Returning to SMA Teen Summer Camp, 5 years later!

Hello Future Campers, Counselors, Parents of Campers, or SMA fans,

My name is Sarah Fisher and I am preparing to ship off to Stone Mountain Adventures Teen Summer Camp on Thursday. This will be my fifth summer at SMA Teen Camp, but it will be quite a different year from previous ones. I was a camper from 2006 to 2009 and now I am returning as a counselor! You would think that preparing for summer camp is quite different this time around, but I am finding some real similarities. The other night I even took out a pair of pants that I (apparently) had not worn since the last camp talent show. In the back pocket was the script that Daniel Herbick and I wrote for “What They Say and What They Really Mean”. And yes, those pants are already packed for another SMA summer – some things never change.

            But I will say that both SMA Teen Camp and myself have changed some since our last meeting. For one, I remember having meals in the dining room in Jud and Anne’s house, whereas now they are in the Dining Hall in the old Rhino. I also remember very different names for each cabin – I am already mentally preparing myself to ignore my instinct to revert back to the original names. And myself – Since SMA I have graduated high school and been to college. I spent the last four summers working with children at a day camp near my house, waiting to be old enough to return to Stone Mountain Adventures Teen Summer Camp. Now the time is finally here and I could not be more excited!

            When I was a camper I spent the weeks leading up to summer camp trying to find the perfect bunk junk or swimsuits to pack. I was eagerly messaging my friends from previous years, plotting what beds we would try to get or what supplies we would need for the perfect pranks. While I am still searching for more superb bunk junk and have already messaged previous fellow camper and now co-worker Ali Sanzo quite a bit, I am spending more time this year thinking about what kind of counselor I want to be for these campers. I have thought a lot about my old camp counselors and what I loved so much about them. Those qualities are the core of SMA that I imagine has not changed a bit since I my last trip there, and I am extremely excited to be a part of what gives SMA its spirit.

            I’ve pulled out the same journal, trunk, backpacks, sweatshirt, towel, blanket, shower caddy, sleeping bag, and pants. While I may have grown five years since my last time at camp, I’m still ready for the same SMA energy!

SMA 2014 GET PUMPED!