ENDLESS SUMMER OF SMILES

So, as most of you who read these blogs know, I am a parent as well.  What you may not know about me is that I had a career in early childhood development before becoming a mom to my 2 daughters ( ages 23 and 14).  My favorite part of caring for children, my own included, is watching them grow and learn emotionally, physically and spiritually.  I love watching a child take the first step to make a new friend, try a new skill, score a point in a game, or.just try camp for the very first time.  These things are why I continue to be part of SMILE.  Nothing beats a SMILE on a camper’s face when they score a goal, swim faster, or stump Mr. Thomas with a joke. Yes, there are times of stress as with any responsibility for care of someone’s else’s child but, with that responsibility comes great reward.  

We (Mr Thomas, myself, and the entire SMILE team) look forward to summer camp every year!  We love seeing our returning campers and welcoming our new ones!  At SMILE, we care about the whole child.  That means that we care if a camper had a rough morning drop off, or tired from the night before, or is just having a tough day- It is our collective goal as a team (Mr Thomas, counselors and me) to provide opportunities to have a better day.  It could be something as simple as a game of solitaire, coloring together, making a bracelet or just taking a walk.  Those things make all the difference to a child, especially when it starts out a little rough.  

So when we have our SMILE team member orientation every summer, we talk about how we can make our campers’ summer the best it can be, and each year we celebrate every SMILE and memory we were proud to be a part of!