Staff Descriptions

To help you think about what you might do at the Camp Shehaqua, we've put together a few 'job descriptions'. Please choose any job (more than one is fine) that you are interested in helping with. Shehaqua runs based on the work of amazing volunteers like yourself! This is an opportunity to bring JOY to God and the families at camp, and we thank you in advance for signing up.

If you are already assigned a job that is not listed, or if you have no preference, please select "Undecided/General Help" when you register.

Below are jobs that have already been assigned.

Education Director
Logistics Director

We also have a description of the evening activities, which will be especially useful to the education director.

Evening Activities

Adult Discussion Coordinator: Coordinates the adult discussion during the day. We need one or two people for this; often there is one discussion in the morning and one in the afternoon.There are two adult discussions in a day: one at 10:30 and one at 2:45. If possible, they should be centered around the same topic so that staff who cannot come to one can go to the other.

If possible, prepare the topics before camp, so that the list can be published at camp.

Presenters: We will have educational programs for various age groups and need presenters for them. There are positions to teach young adults, 9th - 12th Grade, 7th & 8th Grade, 5th & 6th Grade, 3rd & 4th Grade, 1st & 2nd Grade, and Pre-K & K.

Coordinator / Song Leader: Will be responsible for leading songs for each lecture group and keeping the lectures and workshop on schedule. We will need one per lecture group.

The coordinator/song leader's assignments include:

  • Always be in time at the lecture room.
  • Prepare appropriate songs to sing before the lecture starts. It is okay to ask the audience for preferences, but the pause between songs can't take too long. It's important to build the spirit of the audience for the lecture that will be given.
  • Assist the teacher with anything else.

Group Leader: Leads the discussions and attends lectures with the groups. We need one or two teens or young adults as staff per group.

Group Advisor: An adult who helps and guides the group leaders.

Cook's Apprentice: Learn invaluable management and organizational skills, and inherit hard-won knowledge from a veteran camp cook! (cooking for 200 people is no small feat)

Kitchen Help

Needed: Help with meal preparation

Unless the cook gives different instructions the kitchen crew's assignments include:

  • Breakfast helper: Be in the kitchen by 6:30 am and assist the cook until breakfast at 8:00 am.
  • Lunch helper: Be in the kitchen by 10:00 am and assist the cook until lunch at 12:00 pm.
  • Dinner helper: Be in the kitchen by 3:30 pm and assist the cook until dinner at 6:00 pm.

Kitchen Cleanup Coordinator

Needed: 1 or 2 people per meal to direct the cleanup teams

The kitchen cleanup coordinator's assignments include:

  • There is a kid's group assigned to help clean up after each meal. The kitchen cleanup coordinator's job is to direct this group and help them. Tell the group where to put the leftovers and maybe also tell them how to wash the dishes. Stay with them until they are finished.
  • Learn from the cook (Elke Noll) where she wants to have the different kinds of leftovers stored.

Drink Manager

Needed: 1 or 2 adults. Lifting required.

Time required: Throughout the day from before breakfast until after dinner; about 6 times for 15-20 minutes each.

The drink manager's assignments include:

  • Refill the water and drink coolers
  • Clean the spouts of the water and drink coolers regularly
  • Mop up any puddles if necessary
  • Tidy up the coffee and tea table; replenish supplies
  • Make coffee; make hot water
  • Put water and replace the water for cleaning the cups at least 4 times a day. This is important for food safety.
  • Prepare all the drinks throughout the day and keep the coffee and tea table stocked up and clean. The most important times are before the meals and at the start of free time (after sports).
  • At around 7:15 - 7:30 am hot water for tea and also coffee need to be made a few times and poured into an urn for keeping hot until breakfast at 8 am. The table needs to be cleaned up and resupplied with tea bags, sugar, honey, and cream (or half and half). The large juice containers need to be refilled with enough water and juice for breakfast.
  • More coffee needs to be made some time after breakfast for those adults who want coffee later on in the morning.
  • Before lunch (12 pm) the drink containers need to be filled up for the thirsty lunch campers. And before dinner (6 pm) they need to be filled up again for the even thirstier dinner crowd. They also need to be refilled in the afternoons at the beginning of free time, especially on hot days.
  • More coffee and hot water for tea need to be made before lunch and dinner, just not as much as in the mornings.
  • After dinner it is good to fill up at least the water container and one juice container for the people who hang out in the dining room after the evening activities.
  • There may be other drinks to be made like orange juice from frozen concentrate in the mornings and fresh barley tea, green tea, or red bush tea for lunch and dinner when available.

 

The drink manager needs to work as much as possible in the kitchen when the kitchen and cleanup crews are not there. So the barley tea can be made before the lunch crew or the dinner crew come into the kitchen. And the drink table cleaning needs to be done at a different time than the groups wash the dishes.

 

Dining Hall Manager

The Dining Hall Manager’s assignments include:

  • Make sure the set-up for the meals is complete: all appropriate condiments are out and there are enough plates and utensils in all the necessary places.
  • Replenish items that are getting low, i.e. syrup
  • Must have a good eye for what is needed
  • Clean up spill when necessary
  • Time needed: Right after prayer until halfway through the meal

 

Baker

Needed: Adult with baking experience

The baker’s assignments include:

  • Time needed: 1-3 pm or after dinner clean-up, or whenever no meal preparation is going on
  • Recipes can be provided for zucchini bread, carrot cake, brownies, oatmeal cookies, banana bread, apple crisps, etc.
  • The baker must be able to work without supervision, because the food services director is off after lunch.

 

 

Camp Cleaning Crew: To keep the Camp functioning, we need two crews of people to clean and restock the bathrooms and help keep a high standard during the Camp.

The cleaning crew's assignments include:

  • Clean main bathroom/shower and bathrooms throughout camp once a day. Unclog any toilets.
  • Report any badly running faucet or clogged toilet that you can't fix to the camp director who can report the problem to the rangers.
  • Replenish paper towels, toilet paper, soap, and shampoo in all bathrooms. The bathroom and cleaning supplies are in the camp office.
  • Exchange any full garbage bag in a bathroom with a new one and place the full bag in the trailer near the bathroom at the back of the kitchen.

Here are the locations of all the 8 bathrooms:

  • The main bathroom/shower is located behind the camp office.
  • Each of the 5 units of cabins has 1 bathroom. Note: The bathroom for unit 1 is not much used, because it is a little away from the unit and most people in unit 1 use the closely located main bathroom instead.
  • There is a bathroom at the dining hall behind the kitchen.
  • The infirmary has a bathroom.


The cleaning crew usually splits up the bathrooms among themselves.

Sports Coordinator

Needed: 2 sports coordinators to lead the sports activities during the afternoon

The sports coordinator's assignments include:

  • Check out sports equipment upon arrival.
  • Organize sports for the groups in the afternoons.
  • Organize dodge ball game for the third evening. If the sports coordinator is a parent, he may want a young adult to actually divide up the teams, as they may be more familiar with the players.
  • The teams for the dodge ball game need to be organized before dinner time, so that the game can start right after dinner. It will get dark, and therefore it is important to start the game as soon as possible.

Crafts Organizer

Needed: A person to organize the crafts for the workshop and lead this activity

The crafts organizer's assignments include:

  • Plan crafts activities for the different groups ahead of camp. Email the registrar before camp for a breakdown of how many kids are in each group.
  • Buy needed materials (could be ordered online). Bring materials to camp on arrival day. There will most likely be a few extra attendees in some groups, so purchase a little extra.
  • During camp instruct the craft helpers and organize the craft activities with the groups.
  • For the crafts organizer of the first week: Get a padlock from the registrar for locking the crafts cabin.
  • For the crafts organizer of the third week: Return the padlock with the keys to the registrar at the end of the week.

 

Crafts Helper

Needed: 2-3 crafts helpers to help with crafts activities

The craft helper's assignments include:

  • Be in the craft cabin from 1:15 till about 3:45 pm and assist the crafts organizer.
  • The crafts helper will be helping the kids make their own crafts.

Note: Please be at the craft cabin 15 minutes before the kids to prepare for the activities, and stay afterwards with the crafts organizer to help clean up.

Staging Crew Member: Helps to move benches and set up for activities and lectures.

The staging crew's assignments include:

Set up for activities ahead of time. Specifically:

  • Move the sound system
  • Move benches. Sometimes, a vehicle is available to help.
  • Build a camp fire for the first and second nights. If it is raining really hard, build it in the rec hall.
  • Table for smores on the first night and the candles for the second night (ask registrar for candles)

After the evening activity: remove benches and sound system from the meadow, put out fire.

Note about the rec hall: for lectures, the benches face the end of the rec hall away from the fireplace, but for talent night, the benches face the wall across from the porch. Leave the benches set up facing the wall across from the porch at the end of the week, as the next week will have orientation in that orientation (pun intended). The sound system does not need to be set up for lectures.

Certified Lifeguard: There is a swimming pool at Camp Shehaqua which needs a certified lifeguard to supervise.

The lifeguard's assignments include:

  • Bring current lifeguard, CPR certifications, and photo ID to camp. The rangers need to see it.
  • The key to the pool needs to be returned to the same location after the pool is closed for the session.
  • Open the pool during free time at 3:45 pm.
  • Close the pool by 5:45 pm, so campers have enough time to go to dinner.
  • At least one lifeguard must be at the pool at opening time. Since hikes sometimes end late, one lifeguard needs to stay at camp during the hike.
  • By law, only the gate at the shallow end is allowed to be opened.
  • At least one life guard needs to have a cell phone at the pool for emergencies. Have the cell phone number of the camp director in the contacts list.
  • Enforce the camp rule that children less than 10 years old need to be accompanied by an adult.
  • If anyone misbehaves and doesn't listen to the lifeguard, report it to the camp director.

Camp Nurse

Needed: A nurse (preferably certified) to serve as Camp Nurse

The nurse's assignments include:

  • Check the infirmary supplies upon arrival to ensure that everything necessary is present. That is especially necessary for the nurse in the 1st week. If something is needed, ask the general affairs person to buy it.
  • If the infirmary runs out of some supplies during the week, ask the general affairs person to buy them. Stay at camp in case of emergencies.
  • If available give out cell phone number to everyone at camp in case someone has to reach the nurse; announce the number at the orientation and post it outside the infirmary's door. At times the nurse needs to be reached quickly.
  • The nurse does not have to stay in the infirmary all day, but needs to stay at camp.
  • If there is any necessity to leave camp, let the camp director know. The camp director will need to assign another person in the nurse's place for that time period.
  • There should be a printout of the hospitals in the area, their phone numbers, and the driving directions to the hospitals in the infirmary, but if it is missing, ask the registrar to print out another copy.
  • If the two rooms in the infirmary are not taken by people with health problem, the nurse has a choice of staying in one of the rooms in the infirmary or staying in a cabin. Contact the registrar about staying in the infirmary.
  • If there is a staff shortage, the nurse may be asked to help in the kitchen for one meal a day.

General Affairs

Needed: A general affairs person to take care of practical issues

The general affair's assignments include:

  • Fix anything. For example: put in new light bulbs, fix or put in hooks and latches for bathroom stalls.
  • Buy anything that you need to fix things; anything for the upkeep of camp (paper towels, toilet paper, soap, shampoo); anything for the infirmary; and anything for the kitchen. The kitchen gets bulk food deliveries, but sometimes the cook just needs a small amount of something or runs out of something.
  • Be prepared to leave camp for shopping trips every one or two days. Some shops (Walmart) are about 20 miles from camp; the closest ones are 7 miles. Therefore this assignment will not be suitable for someone who comes with small children, but without a spouse.
  • Collect garbage and change garbage bags. Bring garbage every evening after dinner to garbage dumpster. If it's not done in the evenings, the bears are likely to have a good meal, but leave a real mess around and drag some garbage bags into the woods.
  • 30 gallon garbage bags are the ones that fit the garbage cans at camp.
  • Directs the staging crew.

Evening Monitor

Needed: An adult to supervise the dining hall after evening activities and close it down at midnight

The evening monitor's assignments include:

  • Go to the dining room right after the end of the evening activity and stay until midnight or whenever the camp director says it is closing time.
  • Make sure people do not go into the kitchen unless they have special permission. The kitchen is not a place for socializing. Campers should not get themselves any food from the kitchen or store room behind the kitchen. Exceptions are people who have a special diet and who keep some of their own food with the cook's permission in the refrigerator or moms who wants to get some milk for their small children.
  • Have a cell phone available in case of any emergency. Have the camp director's and the nurse's phone numbers in contacts list.
  • At 11:45 pm ask the remaining campers to clean up the dining hall so it is ready for breakfast the next morning.
  • At midnight or the time set by the camp director close all the lights and the doors to the hall leading to the kitchen, and the kitchen and dining hall doors. First close all the doors except the double doors from the inside and latch all storm doors. At the end close the double door and secure it as much as you can from the outside. This should keep bears out.

Service Coordinator: Get service project information from the camp director before camp.

The Service Coordinator's assignments include:

  • Get service project information from the camp director before camp.
  • Direct the service projects at camp. Make sure the job is done well, because service projects are often left behind for other users of the park.

Hike Leader: The hikes start at 1:30 pm at the flag pole near the rec hall and last till 3:45 pm.

The hike leader's assignments include:

  • The hikes start at 1:30 pm at the flag pole near the rec hall and last till 3:45 pm.
  • Plan hikes beforehand. They cannot be longer than 2 hours. Please be sure to be back at the beginning of the free time as some parents of younger kids are waiting for them to go to the pool or other places together.
  • The group leaders are supposed to go with their group to the hike. In case the group leaders are not there, ask the camp or education director to get them.
  • Hike with the groups. It's best to have a designated "last person" to keep the group together. Make sure there is also a responsible person in front, because those who go ahead can get separated from the group.
  • Take a head count before beginning the hike and after the end. This can be done by asking the group leaders to count their group members, including themselves, and reporting to the hike leader.
  • If the hike goes to a place where kids can play in the water (stream or waterfall), ask the camp director to make an announcement before lunch so the kids can wear their swim suits and bring a towel, if they like.
  • If cars are needed to transport kids for the hike, ask the camp director to make an announcement before lunch on the day on the hike. Be there during the announcement, so volunteers can talk to you right away.
  • If cars are used to transport people to the beginning of the hike, ask everyone to come back in the same car as they left. Have a head count in case you need it in the middle of the hike. Also, make sure all of the drivers know where to go, or that the lead driver drives slow enough.
  • Take a simple medical kit along, even if it is just some gauze pads and bandages. Also, bring a well charged cell phone or make sure another person has one. Have the cell phone number of the camp director.