This commentary is by Sultana Khan of Randolph, executive director of YWCA Vermont and Camp Hochelaga.
Right now, so many of Vermont’s small, wonderful communities are struggling to combat divisiveness, financial hardship, the impacts of climate change and so much more. During times of uncertainty, it often seems easier to turn inward than to reach out. But when it is hard to know what to believe in, believe in the power of connection. And summer camp.
Summer camp is the antidote to so many of the systemic causes that erode young people’s self-esteem and sense of adventure.
In my new role as the executive director of YWCA Vermont and Camp Hochelaga, an inclusive girls+ camp on the shores of Lake Champlain, I am once again immersed in the joy and wonder that is camp.
Summer camps have rich, historic traditions of creating spaces where young people can experience the awe of a world where they are not constrained by the rules society creates to keep them in their place. Where they can build deep, lasting relationships with other youth who have also been seeking a place where they can be their weirdest, most authentic selves. Where they can see models of kindness, acceptance and generosity.
Camp can be a place where you are able to more clearly see your part in our natural world. As humans have created technologies that make our lives more comfortable (and with climate change, more liveable), we have distanced ourselves from the impact of those technologies. By controlling the climates within our homes, we have made the outdoors a place to be tolerated rather than understanding that the outdoors is our home.
Camp Hochelaga is a rustic camp — our campers and counselors sleep in cabins that don’t have electricity. With the windows open, you can hear the scurrying and chittering of the creatures that share our spectacular environment on the shores of Lake Champlain. You can observe deer, foxes, snakes, eagles, fish, chipmunks and so many other inhabitants who share our earth. Sometimes, significantly less pleasantly, you can also smell skunks.
Understanding humanity’s power and responsibility to care for the world we think of as solely our own is essential to supporting the next generation in fighting against the destruction of our planet through relentless consumption.
More importantly, camp is a place of connection. At a time when Americans feel increasingly isolated and lonely, camp offers a place for girls to bond over experiences and values that social media seeks to undermine through conformity and a sustained focus on materialism. Camp offers an alternative proposal to finding happiness in owning things that impress others. Camp offers a way of living that prioritizes community over consumption.
At camp, you can wear your beloved ratty shirt without teasing. You can produce weird plays that make everyone laugh (or cry!), or sing off-key to songs that have been sung for more than 100 years.
You can cry about the world and find a loving shoulder of someone who has been exactly where you are, trying to find brightness amid the challenges of life. You can jump off a dock for the first time, holding the hand of a friend who has done it before, encouraged by the cheers of your cabinmates.
At camp, you can learn what it means to be yourself while being a part of a greater whole. At camp, you can live a full, joyful life, supported by adults who know how valuable it is to be told you can do anything with a little hard work and a supportive community.
At camp, you can learn to change the world.
