Going into freshman year of college, I had a goal in mind. This goal was relatively simple, but would require lots of hard work. I had my heart set on being a Sandifer Fellow during my time at Eureka College. Sandifer Fellows receive a scholarship to go to a place of their choosing and also complete a mentorship.
This task had a lot of requirements and paperwork, but ultimately helped me find my place in the larger picture of Eureka College. I jumped right in and started working diligently in my classes and on the service hours needed for the application. I became more involved and put myself out there to get involved. I joined EC4Dax and even went on a mission trip over spring break to meet the volunteer requirements.
At the end of my sophomore year, I met all the requirements and filled out the application. The next step was to wait patiently. This was probably harder than filling out the paperwork.
I remember the day I got the letter in my campus mailbox naming me a Eureka College Sandifer Fellow. I was overjoyed, but never really thought of the next step. Where would I go and what would I do?
I love history and looked into American history mentorships on the east coast, but none of them really seemed like something I would be passionate about. I have always wanted to go out west and see the mountains, so I looked into different options out there.
The past two summers I worked at a local summer day camp called Camp of Champions and fell in love with working with kids. I thought working at a summer camp in the mountains would be a perfect fit then.
In my search for camps, I stumbled on the website of Camp IdRaHaJe. I remembered that one of my friends had a sister who worked there and loved it. I decided to look into it more and fill out an application. First though, I had to make sure I could fulfill the mentorship part of my Sandifer.
After talking with some of the staff, they assured me that I could complete the mentorship part and suggested that I fill out the application. After about a week of waiting, I had a phone interview and was offered a position before the interview even ended.
I am so excited to be serving as a high school counselor this summer at Camp IdRaHaJe! God has truly blessed me with this opportunity to grow and lead this summer.
I leave in just a couple of weeks and would appreciate your prayers as I prepare to spend my summer in Bailey, Colorado. I will keep this updated with my adventures and experiences as the summer continues.
