Camper, staffer, volunteer, and board member, Commish Noah Faison (right) writes about the camp experience and the lifelong benefits of role models, community, and friendships.
In front of Mason Hall, there is a maple tree that stands roughly 15 feet tall. When I visited camp to volunteer during the Young Alumni Work Weekend at the start of the summer, I stood under that tree and couldn’t help but think back to 16 years earlier, when the sapling was planted during my second summer at camp. Over the years, I have derived much pleasure watching that tree grow with me. To me, that tree has become symbolic of the magic of Agawam.
The magic of Agawam is that you can pee in Crescent Lake while swimming and no one will notice. That’s just some camp humor to make sure I have your attention! Obviously, nothing so crude would occur at a camp of 10- to 15-year-old boys.
In all seriousness, Agawam’s magic lies in the ability for every boy that passes through the camp to leave with a network of friends as enduring as that tree. Agawam friendships are especially unique because for seven weeks everyone at camp is asked to live by the same value set. Of course, this includes the Woodcraft Laws of Beauty, Truth, Fortitude, and Love, which have been a cornerstone of the Agawam experience since its founding. It also includes practicing healthy competition, leading by example, and willingness to be pushed outside of your comfort zone. The result is the development of both an individual and shared purpose that creates an unshakeable feeling of community.
In our society, boys and young men need to experience that magic more now than ever. I say this based on lived experience, but you don’t have to take my word for it. Take the words of NYU professor Scott Galloway who was among the first thought leaders to raise concerns about young men experiencing a social crisis that is going unnoticed by most of society. Or consider the words of columnist Julie Jargon who wrote in The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) about the expensive steps parents with means are taking to provide organizational support to their teenage sons struggling to find purpose in the face of endless digital distractions.
In case you don’t have a chance to read these articles, let me summarize the cause of the crisis: an absence of purpose and positive role models. How lucky that these are two things Agawam has in abundance!
From my very first summer at Agawam as a 10-year-old camper, I started to learn integrity, diligence, from great counselors and senior campers. As a counselor in my late teens, I tried to pass along the same example to my campers.
Now at the age of 27, I’m happy to say I’m confidently putting together the puzzle pieces of adult life with many friends from Agawam who still share these same values.
Maintaining these friendships over decades has been like watching that maple tree by Mason Hall grow over the over years. I’ve watched the boys I went to camp with grow into men with me. Despite the passage of time, we’ve attempted to uphold the values we first learned at camp in the midst of countless changes at school, work and home.
As Galloway and Jargon both identify, change is hard to bear as a young man. It’s hard to stay organized, determined, and connected—even with all the digital tools at our disposal. The constancy of long-standing Agawam friendships certainly made it easier for me to deal with life changes. And I can say with confidence that Agawam has certainly been a more positive and productive social network in my life than Facebook or Instagram. The best part is that whenever we have a chance to get together in person at camp or in the real world, at our core we are the same playful boys who would never, ever, ever pee in Crescent Lake.