Roles & Responsibilities

General Camp Rules

*NO make up/hairdryers: please do not bring

*NO electronics: No other electronics (tablets, portable game players, etc.) allowed

*NO Phones -- Keep in airplane mode, for pictures only, save phone battery for photos, when it dies it dies

 Other rules/policies for campers (and leaders) can be found at www.oaklandywcamp.com/policies

 Chain of Command:  

        Lisa McClun (970) 708-0208  (GC Director)

        Glen Guymon   (Man in camp)

        Susan Parkinson (GC Assistant)

        Susan Olson, Annie LeClaire (6th year leaders)

All Adult Leaders

• Be good examples and listen to 6th year YCL’s (Youth Camp Leaders)

• Encourage all Young Women to participate in singing and activities

• Participate in and help enforce no makeup rule

• Help enforce no social media, music or other non-picture taking activities on phones (phones are allowed for pictures only, not music, social media or games)

• Follow lake safety rules and lifeguard’s rules for canoes, rope swing, etc.

• Help girls be where they are supposed to be (if you see a girl wandering around, ask where her group is and help her find them).

All Year Leaders

• CAMP KICK OFF: 

  • Contact the girls in your year to encourage them to come to camp to make sure they are invited and feel welcome. Remind them about camp kick-off April 26, 2023  7-8:30 at ISC small gym

  • Recommended: as a leadership team, choose a pre-camp meeting time before kick off.  

  • Share your contact info with the girls and invite them to the pre-camp meeting. 

  • At kick off, you will have time to meet with your year. It will be led by 6th years. Make sure to do introductions and get updated contact info for each girl (text, email, instagram…)

• PRE-CAMP YEAR MEETING: Meet with girls before camp to get to know each other and prepare for camp. This is a chance to learn about the girls, connect with them and get a feel for their needs. 

  • Check in with them about concerns/needs about camp. Check out the icebreaker games on the Leader Resource site. Please pass along any information to Melanie, if needed. 

  • Contact info - how do they prefer to communicate (text, email, Instagram, etc.)

  • Play get to know you games and do introductions. Possibly do an empathy exercise. 

  • Brainstorm and practice a skit. Each year will perform a skit on the first night of camp that introduces each of the girls and is often built on the year/camp theme. You will be given a bag of props to use. This should be fun and not stressful.

  • Workshop and/or make cabin decorations - this is a way to get the girls into the spirit of camp. It is also a helpful way to explore different talents of each of the girls. 

  • Have a Stake Camp leader give an overview of hikes, backpacking gear and food.

  • If appropriate, include Male Counterparts at this meeting - it is helpful to establish relationship and expectations.

• PREP FOR CAMP

  • As a year leadership team, talk about your strengths and challenge areas. How can you best work as a team to create a positive and welcome environment at camp? How can you support each other during the week? You are an example of leadership to the girls - you have an impact on their lives! Consider choosing functional leads - Medical, Instrumental and Emotional. It is helpful to know which leader will take the lead on different aspects of your time together. 

  • Review the medical needs for each girl. Reach out to parents, research needs, be prepared. This info will be printed for you and provided at camp. 

  • Prepare and lead daily devotionals based on the daily themes.

  • Prepare prompts for solo time that are age appropriate, foster spiritual reflection and cultivate positive relationships. See the Leader Resources>Solo Time & Games site for ideas. 

  • Bring BEADS! At Camp Liahona, we use beads to mark our accomplishments. There can be beads for the hikes, for being helpful, giving service and supporting each other. They are a special souvenir. There will be several beads given by other adult leaders. Aim for 5 different beads or about 1/day. Each year has $50 to spend on beads.  Please save your receipts.

FOR 1ST - 4TH YEARS:

• Check out the hike route, develop a plan - estimate your time on the trail and arrival at camp. 

• Get a Campfire permit

• Each person is responsible for bringing their own gear. Review the packing lists and remind the girls that they are responsible for gathering their hiking equipment.

• Review the Leader Resources > Backpacking Guidelines site for more info and helpful tools. 

• Consider connecting with the male counterparts for your hike. Set boundaries and expectations. Possibly review gear, maps, skill sets. 

• AT CAMP: 

  • Sleep in the girls’ cabin and watch over the girls throughout the week OR sleep outside with girls. Two leaders should sleep in a cabin with girls, never just one.  Be thoughtful and in tune with your girls. You have a great opportunity to be a positive influence and help increase their testimonies. Please let the Camp Director know of anything you find concerning.

  • Remind the girls to keep the year table cleared after every meal. The tables can get quite messy. Keep abandoned items in a box at the end of the table and encourage the girls to be mindful of the community areas. 

  • Develop a system of keeping tabs on the girls. It can be challenging to keep track of them, so it is helpful to have an approach in place. 

  • Do your best to follow the camp schedule. It has been prayerfully developed for the girls. However, use your intuition and make adjustments as needed. Alert the camp leadership of changes, if appropriate. Camp is a remarkable opportunity for influence and spiritual leadership. 

FOR 1ST - 4TH YEARS:

• Help the girls prepare for the hike. Check footwear, water bottles, backpacks, etc. You will have help in the morning prior to the hike. Much of the preparation is mental. Try to encourage positive anticipation for the hike. Girls tend to be fearful of the difficulty and discomfort of the hike. Let them know that they are capable of doing amazing things - especially when they work together. Foster a spirit of can-do attitude! 

• Review the route and plan with the girls. Give them copies of the map - let them be empowered to lead and take ownership of the journey. Be aware that there may be snow on the trails and camp sites and have the girls plan accordingly.

• The morning of the hike is a flurry of activity. You will need to help the girls prepare their food for the hike, gather and pack their gear properly, remove excess weight from their packs and double check their water supply. You will have support through this process; however, it is best that you feel confident overseeing this process with the girls. You will be out there on the trail with them, it is helpful to have a sense for their gear, their limitations and especially the nuances of their packs.

• POST CAMP:

  • Turn in receipts by August 1st -- email pictures of the receipts to Lisa McClun (lisamcclun@mac.com) and Bob Lewis (bobertl@comcast.net). Send one email addressed to both.  Lisa will review and “Reply All” with approval.

  • Send feedback, notes, improvements to the Camp Director. We want to improve the camp experience for everyone. 

5th Year Leaders

• Decide with the girls what activities they would like to do

• Make sure all parents sign any waivers necessary for activities

• Communicate with Camp Director about budget, book activities, gather necessary documentation/permissions for girls

• Arrange for Wednesday night cabin, if you and your girls want to spend one night away

• Figure out transportation to and from activities

• Use car/transportation time wisely - devotionals, music plan

• Do not pick next years theme, but have the girls talk about ideas to get them excited about being YCL’s

• Save your receipts! 

6th Year Leaders

• Figure out transportation for 6th year girls and leaders up to camp (they’ll return with their wards)

• What are each of the girls bringing to camp? (they’ll know, just ask them, it’s from last year: Enthusiasm, humor, compassion, etc.)

• Help the girls choose the theme of camp

  • Scripture for the overall theme

  • Daily theme and scripture

  • Year level names: spiritual one and fun one for each level

  • Camp songs: one spiritual and one fun that go along with theme (Optional)

  • Have girls pick songs they want to teach the girls for singing at meals and campfire. Camp songbooks are in the Girls Camp Storage Room at the ISC.

• Assign girls to each year and explain their responsibilities over their year.  AT CAMP:

  • Decorate their cabin when 6th years get to camp before girls get there

  • Nightly devotionals (at 9:30pm)

  • Watch over them

  • Bring hot chocolate in the mornings?

  • Leave pillow gifts?

  • Write notes to them and put in their mailboxes

• Have girls write letters to 1st years, inviting them to camp BEFORE CAMP?

• Motivate the girls to lead songs before meals and other times

• Remind girls that they can use a lot of this for goals program

• Help the girls design T-shirt (Lisa can help get the shirts made and ordered, after they design it, if you want)

• Help girls plan Camp Kick-off (April 26, 2023 7-8:30 at ISC small gym)

  • Decor

  • Banner with theme

  • Posters for each year

  • Opening skit to go over camp rules (lift each other up, no short shorts, no electronics (hair dryers, curling irons, phones), no make up, etc) 

  • Introduce new theme and year themes

  • Rooms for each year to meet in (assigned Sixth Years, year level leaders, and girls in that level.)

  • Refreshments --(cookies, rootbeer floats, something simple)  Lisa and Susan can help, just let them know 

  • Remind girls that they will be doing a service project at camp (build something, clean something, etc.)

• Bring beads for your 6th year girls that go along with theme for their camp necklace

• Help the girls plan an activity to do with the 1st years on Wednesday night

• Help girls plan Friday afternoon camp-wide activity

• By the end of the week, have the Liahona Ceremony prepared. 

• Let Lisa know how many girls have been to camp all 6 years and will be receiving a tree necklace.

• Help the girls lead the campfires: gather everyone, choose songs to sing, opening prayer, introduce speaker, closing prayer.