By Nell Choi, age 16
I first glimpsed Nina S, 17, through the 5-year-old photo of her walking barefoot with her arm around now Upper Camper Maxanne W-S’s shoulder. The two were together at “family camp,” where WriCampia staff brought their kids with them to camp. When I met her in the Wel-B-Yon (WBY) lounge for an interview, I immediately recognized her.
Nina, the first family camper to become a Counselor-in-Training (CIT) reminisced upon her core camp memories.
I thought I was so important walking around at family camp” she said, smiling looking at the photo. “I felt like royalty there. We all did gymnastics and had our own Language Play workshop.”
Becoming an official camper was definitely a shift, Nina told me, with a schedule to follow and no longer having the same freedom to run around camp whenever and wherever they wanted. But WriCampia itself became a very special place for Nina. Nina said that friendships make camp special.
“Camp friendships are so different because you live with them 24/7 for two weeks.”
Just like Nina, other seniors are reminiscing about their years at camp. Several seniors recalled the support they received from WriCampia staff members when they were feeling homesick in their early years. Dalia M, 16, recalled how Camp Director Yael Schick always walked her to her cabin and talked, and Preston L, 17, is thankful for Camp Director Rebecca Wallace-Segall and former counselor Andriy Repik for comforting him during his first year.
Jun L, 16, has been a WriCampian for six years. When I asked him about what memories had a significant impact on him, he told me how, in 2021, he was “having a crisis” during camp and “went to the laundry shack where the counselors were staying.” When he arrived, Track Leader Camii Dickerson embraced him and said, “I’m your mother. We can talk about this. You are safe and loved.”
Not only have the seniors evolved and matured since their first year at camp, but the camp itself has changed. “It’s become a lot more organized,” Jun said, specifically noting the addition of track electives, the emergence of Senior Camp for juniors and seniors, and the expansion of the CIT program.
This year, many seniors participated in the CIT program. A traditional role of being a CIT is reading to lower and middle campers at nighttime. Last year, Senior Camper Jivvy decided to take on the role of handing out snacks; now, that has become a new responsibility of the CITs– doling out Oreos and Cheez-Its to hungry campers swarming the theater porch.
Preston, after serving on the newspaper team for 5 years, now serves as the managing editor of The Yearly WriCampian, a CIT role that was added last year. In addition to his role as editor, he said he enjoys reading to lower campers at night, recalling how the counselors used to read to him when he was a middle camper.
Nina also loves hanging out with the middle campers. “We usually play mafia and play ‘Dissolving Houses,’” which she explained is a game where they draw houses in three minutes, then two, then one. Nina says that spending time with the seventh graders reminds her of her middle-camper self. “My friends and are are always asking, ‘were we actually that small?’” Nina said, smiling.
As my interview with Nina came to an end, I asked her how she was feeling, knowing she would be leaving camp early the following day. “It’s been hard to let go, reminiscing about my time at camp,” she said. “But I think I’m ready to let go.”
Although Nina and the seniors are saying goodbye to their time as campers, we can hope our CITs return as camp counselors at WriCampia 2026.
