Volunteer

Each year Gander Brook Camp relies on over a hundred volunteers to cook in the kitchen, do canteen and laundry, teach Bible classes, serve as camp nurse, and offer merit badges (see descriptions below).

To volunteer, login to Campdoc, create a profile, choose the registration tab, and click on “new registration.” Then choose the week and the area of service right for you. Please do not sign up for multiple weeks.

All of our volunteer staff members contribute to the life transforming and faith building experience of our campers. For this reason, each volunteer applicant is vetted through a formal background check and approval process. Rules & Policies for Volunteers. Learn more by reading about the work below.

Bible Teachers

The primary responsibility of our Bible teachers is to creatively inspire and disciple our campers through engaging, fun, and well-prepared lessons. Everyday teachers will have two one-hour classes of 8 to 12 students each. On Monday nights they also supervise the cabin areas, while the counselors gather for a short period of fellowship. Thursday evening they sweep and mop the kitchen area. As an important members of our team of volunteers, Bible teachers help in any way they can including brief playground duty and assisting with event set-ups and clean-up.

Canteen and Laundry

The basic mission of our canteen and laundry volunteers is to wash campers’ and staff members’ clothes, supply the kitchen with clean towels, and brighten everyone’s afternoon by serving snacks and soft drinks. They organize and inventory canteen stock and communicate with the board member who is in charge of restocking necessary items. Weather permitting, clothes are hung on the line to dry. These workers also do their best to help lost items to find their owners. Canteen and laundry volunteers also serve snacks and drinks for special evening events and after closing campfire.

Nursing

Our camp nurses work under our health director and must be a licensed RN, PA, EMT, or MD. They play an important role at check-in by performing final health-screenings, collecting medications, and recording special instructions from parents. According to the camp standing orders, they administer daily medications, respond to the health needs of campers and staff, and update medical records. Their duties do not require all of their time, but they must be present and on-call to respond to emergencies and/or accidents.

Kitchen

Our cooks are adults who are in good health and capable of doing heavy lifting. Starting early in the morning, kitchen volunteers work under our head cook to feed 80 to 150 children and staff three nutritious meals each day, while keeping health and safety state requirements for food preparation and storage. The kitchen staff are housed in their own cabin, so that they can get undisturbed rest each night in anticipation of the next day’s work. Our cooks also receive food deliveries and do their own pot and pans. On Friday evenings we have cookout prepared by the directors and counselors so that the cooks can have an evening off.

Merit Badges

Volunteers who teach merit badges offer two one-hour classes every morning. They coordinate with the directors to choose something interesting to the campers. Popular choices have included outdoor cooking, painting, photography, orienteering, hiking, survival skills, nature, badminton, canoeing, fishing, tumbling (gymnastics), football, basket weaving and crochet. Upon approval, other kinds of skills and sports can be offered. Merit badge teachers teach skills, set goals for receiving the merit badge, and then evaluate their campers to see who should receive the badge.

Cleaning

Since the 2020 and the beginning of Covid-19, Gander Brook has sought to reduce the risk of spreading infections by using adult volunteers to wash dishes and clean the dining hall, bathrooms, and shower houses. We continued to recruit volunteers in this area because they have contributed significantly in improving the positive experience of our campers.