Good for One, Good for All
Adria Laplander and Mollie Trewartha, teachers at Houghton Middle School, both had relationships with Fortune Lake prior to coming with their Houghton Middle School students for school camp in 2021. Both women had been campers in their youth, Mollie worked on staff, and both have children who have attended Fortune Lake programming. Houghton Middle School, like many schools in our area, has a long history of school camp, an opportunity for students to get out of the traditional school environment and into a more rustic setting. Post-pandemic, their previous site wasn’t yet open, and they needed to find a place to provide this experience.
Mollie knew that Fortune Lake had hosted a school camp for neighboring Calumet School District, and, given her relationship with the camp, decided to try our facility. There were nerves in this transition, as there often are. Would they be able to provide the same experience in this new setting? Would people be able to make the switch without holding on to what used to be? In the end, it took just one full day for their team to realize that Fortune Lake was the perfect site for their needs. The central arrangement of the camp made supervision easier, the surrounding nature was beautiful in the fall, and the facilities and staff made their stay comfortable and smooth.
The teachers tell of a high schooler who was struggling as his good friend had recently moved from the school district. When asked if he was interested in coming to camp as a counselor, he was apprehensive, but he eventually agreed. Once he was at camp, he excelled in this role; he was a natural leader for both his fellow counselors and the kids in his cabin. In addition to growth in his leadership skills, being at camp bonded him with the other counselors, providing him with the community he had been struggling to find earlier in the year. In fact, the whole counselor group got close enough that many of them remained friends and returned the next year.
Adria and Mollie explained that not only was camp good for the students who attended camp, it was also a growth opportunity for their teachers in attendance. In this different setting, teachers are able to provide support and guidance in a new way, building relationships with students that are difficult to accomplish during their daily class period. They’re also bond as a team while learning each other’s strengths and weaknesses. In the end, everyone comes home from school camp having grown in one way or another. Fortune Lake is proud to be the site for such programs, and we look forward to continuing to host them as their tradition lives into the future.
If you would like to consider renting Fortune Lake for your next group activity, visit our Facility Rental page, call 906-214-2267, or email Charlotte at hospitality@fortunelake.org
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