Why Should My Son or Daughter Work at Fire Mountain

Parents, with all the demands on our children's time, why should you encourage your son or daughter to be a summer camp staff member. There are so many drawbacks to being on camp staff:

1. It takes up a large part of their summer vacation.
2. Scout Uniforms are expensive (the Alumni Association has a Uniform Exchage bank that will help some staff avoid some of this expense).
3. It takes them out of the house for the better part of the summer.
4. There is very little monetary compensation, especially when you consider the looming college tuition and other large expenditures.
5. They are expected to work hard and give their whole self in the service of others.
6. It interferes with family vacations, band trips, and free time to hang out with their buddies on the beach.

With all these drawbacks, it is hard to imagine why you should even allow, let alone encourage your son or daughter to work at camp. Let us consider the positive side.

• They become eligible for college scholarships from the Fire Mountain Staff Alumni Association.
• They will spend their entire summer in one of the safest place a young person could be - a Boy Scout Summer Camp.
• They will make lots of new friends in their area, and even other states.
• They will spend a summer in the great outdoors where nature prevails.
• They will acquire experiential education (learning by doing).
• They will learn new skills that will last a lifetime (have you ever met an experienced camp staffer who was afraid to get up in a group and talk, or lead a song? Some staff members even come home from camp and clean their room, but no promises).
• They will be and integral part of an effective team.
• They will learn to cooperate with others to get things done.
• They will learn to live with the different personalities of fellow staff members, campers, adult leaders, parents, and visitors.
• They will learn how to lead others and to apply leadership skills
• They will undertake and fulfill meaningful challenges and to earn the satisfaction of doing a job well.
• They will work with youth and adults of all ages.
• They will serve others (the most noble and fulfilling pursuit of all)
• They will give something back for the opportunities they have received.
• They will live in a wholesome environment based on the Scout Oath and Law.
• They may have meaningful spiritual experiences.
• They will live in environment wither the advice, counsel, and support of senior staff who are dedicated to helping them succeed.
• They will be paid and receive food and lodging in return for something challenging and fun.
• They may be considered for jobs of greater responsibility.
• They may receive letters of recommendation for other pursuits.

So how much would you pay for a program that provided such great opportunities for your child? How much would you pay a group to feed and house your hungry Scout? Young people have a great desire to feel independent of their families, here is a place that they can feel independent and still be under the watchful eye of caring people. This experience is relatively cost free to you. Working in a fast food, retail or construction job this summer may offer your Scout some of these experiences, but not nearly the experience that working at Fire Mountain will provide. What parent could pass up this opportunity? Encourage your Scout today to apply to work at Boy Scout Summer camp - It will be a sacrifice of some of their desires for the summer, but it will be an experience that they will never forget.

Dates of Camp

Check out the dates for this year's season at the Staff Page.

A Few Things for Parents to Keep in Mind

This is a great experience for your son or daughter.

Plan on coming to a Chicken BBQ on Friday Nights - when you plan on coming up e-mail Program Director before 6pm Tuesday of the week you are planning on attending. We sure don't want to run out of chicken!

Remember that this is your Scouts' job, not yours. Questions should be directed to Program Director by the staff member, not their parent. Keep in mind that this is an important link in teaching them accountability and responsiblity. If you have a concern about anything related to health and safety both Jim Hovis and Program Director want you to contact them, but if it is general information, the question should come from the Staffer.

Staffers love to get mail. Please mail letters and packages to 26027 Walker Valley Road, Mount Vernon, WA 98274.

Our EMERGENCY telephone number is (360) 422-6542. If you prefer to just relay a message that is not urgent, you may e-mail the Program Director. Keep in mind that when camp is in session, a staffer who is answering the phone is not doing something else - there is no secretary at camp.

Cellular Phones are permitted for staff member use during their off-time, in their living area only, there is also an outside telephone line available for phone calls home. It allows local and toll-free calls only, consider getting a pre-paid phone card before camp. Cell phones must be kept in the staff area, not carried in camp, as it distracts from the job at hand. Staff members who are a part of the Camp Management team will carry cell phones at all times for emergency and camp business.