and energy. Things like Glen’s Game and Espionage are a few of many NSC favorites and that were brought to camp by people who didn’t grow up at North Star (Glen Miller & Julie Schmitt Gersch). We truly believe that new staff are vital to a healthy camp culture and a healthy camp culture will lead to new staff who love and respect camp as much as our returners.

In the coming months, we’ll visit over a dozen college campuses throughout the Midwest. We’re putting the finishing touches on a schedule that will take us to old favorites like Western Illinois University, Winona State and UW-La Crosse. We’re also excited about some prospective new stops like  The Ohio State University, Ohio U, and The University of Missouri. We have seen the benefits of meeting face to face with as many new staff as possible. Beyond the interviews, we call references, conduct criminal background checks and do a significant amount of due diligence on each new staff member that we hire. 

Putting a staff together is like assembling a puzzle and we eagerly approach this process. It’s also a lot of fun to meet and interview the men and women who are going to make a big difference at camp this summer. We’ll introduce you to all of our returning and new staff in the coming weeks and as we move towards the summer of 2015. Keep an eye on The Siren for new about where we’re headed and updates from the road.
 

We'll be there in 2015

We're almost ready to turn the calendar from 2014 to 2015, we're excited about the great campers that will be at North Star this summer. Below is our latest update of campers. 

We're excited to have the following returning campers back at North Star:

Chicago, IL: Aaron Stone

Deerfield, IL: Brett Needelman & Chase Needelman

Bellaire, TX: Josh Davidson

We welcome the following new campers for their first summers at North Star:

Denver, CO: Martin Askenazi, Jack Heller & Noah Zemel

Deerfield, IL: Ethan Blacher

Glencoe, IL: Will Glauberman

Highland Park,  IL: Colby Treschl

Chesterfield, MO: Charlie Solomon

Bexley, OH: Ethan Nguyen & Grant Nguyen

Mequon, WI: Jacob Bakalinsky

Want to see who else will be at camp in 2015? Here is our October list of new and returning campers. 

           

Do you know of someone who is looking to go to camp or might want to learn more about North Star? Fill out our Refer a Friend Form and we'll send them some info.           

Send us your NSC Gear Pics!

Is it really almost winter break? Many of you are down to your last few days of school for 2015 and  we know that you are looking forward to a few weeks off. For some that may mean some time to relax at home, catch up on shows that have been on the DVR for a few weeks, and hang out with friends. We know that many of you are headed out of town, off to visit family, spend some time in the sun, or hitting up the slopes for skiing and snowboarding.

Whatever your plans are, have a great winter break!  For those of you headed out of town, first and foremost, we hope that your travels are safe and without much hassle (yes, easier said that done). Have a great time wherever you go and make sure you end 2015 and start 2016 in great fashion!

One more thing... When you're packing your bags, don't forget to bring along your favorite NSC shirt, hoodie or other camp gear! Winter break is the perfect time to send us along your NSC Gear Pics from all over the globe. We love seeing our campers sporting their NSC clothes, whether its on a ski hill in Colorado, in front of an International monument or even in your living room. Make sure to get a pic and send it along so we can share it with the rest of the NSC family.

Here's how you can share your NSCGearPics with us

- Email it to office@northstarcamp.com

- Post it on facebook and tag North Star in the pic

- Post it on Twitter or Instragram and tag @northstarcamp and #NSCGearPics

We'll make sure to share that pic with your camp friends and add you to our NSCGearPics album. We've got a great collection of pics from campers, staff and alumni and we are looking forward to seeing lots of new cool pics from your adventures, whether that adventure is across the ocean or in your own back yard.

Have a great winter break!

Siren News Update: From the Office

We hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Whether you traveled somewhere or stayed home, hopefully your holiday was filled with fun family visits, good food and a bit of downtime. Its crazy to think that the calendar has now turned to December and we're just a few weeks from winter break and the holidays!

As I wrote in my last Siren entry, Andy and I headed up to camp for a few days towards the end of November. We wanted to check in with our caretaker Tom and see how our off season improvement projects are going. While winter at camp can bring tough conditions, that can't slow Tom down as this is when our maintenance projects have to happen. This year is no different as we have the following projects ongoing:

J-Village Washhouse Renovation

We know that this project will make our campers and staff very happy. Our main washhouse is in the midst of a major renovation. We started by gutting the existing shower area and enlarged it to include the area that housed our hot water heaters. The concrete floors were removed and replaced with a new drainage system. The concrete was a key because it was important that the new concrete was poured and cured before winter set in. 

By the time camp starts, the new shower area will see a total of 14 showers. Those showers will be fed by new tankless water heaters which will ensure enough hot water for all of our Junior and Intermediate campers and staff. New dividers, walls and an epoxy floor will make the washhouse look great! We'll also be adding more sinks to the washhouse and freshen up the walls!

Kings Lodge Renovation

Last summer we divided the Kings Lodge cabin into two sides. We were faced with the prospects of

having two really large Pine Manor cabins or three more manageable cabins first session. In order to make sure that the Canadian trip experience was the best possible, we wanted to have group sizes that weren't too big. The result was successful and this year we wanted to configure the two cabins to be as comfortable as possible for campers and counselors

Once camp ended, the building's interior was gutted. Tom, working with his brother-in-law Art, then moved the counselor quarters from the ends of the building to the middle of the building. The finished project will mean that the camper quarters are bigger, with the cabin configured much like the J-4/J-5 cabin is.Tom and Art finished this project while we were at camp and the cabins looked great!

I-1 Renovation

Over the years, our I-Village cabins received lots of TLC, with work done both on the interior and exteriors of the cabins. I-1 was one cabin that didn't receive an overall renovation. I-1 is a log cabin and is a really neat building with lots of character. While the logs will stay and the outside will maintain that character, the inside will receive new, knotty pine walls. This project will have some fun challenges for Tom and Art as they create a flush surface for the new walls.

Check out more pics of our off season projects!

Siren News Update: November from North Star

Greetings from the Northwoods! Andy and I decided to take a quick trip up to camp this week. November at camp can be a great time to visit. Its often a nice time to be up in the Hayward area, just as the fall is ending. Temps are often in the 30's and you can still get some pretty mild days. Of course, for most of you, you're likely seeing cold weather that is far below normal. Take heart, odds are that its a heck of a lot colder here than where you are! Since we headed up here early Monday I don't think we've seen temperatures north of 11 degrees.

We did come up here for a reason. Tom Brokaw, our caretaker has been hard at work on several camp projects. We wanted to check in on him, see the work that he had done, and also talk about some other projects. When we got to camp, Tom and his brother-in-law Art were hard at work in the Kings Lodge cabin. Over the past few weeks, they have been reconfiguring and upgrading the insides of the building which houses two of our Senior Village cabin. They'll soon be relocating up to the Ridge and working on an overhaul of the interior of cabin I-1.

The other big project that has began several weeks ago has been a renovation of the interior of our Junior Village washhouse. It was important that some of the significant work was done before temps dropped below freezing and thankfully the early cold held off just in time for that. Keep an eye on The Siren as we'll be posting full details of our off season camp renovations, including pictures of the work being done.

We also had quite a bit of time to walk around camp. In addition to the cooler than normal temps, the Hayward area got about 16 inches of snow last week. While this made a hike around camp a bit challenging, it certainly added to the beauty of camp. Camp in the winter is totally different than summer. The trees are without any leaves, so you can really see from one end of camp to the other, spotting cabins and other things that are normally hidden by trees. The day we arrived here, Andy and I checked out the washhouse and then headed down to swim point and up the ridge. The wind was not our friend, and while it may have been about 9 degrees at that point, it felt much colder. We did our best to brave the elements, but several layers of clothes, ski gloves and wool socks can only do so much.

Over the last day and a half, we've managed to hit up most parts of camp. We checked out the Council Ring, athletic fields, riflery and archery ranges as well as the villa. Another thing that is very different about winter at camp is the sunset. During the summer we're used to picturesque sunsets at the Council Ring over Clear Lake. By this time of the year, the sun is setting further south in the sky, so we see the sun setting over Brewer's Bay. A potential winter funbug dude assignment would include watching the sun set towards Timber Bay Resort.

We'll head back to Chicago tomorrow. Again, keep an eye on The Siren for more news, including full details on the exciting off season camp projects. For more pictures of our "winter" trip to camp, check out the album on Facebook. We'll be adding more pics in the next few days!