We are always so excited to welcome our Staff Children into camp along with their Staff Parents. This webpage will answer all questions and prepare both you and your child for a great week at Junior Camp! Registration is required for each son or daughter of yours who will be at camp in any capacity (even as a Junior Camper) during the Junior session.
We want you to have the best Junior Camp experience which is why we recommend that you NOT bring your child unless she is enrolled as a Junior Camper. You will be able to spend more time with the other staff, devote yourself to the campers, and relax during what little free time you have if you do not have your son or daughter here. If your daughter is camper-aged, go ahead and enroll her as a Junior Camper, so she can have an even more incredible Greystone experience!
Read carefully through this webpage but know that, like everything at Junior Camp, we all must be adaptable and ready for more changes. As always, if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please email Alli Kilby, Junior Camp Assistant Director–she’s the one who coordinates all things Staff Children-related!
Jr Staff Children Policies at a Glance
General Guidelines for Staff Children
- Arrival for Staff Children is on Friday, May 24, 2023 between 5:00pm and 5:30pm. We will send more details about dropping them off as we get closer to camp.
- You must register your Staff Child using the link further down on this page in order to bring your son or daughter with you. If you do not sign up by March 15, you may not be able to bring him or her with you to Junior Camp.
- We strongly encourage you to bring a Babysitter (even if your child is older) or plan for your kids to have a week with Grandma or stay at a friend’s house in your hometown. Because Staff are on duty early and after taps, having your child at camp means you get zero free time! We can set you up with other parents if you would like to share a babysitter for an older child.
- Staff who have children in camp younger than First Grade MUST provide a Babysitter whom you pay that is at least 13 years old. There are helpful tips for Babysitters in the Toddler Squad guidelines below.
- Our Fun Bunch group covers girls in the 1st grade through 8th grade (or until you turn 14) and boys in the 1st grade through 4th grade. The Fun Bunch will attend a specified class schedule throughout the session, so they will also get a taste of all of the activities offered this year!
- Boys “age out” of camp once they complete the 4th grade. They will not be allowed in camp until they are at least 12 years old AND applying to work in the Greystone Kitchen.
- Girls who are camper age are ideally enrolled as Junior Campers.
- Children should obey all camp rules, routines, and schedules throughout their time at camp. Examples: They should stay inside the pavilion during assemblies (not playing on the swings or tetherball). They should remain at their table in the Dining Hall during meals (not playing on the porch.) They should be quiet in their cabin during Rest Hour, after Call to Quarters, etc. Children who are restless or too young during campwide events should be taken back to their cabin by their Babysitter.
- Children are never allowed in the Counselor Hut whether camp is in session or not.
- If any Staff Children are being disruptive to the camper experience or preventing their parent from fulfilling their job, we may ask that alternative arrangements be made and the child sent home.
Curious how your schedule and the Staff Children’s daily schedule compare? Click below to read through the play-by-play.
Daily ScheduleStaff Child Registration
Read below to find more information about the Staff Children groups and to register your kid!
Please read through the following guidelines and don’t hesitate to ask for any clarifications.
The Babysitter: In order to bring a child that is younger than 1st grade, you must also bring a babysitter who is at least 13 years of age. You will rely solely on this babysitter to take care of your child during Junior Camp. The sitter will even live with you in case you get called away during Rest Hour or after your child’s bed time.
We believe a good starting pay for a babysitter is $150 for this week. That may not seem like a lot, but they are also getting a place to stay, free meals, a week away from home, and their own amazing camp experience!
If you would like to link up with another staff parent and share a babysitter, we are recommending no more than two children per babysitter. Please email Meredith, and she will put you in touch with other Junior Staff parents.
Daily Schedule: Your babysitter and toddler will have a little more flexibility with the daily schedule as they are not required to attend every scheduled event in camp. This is not to say they have free rein but that they are able to excuse themselves from activities or assemblies for nap time or if they’re being fussy. Either way, sitters will accompany your toddler whenever and wherever in camp.
During class time, your babysitter will get creative with where she takes your toddler as she will need to avoid wherever the campers are. Sometimes just rolling around on the Pageant Court is all your toddler needs! If they want to participate in a class, they will join the Fun Bunch.
When all of camp is gathered (at Evening Program, in the Dining Hall for meals, etc.) they either need to be participating or not visible (i.e, not playing tetherball during Morning Assembly but walking on the Pageant Court which is farther away) as we do not want them to distract the campers.
Meals in the Dining Hall: As much as we would love for parents to sit with their children in the Dining Hall, we cannot guarantee this will happen. The camper experience comes first, and we will decide closer to camp what the seating plan will be in the Dining Hall.
Staff Children Forms Due May 1st: In March, Alli will email copies of the Health History Form, a doctor-completed Physical Form, and the Travel & T-shirt Form that must all be completed by May 1st for both your toddler and the babysitter.
Register your Toddler now!
Our Fun Bunch Program is about as good as it gets, and is for GIRLS currently in 1st grade through 8th grade and BOYS currently in 1st grade through 4th grade! Your little one gets the perk of being a camper during the day but spending the evening in your cabin. Please keep in mind that having your child be a part of Fun Bunch is more difficult than you think. While she may be running around camp throughout the day, as soon as there is a Rest Hour or free time, you will be responsible for her. What that means is as soon as the staff gets free time, you don’t because you have to take care of your child. This is why we strongly encourage you to bring a babysitter or leave your little one at home.
Almost Like a Camper: As a member of the Fun Bunch, your child will follow ALL of the campers as if she were a camper herself. She will sit in the Pit during Morning Assembly and EPs, be in her cabin and quiet during Rest Hour, and will follow camp’s schedule by being on time for assemblies, meals, classes, etc. This year, the Fun Bunch will have their own schedule during class time and will move around camp together.
There are times during the session when we have a staff meeting after meals or it’s all hands on deck to set up for an EP. At those times, we will have two counselors designated to watch the Fun Bunch for you. If you need to leave Rest Hour to set up an activity area, be prepared to either leave your sleeping child in the cabin or wake her up early so that you are not late! We will also house Fun Bunch “families” together to help share those responsibilities.
Meals in the Dining Hall: As much as we would love for parents to sit with their children in the Dining Hall, we cannot guarantee this will happen. The camper experience comes first, and we will decide closer to camp what the seating plan will be in the Dining Hall.
Staff Children Forms Due May 1st: Alli will email copies of the Health History Form, a doctor-completed Physical Form, and the Travel & T-shirt Form that must all be completed and submitted no later than May 1st.
Register your Fun Bunch kid now!
It is such a treat to be able to watch your daughter gain independence, learn new skills, and make friends while you are on staff at Junior Camp! Please read through the following guidelines with your camper and don’t hesitate to ask for clarifications!
- Staff parents should limit their interactions with their children as much as possible. They should be sensitive to the feelings of other campers and not walk hand-in-hand around camp but visit briefly and discreetly. We recommend a quick hug to touch base in the Dining Hall when it’s busy.
- Parents should take any concerns to their daughter’s Group Leader or to Katie instead of going to their daughter’s counselor or handling it themselves.
- You will not be able to “drop her off” on Opening Day, so you should arrange to bring your spouse or another relative to be with your daughter if the typical Opening/Closing Day experience is important to her.
- Campers are not allowed to go into their parent’s housing during the camp session nor hang out in their parent’s program area. Parents are not allowed in their daughter’s cabin during the session.
- Parents should support all camp rules with their child and not give them candy, extra dessert, phone use, do their laundry, or any extra privileges that other campers do not enjoy. Campers will sit in the Pit during assemblies instead of with their parents.
We know it’s hard to separate yourself from your daughter when she is so close, but in order for her to have the best camper experience, she needs to get away from you! So watch her from afar and enjoy the week without having to care for your daughter :).
Register your Junior Camper now!
When you complete 8th grade, you will need to apply to work in the Greystone Kitchen. To learn more about the amazing program and to find the application, click here. (We do make an age-exception for Staff Children, and you may apply as early as 12 years old!)
Missed the link?
Register your Staff Child now!
In our preparations for Junior Camp 2021, we are working through the details of having a “Covid Summer” where we need to put extra health and Covid guidelines into play, and this applies to the Staff Children program as well. It has always been a gift we love sharing with our Junior Staff to allow their children to be at camp without being a camper. To ensure the Greystone community’s safety and to operate within our state’s and the CDC’s Covid guidelines, we cannot be as giving this year. Please think through all options available for your children, and if there is no spouse, grandparent, nor friend who can watch your child during Junior Camp, then you may bring your child to camp with you
Read carefully through this webpage but know that like everything at Junior Camp, we all must be adaptable and ready for more changes. As always, if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please email Elizabeth Vandenbark, your Junior Program Director, or Alli Kilby, Junior Camp Assistant Director–she’s the one sending you Staff Children forms in the spring!
As you scroll down, you will find the following:
- Registration forms that will be printed, signed off by you, and submitted to Alli no later than March 15th
- Changes to our Junior Helpers program!
- Descriptions of the different age groups
- Our Daily Camp Schedule to decide if it matches up with your child's current schedule