Dear Camp Huawni,

I want to say thank you. For many different things. I spent a whole summer with you, with the staff, and with kids I've grown to love dearly. Being at camp allowed me to realize exactly why I used to love the simple things in life. Camp taught me many things about myself, others, and life in general.

But what is special about Huawni? Gosh, I don't believe I could ever accurately express into words how much this camp can do for a person in just one summer (or for the kids, in one or two weeks). Camp Huawni's purpose is for every camper and counselor to walk away knowing their true significance and purpose. I don't believe I could ever say "thank you" enough to the directors and summer staff for helping me find that for myself.

The fact alone that this camp allowed me to realize that I am doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing in my life is enough to realize its specialness, however, I took a lot more out of camp than just realizing what I want to do with my future.

I learned how relationships truly work. How to resolve conflict in almost any situation. I learned why it is so incredibly important to be a good role model and mentor. At camp, I realized that a little unrecognized hard work can go a long way. That, when you learn how to work hard everyday for a whole summer, it's hard to not do the same when you go home.

I thank Camp Huawni for teaching me the true value of hard work. Whether or not you're noticed for your work, I learned at camp that you're doing it to bring glory to God and to help out those who work the hardest to keep you there over summer.

Despite all that I missed this summer in the real world, being a camp counselor was the most rewarding job I ever could have asked for. Yeah, I might have missed every Dodgers game, hanging out with friends and family, and going to church, but I wouldn't have traded this summer for anything.

At the end of each session, every camper and director thanked us counselors for "giving up our summer in order to be there for their summer". In my own opinion, I didn't see it as giving up my summer; I saw it as me gaining the best summer experience of my life.

Past summers for me have been boring and uneventful; this summer was extremely eventful and the absolute farthest from boring.

From working activities all day to playing with kids at night, I don't think I was ever able to let myself rest. Even on my days off, I just wanted to be at camp with everybody. Yes, I took my breaks but they consisted of telling all my friends about the place I have come to love so dearly. In all honesty, over the course of summer being a camp counselor stopped feeling like a job and started feeling like a lifestyle.

Camp Huawni, I thank you for accepting me into your family. For letting me have the best experience I could have asked for (and honestly even more than I asked for). Having been away from social media and the real world all summer was exactly what I needed to de-stress for this upcoming semester.

I made so many valuable friendships this summer, and that is the best thing I could have asked for. I now have friends from all over Texas, Mississippi, and Colorado. Camp allowed us to have friendships with everybody because we were together 24/7. I look forward to seeing how these friendships grow over the course of the next year, as well as watching my campers grow and seeing them all back next year.

Thank you,
Malory Rush