Who runs this blog?

I do. My name is Hannah. This has more information about me if you’re really curious. I write the site from a plural perspective because all I do is organize and publish other people’s contributions. The majority of information is created collectively and this site functions as a community. 

Which camp do you go to? 

This question has been asked a lot and it is almost always anon. We’re trying to stay as anonymous as possible because we all want to have futures and we extend that courtesy to you as well. As a huge supporter of camping and the outdoors, we don’t want any of these confessions to reflect poorly on the organizations that made us stronger people so we won’t be naming any specific camps either, unless they are helpful and informative posts (camp shout outs, job opportunities etc).

This video may also answer some questions. I am not running this site as a representative of the camping organizations I have attended or been employed by. Most importantly, it shouldn’t matter what camp(s) I specifically have attended (…have worked for, will attend, will work for, will send my progeny to) because the confessions come from thousands of people and are associated to several camps. Anonymity grants a certain kind of honesty. It creates an atmosphere where people feel comfortable sharing important confessions, ones that aren’t easily shared or display the positive qualities of camp, that need to be heard. A single organization, however, should not be held responsible for condoning or representing the actions of campers and staff that haven’t even set foot on their property (or in some cases, were employed before certain regulations existed).

If you’re asking this question because you think you might know me personally or for some reason other than curiosity, come off anon so I can answer privately. 

Where is my submission?

1) it is really similar to a confession that has already been written*

2) it’s in the inbox, or in organizing/editing to go to the queue, or in the queue all of which varies in length at any given time**

3) we tweaked it a bit to make it more general

4) we tweaked it a bit to make it more of a confession and less of a moment/expression/statement thingy.

5) your submission was very obviously anti-camper or something we considered in bad taste. If you’re curious, feel free to message us and as but we don’t veto things very often.

6) look at reason #1. Then go back through the archives and I bet it’s one of the early ones. 

*If your submission is about showers, there is a very good chance it is too similar to others. If your submission is about how camp is better than the rest of the world, there is a very good chance it is too similar to others. If your submission is about how camp has greatly impacted who you are as a person, there is a very good chance that it is too similar to others. Please be more specific if you feel your confession is unique and please scroll through the archive before submitting it.

** Please refer to the screen shot in March. The inbox can be HUGE and doesn’t even show the in editing confessions.

Do you have advice for new counselors?

We have recieved a lot of information about being a counselor and would like to continue to do so. Here and here are follower responses about their favorite tips. Be sure to read both the answers and the reblogs for comments. This is a fantastic guide that a follower suggested. You can now pop over to our forum and participate in conversations about tips and first years there. 

Do you know of any camp related jobs?

Yes, we do have some information but it comes directly from other followers. The information we have received was tagged with camp jobs. As of May 20th, all conversation about jobs that we receive will be posted on the forum to better facilitate making connections.

We also suggest that you start looking early because a lot of camps ask for applications starting in January. If you’re seriously interested, we suggest both the American Camp Association and Campstaff.com because they have entire departments of people dedicated to filling staff positions at a number of camps. 

Where is the forum? What is this forum? How does it work?

The forum is at campconfessions.proboards.com and it was created to extend the community that Camp Confessions works on.As our audience grew, so did the number of questions about policy, job opportunity, and general camp life. The number of messages about clogging people’s dashboards also grew. The forum allows for people to directly engage with each other instead of using the CC tumblr inbox as a go-between. 

As of now, the forum does not require you to register in order to participate in the conversations. However, we strongly encourage that you do because it’s helpful. There are a number of topics that can be discussed but the only way that the forum will succeed is if the bulk of the CC tumblr audience decides to participate.