Cub Creek 101

The Animal Specialists in Training (ASIT) program is a coveted program here at camp. Many campers that come to camp want to work with animals in the future. In this program, we allow campers aged 15-17, to have a more supervisory role at camp. They work alongside the Animal Specialists every morning in the animal area; they also assist in clases and courses during the activity periods. They have their own lounge and their own "counselors", the ASIT Leaders. They may have their cell phones for emergencies but are required to follow the same rules as staff. ASITs are CAMPERS. They should never have the phone number of an unauthorized staff member. You should not add/follow an ASIT on any social media.

ASITs are one of camp's greatest assets. They work hard, and they deserve our respect. The ASITs look up to you and want your respect. When they are assigned to a cabin, they are a benefit and a privilege to that cabin. They shouldn't ever be used to do jobs you don't want to do, or be left alone with campers. 

We boast that we have over 100 different activities available for campers to participate in during their stay at camp. Some of our most popular activities are Jr Vet, Adopt an Animal, Archery, Ropes Course, Pottery and Survival Skills. At Cub Creek, we describe our activities as either courses or classes.

• Courses are week-long activities that campers report to every  day of the week. 

• Classes are single day activities, they will change each day of the week. Campers will sign up for classes each day, for the following day. 

Classes and courses are further separated into Juniors and Seniors. A course can be offered multiple times a day to both seniors and juniors. Juniors have their classes in the mornings and their courses in the afternoon. Seniors have the opposite schedule; courses in the morning and classes in the afternoon.

When you arrive at camp for staff training we will not only train you on the courses and classes that you will teach in the summer, but we will also try to expose you to as many of them as possible. 

Tap here to explore our activity options.

Every day, campers have an hour of free time to go to the Animal Area, Camp Store, Computer Cafe, Craft Studio, the Hammocks, the Pool, or the Game Pavillion. Each place will have an assigned staff member or ASIT to supervise the campers. Before campers sign out for free time, ask your campers where they plan on going. Help encourage campers who want to go to the store to go together as a group. If you notice one camper wants to go somewhere, but no one in your cabin wants to go you have options: find a group that they can join that will go to both places as a compromise, or, team up with another cabin to see if they have campers who want to do the same thing as your single camper. 

When deciding to go to another location, campers must sign in/out at Ursa's Landing. Campers may only go to the cabin to retrived forgotten items or change for the pool. The cabin is not a place for campers to hang out. Counselors are REQUIRED to be at Ursa's for the start of free time and cannot start a scheduled break until all their campers have signed-out for their first location. NO EXCEPTIONS! You are responsible for helping your campers buddy up and helping the people assigned to Ursa's make things run smoothly. 

Camp Meals are purposely served in parts to allow each component to make a different meal. But if no part of the meal is appealing to you or campers, we have Ramen, Mac and Cheese, PB&J, bread, bagels, fruit, and cereal available at all meals. Counselors should be available to help their campers serve their food, and help with alternative meal options.  

Some campers have specialty dietary restrictions. All campers who have any kind of food related restriction will have an orange dot on their nametag, given to them by the Nurse at check in. Restrictions can range from having a certain food allergy to eating meals premade and chosen by their parents. Cabin staff will be made aware of this information at the beginning of the camp session. Camper foods that are sent by their parents are kept in a special refrigerator in the dining hall marked 'camper food'. In the dining hall there is a 'gluten free' counter that should be respected by both campers and staff. Labeled and to the left of the cereal station, there are items that are labeled and kept in that corner for campers and staff with gluten intolerance/allergy. Because of peanut allergies, we keep all peanut butter jars at the PB&J station by the non-gluten-free toasters. Gluten free, dairy free, and vegetarian food options are available for purchase in the gift shop. 

Each Cabin is assigned a table in the dining hall. Counselors are expected to sit among their campers and spread out. This is important in being able to monitor conversations and helping all campers talk and be included. Remember that you are also mirroring good choices when in the dining hall. If you campers hear you saying a meal is 'gross' or see you eating cereal at every meal, they are more likely to think and do the same. 

During lunch, camper mail is picked up from the dining hall's conference room by cabin staff. When campers get food in care packages, they are to keep that food in the dining hall, in their cabin's labeled cabinet. All campers may have one snack in their name tag that they can carry around with them. Staff can keep their extra food in the staff lounge. 

As meals end, all cabins are responsible for stacking plates, cups, and bowls for their table and having a FEW campers return them to the dish washing window. At camp, we try to waste as little food as possible. We encourage this by having the 'clean plate award'. This award is given at the end of the session and goes to all cabins who waste less than half a pound of food a day. During meal times, all appropriate food waste is put into the waste can and weighed by a counselor. What we consider 'waste' is relative: Apple cores and chicken bones aren't waste, but if you only took one bite out of that apple, it then becomes waste. Extra beverages, cereal milk, etc is considered waste as well. 

It is each cabin's responsibility to clean off their tables at the end of the meal. Wash rags are provided in soapy water by the kitchen window. Each cabin is also responsible for sweeping up around the cabin's table. 

Counselor Expectations:

• Arrive to the meal on time

• While waiting outside the dining hall, keep your campers engaged by singing camp songs

• Help campers with serving their food from the buffet or preparing alternatives. 

• Assist campers with special diets in locating food alternatives in the gift shop or food brought from home

• Observe camper food choices to make sure they have enough to eat. Help campers find alternatives if they don't like the meal offered

• Sit spread out along the table amongst the campers

• Chat with campers over the meal and keep them occupied and seated at the table

• Coordinate campers to clear the table, takes dishes to the kitchen window, wipe the tables, and sweep

• Deliver camper mail at Lunch time

• Quietly leave the dining hall when all campers have eaten and the table is clean

An evening activity is scheduled for each night of the session and can be found in each Cabin's Logbook. The first day of the session is always Opening Campfire and the last day is always Skit Night. At evening activity, it is important that you be able to keep campers engaged but also respectful of the person leading the activity. When the rules of the game are explained, please be respectful for the person speaking so that you and all campers can hear directions. When you arrive to the location for evening activity, you should be at the location and ready to go, arranged in Cabin Order. Cabin Order is how cabins are arranged according to age. The youngest girls always be farthest right from the speaker and eldest boys or ASITs will always be furthest left.

When the evening activity is held at Fox Field, please be in the field with your cabin's blanket or whatever is needed at your location ready to go. If the event is held in any location other than Fox Field, it will be announced during morning meeting or dinner. We expect that ALL campers participate, and that YOU do the same by leading by example. Cabin participation at evening activity is not optional. Some of camp's evening activities include carnivals, scavenger hunts, and camp out. We'll have a great time during Staff Training teaching and playing some evening activities. 

Once a session, you and your campers will camp out. The camp out schedule, tips for camp out, and counselor responsibilities for that night will be found in your cabin log book. Tuesday is camp out night for boys and Wednesday is campout or girls. Counselors do a lot on camp out night helping campers prep for camp out, helping cook their food over the fire, assisting with s'mores, etc. 

Each cabin had a designated pavilion that is specifically for them and has space to hang up a total of 20 hammocks for camp-out. Each pavillion also has a designated fire pit for meal cooking. Campers can choose to not stay out overnight if they wish, but it is not the responsibility of counselors to convince campers to camp-out or not. Counselors should encourage campers to camp-out, but never coerce them into doing anything they wish not to.

At Cub Creek, beads are more than just decoration - they are a badge of honor, a story of your camp journey, and a collector's treasure that grows each year you return. Campers and staff proudly wear their beads on their nametag, adding to their collection summer after summer. Many beads retire and are replaced with different styles, making each bead unique to you experience - a true camp keepsake!

Everyone's bead collection starts with the different colored beads that represent the number of years they have been coming to camp. On the first day of camp during the camp tour, we begin the bead earning process. We start with the beads representing your number of years at camp and add on more. Campers can also earn beads for memorizing flash cards, camping out, washing a dog, facing a fear, learning about 100 species of animal at camp and MANY more. 

There are 5 levels of beads:

1. Participation beads - these are the first step in your bead collection. They are earned just by participating in activities, trying something new, and making the most of camp. They include beads such as the bravery bead, campout, course beads, bullseye, and many more!

2. Skill-based beads - require proof of completion - meaning you have to work hard to earn them! These beads celebrate your growing skills, knowledge, and creativity. They include the creativity bead, knowledge beads, and money management

3. Recognition beads - these beads cannot be requested - they are earned through actions. Staff give these beads to camper who go above and beyond in kindness, leadership, and responsibility.

4. Pro Series beads - are mastery beads that only the most dedicated campers earn. These beads are awarded when you collect five of the same bead in a category. 

5. Trophy beads - are awards when you collect every bead in a category. These prove you have mastered an area of camp and include the character, creativity, experience, skills, and more.