Camp counselor necessities

Extra Masks:

Little kids lose everything, Senior Kayla Liss, a and when they’re counselor at Ramah constantly running Day Camp agrees that around their masks can extra masks are important. break. “A lot of times they’ll get paint on their masks, or dirt, or it’ll just be really hot so their masks will get sweaty. So it’s important to always have some extras so they can swap out for a clean mask,” Liss said.

Water bottle:

On hot summer days, you should aim to drink half an ounce for every pound you weigh.

“It’s great to have a water bottle on you so that when you’re running around outside all day, you can just take a quick sip of water so that you can stay hydrated and keep your energy up,” Liss said.

Backpack:

Having somewhere to put your stuff so that you have your hands free for helping campers is super important, especially when the campers are younger and more hands-on helping is needed. “A backpack is so important because you have to carry around so much stuff, and you need to have your hands free. So it’s really easy to be able to just reach behind you and grab a water bottle, to grab a schedule, to grab a snack, whatever it is,” Liss said.

Sunscreen:

Having sunscreen on hand to protect yourself from the summer heat is essential. Reapplying sunscreen throughout the day will also teach campers to do the same.

“When it’s really really hot outside it’s important for you to stay safe from the sun, but also it’s important to make sure that your campers have access to sunscreen,” Liss said.

First Aid Kit:

“A first aid kit is important to have because... sometimes [the nurse] is a far walk, or it’s just easier to put a Having band-aids on hand for scraped knees, elbows and arms is always necessary when around energetic children. band-aid on a kid yourself.

It just keeps everything closer to you so that you don’t have to go far if a camper gets hurt,” Liss said.

1How did you get introduced to fencing? I was at a sleepover at [a friend’s] house and that night he was doing fencing, so I decided to go with them. And from then on, I went with him every week. For a while, I didn’t do it competitively, but then the past couple years, I’ve picked it up a lot more competitively. It was an art originally, there were masters and stuff like that. Now it’s more of a sport and athletic.2How does fencing compare to other sports you’ve played?

It’s a one-on-one sport, which adds that intensity and mental mindset. It’s not like a team sport where you count on your other teammates.

It’s just you out there; it’s all you. It definitely puts a lot of pressure and burden upon you.

Photo by Scott Ferber

A&Q

Junior Oliver Ferber talks fencing

3Compiled by Matan Silverberg What could one do to achieve an ideal mental state for fencing? The biggest thing is being aware of everything, but you can’t be overthinking…. [When you care] about the pressure of the point and what the score is, it slows you down. You have to forget all of that. It is just you and your opponent out there.

4Describe the craziest experiences you’ve had while fencing. One day I fought this girl who was an alumni. She came to a tournament I was at, and she was really good and everyone wanted to fence her, like there were huge crowds. I had switched weapons pretty recently to the saber and I felt like the underdog, and I felt kind of like [I was] her warm up. But I was really in the zone, which my coach calls the “flow.” I was relaxed, I felt powerful and dynamic. I executed and I beat her, and it felt pretty awesome.