A Different Kind of Summer Camp

Walking into NYU’s Kimmel Center on Saturday morning for the British Council Summer Camp orientation felt very surreal. I had done the same thing last June, but that was before I became an alumna of the Summer Camp, before I graduated high school, before I got accepted into NYU’s class of 2016, and before I began interning at the British Council’s DC office. This time I was on the other side of the program.

The British Council Summer Camp is a ten-day program that provides twenty-five teenagers affected by 9/11 with the chance to travel to the UK, where they are exposed to the culture and higher education opportunities of cities such as Edinburgh, Scotland; Birmingham, England; and Conwy, Wales. The orientation day serves to introduce the parents and participants to the British Council, the itinerary, and each other.

The day started off with the high-pitched squeals of old friends reuniting and the enquiries of parents eager to get answers to their many questions. The British Council staff and chaperones each introduced themselves and explained their role in the program. This was followed by a presentation on the mission of the British Council and the actual schedule of events for the trip. I noticed some of the teens sit up a little straighter when outings such as a glassblowing workshop and indoor snowboarding were mentioned. Then it was my turn to show my presentation on my experience on last year’s trip. Two of my friends from Summer Camp 2011 were able to come and the three of us answered some questions (ranging from “Where can I get an adapter?” to “What does haggis taste like?”). I encouraged the teens to bring an open mind to their travels, which was a theme echoed throughout the day.

After everyone learned about the British Council and the trip, the teens and parents split up. The teens got to know each other and the chaperones through funny ice breakers. In addition to sharing random facts about themselves through the icebreakers, the teens had a chance to express their individuality by working with Abi and Dylan Byrd, creative professionals who helped the teens to design the program’s shirts. The participants were able to transfer the designs onto the t-shirts immediately thanks to a lesson in silk screening from the Byrds. The teens were thrilled with the three designs that they came up with and proudly showed their creations to the parents when the two groups reunited.

At this point the focus of the presentations shifted from the Summer Camp to other opportunities for children affected by 9/11. Shirin Kooros introduced a Summer School Scholarship for the Gordonstoun School in Scotland and Erin Reeg discussed her experience with the 9/11 Scholarships Fund, which will be funding her Master’s degree at the Glasgow School of Art this year. The afternoon presentations were capped by Mari Howells, a Welsh actress who lives in New York and a fantastic speaker. The way she spoke of Wales made me wish I could go on the trip again this year so I could experience its 643 castles and the “croeso” (welcome) of the Welsh people.

The evening activities consisted of going to see Potted Potter, an off-Broadway Harry Potter parody that condenses all seven books into seventy minutes, and dinner in the West Village. We got to speak to Dan and Jeff, the British comedy team behind Potted Potter, who shared how they formed the show and dispensed advice to aspiring actors. Dinner was a festive, fun affair because by that point the teens had become more comfortable with each other. Everyone left dinner with waves and excited promises of becoming Facebook friends. I went to bed exhausted but thrilled that I was able to play a small part in planning a program that will mean so much to all the participants.