So I thought it'd be well good to throw together a glossary of all the jargon and acronyms from camp so that:
1) Ya'll have a clue what I'm rattling on about
2) I don't have to explain every last detail of what I'm rattling on about
Now, I'm certain there's a lot more to add to it, so this is just for starters. I'll add things as I remember them and as they become relevant.
Glossary Of TermsYMCA Camp Fuller
(Last updated: Thursday September 17, 2009)
DivisionA Division is one of the four areas around camp that the campers and staff occupy throughout the Summer. The four Divisions at Camp Fuller are:
Sherman: The younger half of the girls
Jungle: The older half of the girls
Junior: The younger half of the boys
Senior Hill: The older half of the boys
Apart from being the area on camp where campers and staff live during their time at Camp Fuller, many activities and procedures execute based around Division. e.g. line-up before meals, sectioning of tables within the Dining Hall, line-up and seating at Council Fires, bi-weekly nightly activities, camp pride and raucous chanting during meals, etc.
Sherman
A Camp Fuller Division
Sherman Division is the area of camp where the younger half of the girls live during their stay. Depending on the demographic of the camp population during a Session, Sherman will generally house girls aged between 8 and 12, sometimes 13 if necessary. Sherman Division is located at the near-end of “Sherman Road”, which is the road that runs directly through camp and is alongside Jungle Division, “Sherman Field” and the Skate Park, with trails behind it leading to Archery, Canoe/Kayak Waterfront and Windsurfing.
Sherman houses ten cabins, Cabins 1 through 7 (including Cabin 5.5) plus the CIT Girls Cabin and the specialty “Shungle” Cabin located on the border of Sherman and Jungle Divisions. While some may argue that they are hot and stuffy, it is well known that Sherman has the best quality cabins on camp. Fashioned and built almost like actual houses (i.e. with proper walls, floors, windows, doors, a porch and a roof), Sherman cabins not only have electricity but also a small sectioned-off room for the two occupying Counselors with bunk beds and a wardrobe.
Sherman girls are regularly referred to as “Sherm-Germs” and are frequently responsible for bedwetting and homesickness problems on camp.
During the Summer of 2009, Sherman Division was lead by DL Kerrie Taylor, from England, a rockin’ cool 22 year old with wicked sense of humour.
Also during the Summer of 2009:
- Sherman Division pioneered their chant set to the “We Will Rock You” tune: “We are, we are Sherman! (What!) Sherman! (What)” plus an opening verse
- Sherman Staff could be recognised by the bright pink shirts they had made and personalised
- Sherman Staff challenged Jungle Staff to a game of full-contact American football and absolutely slaughtered their opposition
Jungle
A Camp Fuller Division
Jungle Division is the area of camp where the older half of the girls live during their stay. Depending on the demographic of the camp population during a Session, Jungle will generally house girls aged between 13 and 16, sometimes 12 if necessary. Jungle Division is located at the [very] far end of “Sherman Road”, which is the road that runs directly through camp and is alongside Sherman Division and behind the bushes at the rear of “Sherman Field”. As its name aptly indicates, Jungle is situated amongst the trees, is covered by a canopy and is co-inhabited by wildlife.
Jungle houses ten cabins, Cabins 1 through 9 plus the LD Girls Cabin set back behind the rest of the cabins.
Jungle often sing their “We are the Jungle Girls...” song and are most famous for singing “Like A Prayer” by Madonna more times than is tolerable during meals through the Summer.
During the Summer of 2009, Jungle Division was lead by DL Jenny Kramberg, a long-standing American raised through the ranks of Camp Fuller, who was 24.
Also during the Summer of 2009:
- Jungle Division kept up their long-standing tradition of doing “80s Aerobics” as a Divisional Activity, dressing up in atrociously ugly 80s outfits and doing hilarious aerobics to daggy 80s music
- Jungle Staff could be recognised by the bright yellow “Hot Mess” shirts designed and screenprinted by staff member Hannie Mandel
- Jungle Staff were challenged to a game of full-contact American football by Sherman Staff and were completely annihilated by their opposition
Junior
A Camp Fuller Division
Junior Division is the area of camp where the younger half of the boys live during their stay. Depending on the demographic of the camp population during a Session, Junior will generally house boys aged between 8 and 12, sometimes 13 if necessary. Junior Division is located at the far end of the road running perpendicular to “Sherman Road” (the road that runs directly through camp) near the Infirmary, alongside Jungle Division, the Arts & Craft shed and “Sherman Field”, with a trail behind it leading to the Outdoor Cooking firepits, Low Ropes and High Ropes.
Junior houses ten cabins, Cabins 1 through 9 plus the CIT Boys Cabin.Junior often sing their “J-U-N, I-O-R, we are the boys of Junior...” song and are famous for being the most pathetic waiters during post-meal checkout/cleanup.
During the Summer of 2009, Junior Division was lead by DL Joe Altieri, the “Italian Stallion”, a long-standing American raised through the ranks of Camp Fuller, who was the shortest staff member of 2009.
Also during the Summer of 2009:
- Junior Division kept up their long-standing rivalry with Sherman Division and played countless pranks to attempt to outdo their opposition
- Junior Staff were challenged to a game of full-contact American football by Senior Hill Staff and lost miserably
Senior Hill
A Camp Fuller Division
Senior Hill Division is the area of camp where the older half of the boys live during their stay. Depending on the demographic of the camp population during a Session, Senior Hill will generally house boys aged between 13 and 16, sometimes 12 if necessary. Senior Hill Division is located at the opposite end of camp to the other three divisions at the crest of Senior Hill Road, which is the road that runs away from the Administration Building and the Dining Hall and runs out towards the Swimming Waterfront, the Boathouse and the Sailing Waterfront, which positions Senior Hill overlooking Point Judith Pond.
Senior Hill houses eight cabins, Cabins 1 through 7 plus the LD Boys Cabin set back behind the rest of the cabins. Also housed on “The Hill” are miscellaneous waterfront buildings such as Marine Biology and The Pavilion. Senior Hill have an array of cheers and especially chants and are famous for being the leaders in lifting their tables above their heads while doing said cheers and chants.
During the Summer of 2009, Senior Hill Division was lead by DL Brian Stuenkel, a proud 24 year old Southern boy from Arkansas who was famous for enormous burps and a hilarious sense of humour.
Also during the Summer of 2009:
- Senior Hill Division built an enormous tepee-shaped bonfire well over 15 feet high on The Hill (don’t worry, it was never lit)
- Senior Hill Division took their leadership reverence to new levels and pioneered a chant of “His name is Brian Stuenkel... His name is Brian Stuenkel...”
- Senior Hill Staff challenged Junior Staff to a game of full-contact American football and wiped the floor with them
Key Staff (or “Top Staff”, or “Fun Staff”)
A rank at Camp Fuller
The Key Staff, sometimes referred to by their old school name “Top Staff”, are the team of staff that oversee the major areas of camp. The Key Staff team is made up of:
The 5 Directors:
- The Executive Director (year-round staff)
- The Operations Director (year-round staff)
- The Program Director (seasonal/event staff)
- The Head Counselor (Summer-only staff)
- The Assistant Program Director (Summer-only staff)Other supervisory staff:
The four Division Leaders (Summer-only staff)
The Sailmaster (Summer-only staff)
The Assistant Sailmaster (Summer-only staff)
The two CIT Directors (Summer-only staff)
The two LD Directors (Summer-only staff)
Included in many Key Staff responsibilities and procedures are also the Head Chef and the Grounds Manager.
Key Staff meet together every Friday during the Siesta break to discuss key camp issues and plan the week ahead. The team also meet together briefly after every Council Fire. Each supervisory staff member also meets with the director they report to on a weekly basis.
Key Staff are responsible for one “OD” (On Duty) shift per week, which is one full day of overseeing and running camp procedures. Three Key Staff are on OD each day, one director and two supervisory staff. Key Staff OD responsibilities include everything from ringing the bell throughout the day, to running meals, to meal cleanup checkout, to nightly patrol until after curfew at 12.30am.
The Key Staff nicknamed themselves “Fun Staff” during the Summer of 2009 and had a “hands-in” chant to match.
Executive Director
A role at Camp Fuller
The Executive Director and owner of Camp Fuller is Peter Swain, who lives on property in a large two-storey home with his wife and two sons. Naturally, the Executive Director is the Boss Man and oversees all aspects of camp and holds a year-round role at Camp Fuller.
Operations Director
A role at Camp Fuller
The Operations Director of Camp Fuller is Jaime O’Connor, who lives on property in a small cottage directly outside the Administration Building with her weak-bladdered dog Claire and her fiancée, who travels a lot for business and splits his time between Rhode Island and Maine. The Operations Director covers an extensive set of responsibilities, most prominently the hiring, firing and caretaking of staff and holds a year-round role at Camp Fuller.
Program Director
A role at Camp Fuller
The Program Director of Camp Fuller is Scott Rasmussen, who has a Bunk on property but lives off property with his wife and daughter. The Program Director is responsible for the many activities that take place at camp, predominantly during the Summer but also during other events and seasons during the non-camp year. This role includes everything from program equipment, to staff program assignment to arranging the signup of programs for every camper on a weekly basis.
While being the overall head of programs at Fuller, during daily procedures Scott mainly focussed on “Surf” where his right-hand, the Assistant Program Director, was “Turf”.
Head Counselor
A role at Camp Fuller
The Head Counselor at Camp Fuller during the Summer of 2009 was Jessie Williams, who lived in the “Cranston” Cottage on property with the Assistant Program Director. The Head Counselor is responsible for a wide array of tasks, predominantly the supervision and caretaking of staff and their duties, including the needs of their campers. This role includes everything from supporting and instructing the DLs in their everyday duties to interacting with parents and basically problem solving every possible hiccup you could imagine might come up in a camp environment, plus the ones you’d never possibly imagine if you tried.
Jessie, 23, was a newcomer to Camp Fuller in 2009, but an old hand in the fundamentals of American Summer Camping having been raised in the ranks of another camp and also working during the non-camp year at an Outdoor Education campus in California, making her extensively qualified for her position. Jessie could be expected to be found doing anything from firing stupid staff members to managing a chronic bedwetting situation to wrangling foolish parents and was most famous for her Post-It Note Management System and wicked dry sense of humour.
Classic anecdote [mocking a story that took place at the Camp Store, in reference to dim-witted children who attempt to buy things they can’t afford]: “If you’ve got forty-one dollars, you’re set. If you’ve got forty dollars, you’re fine. If you’ve got thirty-nine dollars, you’re shit outta luck.”
Assistant Program Director
A role at Camp Fuller
The Assistant Program Director at Camp Fuller during the Summer of 2009 was Alex Adelson, who lived in the “Cranston” Cottage on property with the Head Counselor. The Assistant Program Director is responsible for assisting the Program Director in the many activities that take place at camp. This role includes everything from program equipment, to staff program assignment to arranging the signup of programs for every camper on a weekly basis.
Alex, 22, was a newcomer to Camp Fuller in 2009, but an old hand in the fundamentals of American Summer Camping having been raised in the ranks of another camp previously run by current Operations Director Jaime. Alex was most famous for being the loudest most rambunctious and hysterical personality on camp, for overzealous enthusiasm for beating neighbouring camps in sports challenges, for walking in large lunging strides when excited and for highly resembling Ben Stiller and/or Jason Schwartzmann.
Classic anecdote [in reference to beating neighbouring camps in sports challenges]: “Let’s win state! We’re gonna win state! Win state!”
LD
Leadership Development
A camper who is experiencing their final year at camp and has a vested interested in becoming a CIT and eventual staff member at Camp Fuller. LDs attend camp for two sessions/four weeks with the option to go home for a day on Changeover Weekend. LDs must be 15 or older to apply for the program and are usually going on to be Sophomores (10th grade) or Juniors (11th grade) in the school year ahead, occasionally though, an LD may have missed out on being an LD previously and will be moving into their Senior year (12th grade).
LDs are exempt from Period 1 and 2 program areas to instead attend “LD Time” where they learn about stepping up at Camp Fuller and growing in leadership in an effort to gain a good evaluation for their CIT application. LDs are given a variety of tasks around camp, such as setting up and breaking down the Dining Hall for meals and events.
A crowning part of the LD year at camp is “LD Weekend” where the LDs are given the opportunity to run an entire weekend event program. This includes the LDs coming up with a theme, four teams, captains, activities, point scoring, etc. While the LDs think they’re planning and running the weekend, it is actually the LD Directors that do all the real work with the assistance of the LD Counselors throughout the weekend itself.
LDs are not officially “part” of a division, but the girls and boys cabins reside in the Jungle and Senior Hill division areas respectively. The LD program is overseen by one male and one female LD Director with the addition of one male and one female LD Counselor helping out in the cabin.
The LD program will be made up of approximately 30 campers, times two blocks, half boys and half girls. The numbers depend a great deal on the lottery draw for places and which LD session they wish to attend camp. i.e. the first four weeks or the last four weeks of camp. During the Summer of 2009 LD numbers were as follows:
LD1
Boys: 15
Girls: 16
LD2:
Boys: 13
Girls: 17 (with one early departure)
The LD staff for the Summer of 2009 was as follows:
LD1:
Male LD Director: Marty Dalton
Female LD Director: Nicole Thompson
Male LD Counselor: Vaughan Gooding
Female LD Counselor: Hannie Mandel
LD2:
Male LD Director: Brad Swain
Female LD Director: Nicole Thompson
Male LD Counselor: Vaughan Gooding
Female LD Counselor: Franky Everett
The LD Weekend themes and teams for the Summer of 2009 were as follows:
LD1:
“Horrorfest”
Vampires
Werewolves
Zombies (Winners)
Ghosts
LD2:
“Wild Wild West”
Cowboys
Indians
Bandits (Winners)
Sheriffs
CIT
Counselor-In-Training
A person on camp who is neither a camper nor a staff member who wishes to be a JC the following year at camp. CITs attend camp for two sessions/four weeks. CITs are usually 16 or older and are usually going on to be Juniors (11th grade) or Seniors (12th Grade) in the school year ahead, occasionally though, a CIT may have missed out on being an LD earlier on and will be headed to college after camp.
CITs do not participate in program areas as campers do, but are also not fully qualified instructing staff members either. CITS are expected to help around the program areas and learn the various responsibilities of a staff member.
CITs are not officially “part” of a division, but the girls and boys cabins reside in the Sherman and Junior division areas respectively. The CIT program is overseen by one male and one female LD Director. CITs spend the first two weeks of their time at camp in a cabin together lead by their CIT Director and the second two weeks in a Sherman or Junior cabin shadowing a Counselor and assisting in caring for the children.
CITs are responsible for a variety of tasks around camp, such as sorting the mail and assisting with post-meal cleanup. They are also called upon to watch over the campers at large when an all-staff meeting is called after a meal.
The CIT program will be made up of approximately 18 campers, times two blocks, half boys and half girls. CITs must apply for a place in the program and compete with an array of other applicants including everything from an interview to a written essay.
During the Summer of 2009 the male and female CIT Directors were, respectively, Alex Borts and Alyssa Shelley (who replaced Melody Dean after her Staff Week departure).
JC
Junior Counselor
An American staff member who is commencing their first year as a Camp Fuller Counselor. Usually a 17-18 year old who has just graduated high school or has just completed their first year at college, but sometimes a Senior-to-be in high school, depending on their date of birth as they progressed through the LD and CIT ranks. JCs are not allowed to bring their cars to camp, sucks for them.
AC
Associate Counselor
A staff member who has completed a year as a JC or a new international staff member that is too young or lacks experience to be titled an SC. ACs make up a large cross-section of the majority of the counselling staff.
SC
Senior Counselor
A staff member who has completed a year as a JC and a year as an AC or a new international staff member that is of sufficient age and experience to acquire the title. SCs are mostly paired with JCs in cabins.
DL
Division Leader
A staff member who is in charge of one of the four divisions at Camp Fuller. A DL does not sleep in a cabin with kids but has their own small cabin called a DLB. A DL is responsible for everything from waking the Division up in the morning (e.g. with loud blaring music or hollering) to cabin inspections to supervising the every detail of their counselling staff. The DLs are Key Staff who report to the Head Counselor and are famous for their hands-in chant:
Head Counselor: “Who runs this shit?!”
The 4 DLs: “We run this shit!”
ADL
Assistant Division Leader
An SC staff member within each of the four divisions who steps in for the DL when they are on their time off or otherwise detained. ADLs have the crap job of overseeing Friday lunch meal checkout as the Key Staff attend their weekly meeting directly after and cannot cover this OD responsibility.
DLB
Division Leader’s Bunk
A small cabin located within each of the four divisions where the DL lives throughout the Summer and it often referred to as “The Dilb”. Usually personalised and decorated by the occupying DL, the DLB contains a bunk raised from the floor with space underneath for a couch or desk, as many chairs, seats or couches as the DL can possibly fit in, shelves, drawers, plus the luxury of electricity which often has an array of lights hooked up to it, a power board with a dozen counselors’ mobile phones charging and sometimes a mini-fridge or other desired luxury item. The DLB is where Sunday night Divisional Staff Meetings are held.
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