Mohawk: Village of Men

By the time that many of you are reading this you have put your children on the busses for their long awaited ride to Camp Seneca Lake. That is always a bittersweet moment.  I remember for instance in 2002 in June when my mom and dad brought me from Brooklyn up to Rochester for the first time. As a kid from the city with no family connections to camp since the 1970s, I did not know anyone.  It was a scary time for me. I was a nine-year-old kid and I was alone.

That thought, however, was far from the truth. From the second I sat down to the moment that I arrived at camp I was made to feel welcome and included. Aaron Cantor, now the Assistant Director of camp, made sure that I felt included. That summer I made some of my best friends and found a home that I have been unable to leave for the last 12 years. 

So as you recover from putting your children on the busses be sure of a few things. First, that your putting your children in the hands of some extremely qualified and kind staff members who will show them a good time. Second, that we are only here because we want to give kids the amazing experiences that we have had over the course of of our camp careers. Finally, your kids will have their lives changed for the better.

It's o.k. to miss them... but us counselors  have to do that for the other 11 months of the year. 

Jesse Manning

Mohawk Unit Head