administrative staff

Adventurers, Not Spectators

January 15, 2013 By Ruby 1 Comment

These is what sparked the idea for the adventure.

This past Saturday, Green River Preserve staff members Kat, Evan, Harrison, Missy, Sandy, and I set out on an adventure to explore the hidden reaches of Maybin Mountain. Expecting it to be a rugged trip, we were trying to find the rock faces pictured above. The hike started out like a typical mentor hike but we soon found ourselves crawling on our knees through thick rhododendron and wrestling with impenetrable thickets of laurel and flame azalea. With no foliage on the deciduous trees, we were able to spot the rock face that we were hunting in the distance. We raced to the base of the cliffs, proudly proclaiming “I can touch it!” to the others after breaking through the last heath branches and feeling the cool dampness of the eminent rock.

Exploring the underside of rock overhangs and scaling slick rock faces for a peek around the corner, we were pushed by curiosity beyond the boundaries to discover more in this remote land. We had to keep exploring even if it meant walking on the branches of cliff-clinging plants to traverse steep and slippery mountain slopes. According to our maps, we were certain that a few campers may have visited the tops of the cliffs we were looking at, but almost nobody in recent history had seen them from below.

It was rugged, exhausting, and absolutely wonderful. At the end of the day, we may have felt tired and sore; but, as you can see by the smiles, we had a joyous adventure.

Kat, Evan, Ruby, and Harrison at the base of the rocks

“Seek the joy of being alive” is a motto for Green River Preserve. We encourage our campers to do so daily as a part of our Woodcraft Laws whether we are hiking to the balds or playing Capture the Flag. Seeking joy is not necessarily about seeking comfort. It’s about the moments when you find yourself feeling full of love for your past experiences and present surroundings.

On Saturday, we would have been more comfortable as spectators watching TV, protected from the drizzling rain and in the comfort of our houses. Instead, we chose an adventure resulting in dirt in our hair, sweat on our backs, and stories to share at the end. We chose adventure and it was joyous!!

Filed Under: benefits of summer camp, campers, educational benefits, environmental, Exploring North Carolina, GRP, nature, off-season, Sandy Schenck, summer, summer camp, traditions, trails, winter Tagged With: administrative staff, adventure, exploration, flame azalea, Lost Cave, love, Maybin Mountain, mentor hike, mountain laurel, nature, off-season, rhododendron, seek the joy, winter, woodcraft laws

Green River Preserve’s New Summer Program Director

October 30, 2012 By Green River Preserve Leave a Comment

Stephanie Ruby Compton Please join Green River Preserve in welcoming Stephanie “Ruby” Compton to its administrative staff as the new Summer Camp Program Director. Summer 2012 campers and staff may remember Ruby as a song-singing (Little Bitty Frog), geocaching, nature-loving mentor. She was also an extremely devoted “adopt-a-mentor” to her cabins and an enthusiastic contributor to all of the camp programs. These were the qualities that attracted GRP to her and why she was hired as a mentor. Her many talents did not go unnoticed during the summer by administrators, fellow staff members, and campers.

After searching the world over for a Program Director and conducting interviews, the best candidate still remained right here in our own camp… Ruby! She brings to GRP a wealth of knowledge and experience in summer camps and environmental school programs. She is actively involved with the American Camp Association as a member and conference presenter/speaker. In fact, Ruby will be presenting this winter at the ACA National Conference in Dallas, Texas.

A native of Nashville, Tennessee, Ruby (whose real name is Stephanie by birth and Ruby by camp), will be moving to GRP in January to begin work. Currently, Ruby spends her school year at Nature’s Classroom in Mentone, Alabama, as a naturalist/teacher, staff trainer, and team building facilitator. She spent many summers at Camp Widjiwagan outside of Nashville progressing from counselor to administrator. Her peers and supervisors all agree she is a real “gem” and GRP feels fortunate she will be joining our administrative family.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: administrative staff, program director, Ruby Compton, summer camp director

Year Round Staff Update

December 8, 2011 By Green River Preserve Leave a Comment

Sadly, we are saying good-bye to our dear friend, Linda Lamphier. Linda came to work at GRP in the fall of 2006. In the time she was with us she served as our camp registrar and office administrator. She was always kind and helpful with all of our camper families and we will all miss her at GRP.

Linda’s love of butterflies and the desire to see more at GRP helped us in the development of more butterfly gardens at the camp. She embodied the mission of GRP in all she did and we are all grateful for the time she gave to Green River Preserve.

In honor of Linda, we have created the Butterfly Scholarship for campers. Linda always tried to find creative ways to help campers attend camp. She graciously gave her handmade books/journals and jewelry to the camp store to sell for camper scholarships.

If you would like to make a donation to the Butterfly Scholarship in honor of Linda, please do so by visiting our donation page or mail one to the camp at 301 Green River Road, Cedar Mountain, NC 28718.

Patti Rissman came to Green River in the spring of 2010. She was hired in a temporary role while our registrar, Linda Lamphier, cared for her terminally ill husband. As time progressed and Linda needed more time at home, we decided to hire Patti in a full time position.

Patti and her husband, Andy, moved to Brevard, NC from Florida several years ago. She spent most of her career working as an office manager and marketing. Her experience is very helpful in many areas of camp. She also worked for a while at Camp Greenville just down the road from us.

Many of you met Patti during the 2011 summer or have had the pleasure of talking with her on the phone. She is now our full time camp registrar and office administrator. Her enthusiasm brightens up our office and we are delighted to have her with us. Please join all of us in welcoming Patti to GRP.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: administrative staff, scholarship fund

GRP Welcomes New Administrative Staff

December 8, 2011 By Green River Preserve Leave a Comment

Please join us in welcoming Case Kennedy, our new Summer Camp Director and Molly Wafle, our new Assistant Summer Camp Director and Administrative Assistant, to Green River Preserve. Their experiences and talents bring an expertise to GRP that we are very excited to have in our administrative staff.

Case began her GRP career this past summer as a mentor and quickly found her place in our camp home. Her love of the outdoors coupled with her strengths in team management, motivation, and maturity quickly earned her a leadership role in the summer of 2011.

Case graduated from Colorado State University with a major in natural resources and has spent the last ten years introducing children and adults to the great outdoors. As manager of a ski resort, Case supervised staff recruitment and human resources, marketing, business planning, and cohesive team collaboration.

Her background and experience is well-rounded and covers all the departments needed to be a Summer Camp Director. Through her experiences with young people, her goal for Green River Preserve is to maintain a fantastic camp from the ground up. She strongly feels that it is extremely important to know all of the campers and what makes each of them unique. She sincerely hopes that all GRP campers will leave camp with a love of nature, a sense of community and safe outdoor skills. Please join us in welcoming Case and her large brown dog, Moose.

We are thrilled to welcome back Molly Wafle to Green River Preserve. Molly worked at GRP in 2004 as a mentor in our fall SEE (School of Environmental Education) program following her graduation from Sewanee, The University of theSouth. With a major in natural resources and a focus on geology and forestry, Molly finds herself right at home at the preserve. We are happy to welcome Molly and her sweet dog, Frances to GRP.

A native of Virginia, Molly is an excellent horseback rider, gardener, and cook. Molly has many years of camp experience as both a camper and a staff member. Some of these roles included running a camp horseback riding program and serving as a camp registrar and office manager. We hope you will join us in welcoming her and her sweet dog, Frances, to the GRP family.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: administrative staff, summer camp director