“Want to create a core memory? Be outdoors!”

 Hello, my name Roberto also known as Beto and I started going to camp in 2015 as a counselor, I am originally from San Luis Potosi, Mexico and I went with a program named CCUSA. I honestly was very happy to have the opportunity to work for Camp Fire. As kid I was always in day-camps in Mexico, and I really consider myself as an active and people person that’s why when a friend told me about this program, I was very curious and eager to try something like this. For me was always easy to be around kids, and I guess this is because my mom has 10 siblings and my dad 5, so my family is pretty large. For me Camp was always like being around family and cousins, and I think that’s why my experience was so good and for the kids too.

Why I say this? Well, every kid had a different story to tell, and every one of them had a different background, but… did this make a difference at camp? NO! Everyone at camp was welcomed and included as a family.

There is something about Camp Fire that made me also feel like I was on a movie, – you know, those American movies where you see the typical summer camps – that made me feel very excited every day while I was working there. As counselor I got to know a lot of people around the world that came on the same program, that was also very fun to work – along different personalities and cultures, which was one of the highlights of each summer; to find friends that would last a life long and have hundreds of stories to tell.

What I loved the most about Camp Fire was the nights at the campfire – each of them were very special, It was something magical to experience with every group of kids, even if it sounds cheesy, but there was something that made me connect with nature and the people around me at that moment of the day when everything was quiet, the sound of nature at night hits different.. and only if you’ve experienced something like this you know what I am talking about.

I hold Camp Fire responsible for making me aware, and I mean “really aware of nature” and its true beauty, as a person that lives in the city; Camp fire taught me to connect with nature and appreciate the beauty of it. Also grew my social and leadership skills and taught me how important is to teach kids nowadays to connect with nature in this modern world full of technology and screens. Today I work in Finance as a supervisor, and believe me, working with adults is not as different as working with kids, once in a while we also do energizers and fun activities. But also, I encourage my team to always find their inner spark no matter how old you are.

Want to create a core memory? Be outdoors! You don’t believe me? Try it and you’ll see!