CREEKSIDE AT THE CIBOLO
One of the most essential and often unsung perspectives that make The Cibolo’s Nature and Art Day Camp such a special place comes from our camp counselors.
Like our campers, each counselor brings their own personality and experiences, so no two days — or people —are ever the same.
While it’s impossible to capture every nuance of the counselor experience, here’s a glimpse into what an “average” day might look like, based on countless stories and moments shared by our team.
At 8 a.m., Lead Counselor Peyton joins the morning meeting. Today’s schedule for the yellow group includes an owl pellet dissection, an insect survey and tomahawk throwing.
Peyton’s group will be in charge of setting up and cleaning up 9 Square.
Right after the meeting, it’s go-time. Peyton checks that her group is setting up 9 Square, fills the water cooler, grabs their wagon and lunch bin, and reviews the day’s activity writeups.
On top of that, Peyton checks in with the assistant camp director about a camper who had a lot of energy and trouble following directions the day before.
Together, they come up with a game plan: redirect that energy into leadership by having the camper help facilitate activities.
By 9 a.m., Peyton is at the drop-off table, greeting every camper with a big smile and a “Welcome to another awesome day at camp!”
Once everyone’s arrived and accounted for, Peyton checks in with the camp directors and joins her group to get ready for the morning song.
Today’s choice? “Down by the Bay,” led by a camper who’s usually shy but wanted to give song-leading a try. Peyton helps get things started with a “repeat after me” and “do as I do” cue, but the camper handles the rest of the song like a pro.
Peyton’s ready with encouragement, highfives, and a big “well done” at the end.
Then it’s off to the activities. Peyton keeps her group on track and hydrated with regular water bottle checks and makes sure everyone stays together with group counts.
During owl pellet dissection, Peyton joins in and shows the campers how to identify tiny bones, while cheering on their mini “scientist competition” to see who can reconstruct the most accurate skeleton.
Over at the tomahawk station, a volunteer takes the lead, but Peyton keeps the energy up with applause and celebration after every throw.
The only bumps in the day? A band-aid for a minor scrape, and an insect relief wipe for an ant bite — both logged with care in the medical log.
As the day winds down, Peyton gives each camper a high-five and walks them to check-out when their name is called. One camper in particular gets a special thanks after using their energy to carry supplies and lead the group.
Once all the campers are picked up, Peyton heads to the library for the daily team meeting. Counselors share what went well, what could be better and celebrate the day’s wins — like moments of growth, laughter or camper breakthroughs.
Before leaving, Peyton jots down a few thoughts on her weekly reflection sheet, signs out and heads home with a smile — proud of the difference they made and excited to do it all again tomorrow.
To learn more about Nature and Art Camp at The Cibolo, visit cibolo. org/camp.
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