There are plenty of ways to spend a summer.
You can work in a restaurant, take an internship, mow lawns, work retail, or find a job that lets you spend most of your day in air conditioning.
Or you can spend your summer living in a cabin full of boys, waking up earlier than you'd like, teaching skills you might have only recently learned yourself, getting covered in mud, and trying to convince a homesick eight-year-old that everything is going to be okay.
We might be a little biased, but we think there's something pretty special about that last option.
At Camp Arrowhead, we've always believed that the people who make camp happen are just as important as the activities, facilities, and adventures we offer. After all, a climbing wall is just a wall until someone encourages a nervous camper to give it a try. A woodshop is just a building full of tools until someone helps a boy discover that he's capable of making something with his own two hands.
And a cabin is just a building until a counselor turns it into a home.
More Than Just a Summer Job
Being a camp counselor isn't always easy.
The days are long. The weather doesn't always cooperate. Sometimes the boys are loud, the schedule changes, and something that should have taken five minutes somehow takes forty-five.
You might spend an entire afternoon helping a camper accomplish something that seems relatively insignificant, only to discover that it was the most important thing that happened to him all week.
That's part of what makes the job different.
At Arrowhead, counselors aren't simply supervising children or leading activities. They're teaching boys how to solve problems, how to get along with others, how to handle disappointment, and how to become a little more independent.
They're also showing them what it looks like to be a good person.
And whether they realize it or not, the boys are paying attention.
The Importance of Having Someone to Look Up To
One of the most valuable things a boy can find at summer camp is an older role model who genuinely takes an interest in him.
Not someone who is there to lecture him or tell him what to do every minute of the day, but someone who will listen, encourage him, challenge him, and occasionally act just as ridiculous as he does.
A good counselor knows when to step in and when to step back.
They know that sometimes the best way to help a camper is to let him figure something out for himself.
They understand that being a leader doesn't mean being the loudest person in the room, and that earning respect is very different from demanding it.
Perhaps most importantly, they recognize that the way they treat people matters.
The boys notice when a counselor includes someone who's been left out. They notice when they admit they made a mistake, when they keep their word, and when they stay patient even when things aren't going according to plan.
Those moments might not make it into the camp slideshow, but they're a big part of why camp works.
You Don't Have to Know Everything
One of the misconceptions about working at a camp like Arrowhead is that you need to arrive already knowing how to do everything.
You don't.
Sure, it's great if you can paddle a canoe, build a fire, shoot a bow, play guitar, or teach woodworking. We love bringing people onto our staff who have skills and passions they're excited to share.
But some of the best counselors are the ones who show up ready to learn.
Maybe you've never worked a forge before. Maybe you've never caught a trout, carved a spoon, or built a shelter in the woods.
That's okay.
We'll teach you.
In fact, there's something particularly valuable about a counselor who is willing to try something new right alongside his campers.
When boys see someone they admire struggle with a new skill, laugh at a mistake, and try again, they learn that being capable doesn't mean being perfect.
It means being willing.
We can teach someone how to run an activity. It's much harder to teach someone to care about the people they're working with.
That's what we're looking for first.
Camp Changes the Counselors, Too
We spend a lot of time talking about how summer camp helps boys develop independence, confidence, leadership, and resilience.
But something interesting happens along the way.
The counselors grow, too.
There's a big difference between talking about responsibility and being responsible for a cabin full of boys who are counting on you.
There's a difference between studying leadership in a classroom and actually having to lead when you're tired, the weather has changed, and your carefully planned activity isn't working.
At camp, you learn to communicate with people who think differently than you do. You learn to improvise, solve problems, manage conflict, and take responsibility when things don't go as planned.
You learn how to put someone else's needs ahead of your own.
And you discover that you can handle a lot more than you thought.
Those lessons don't disappear when summer ends.
Whether our counselors eventually become teachers, engineers, doctors, business owners, parents, or something else entirely, the experience of working at camp gives them something they'll carry into whatever comes next.
Not to mention the friendships.
There's something about spending a summer working, laughing, struggling, and succeeding alongside the same group of people that creates bonds that are difficult to replicate anywhere else.
The Moments That Matter Most
Ask a former counselor about his favorite memories from camp, and he'll probably tell you about some ridiculous evening activity, a particularly memorable Stronghold game, or something that happened around the cabin that wouldn't make much sense to anyone who wasn't there.
But give him a little time, and the conversation usually turns to the boys.
The camper who finally overcame his homesickness.
The kid who spent the first few days standing off to the side and eventually became the loudest person cheering on his cabin.
The boy who struggled with an activity all week and finally figured it out.
Or the camper who came back the following summer, a little taller and a little more confident, and immediately went looking for his old counselor.
It's a strange thing to realize that you might be a significant part of someone's childhood memories.
And it's a responsibility worth taking seriously.
What We Look for at Arrowhead
We don't expect our staff to be perfect. We don't expect them to arrive with every skill, every answer, or years of experience working with children.
But we do expect them to care.
We want counselors who are willing to participate rather than watch from the sidelines. People who can be enthusiastic about something even when it isn't their favorite activity. People who recognize that a small moment of encouragement can make an enormous difference to a camper.
We want staff members who are dependable, patient, curious, and willing to work hard.
People who can be silly without being careless, confident without being arrogant, and responsible without forgetting how to have fun.
We want people who understand that working with children is a privilege, and that their safety, well-being, and happiness come first.
And we want people who are excited to be part of a community built around helping boys Grow, Lead, Explore, and Create.
A Summer Worth Spending
At the end of the summer, our counselors will certainly have worked hard.
They'll have spent countless hours outdoors, learned new skills, made new friends, and probably accumulated a collection of stories that will be difficult to explain to people back home.
They might even have a few new scars, some strange tan lines, and a greater appreciation for a quiet room.
But they'll also have something that doesn't come with every summer job.
They'll know they made a difference.
For nearly 90 years, Camp Arrowhead has been a place where boys come to discover what they're capable of. That wouldn't be possible without the counselors who show up every summer ready to give their time, energy, patience, and enthusiasm to something bigger than themselves.
We're currently recruiting staff for summer 2027.
If you're looking for a summer that's more than just a paycheck, we'd love to hear from you. Whether you're an experienced camp counselor or someone who's never considered working at a summer camp before, what matters most to us is the kind of person you are and the attitude you bring.
And to the parents who trust us with their sons each summer: this is why we care so much about the people we hire. The activities may be what first catch a boy's attention, but it's often the counselors who make his summer unforgettable.
Come be part of something that matters.
Learn more about working at Camp Arrowhead and apply to join our 2027 staff.
