Ask the Staff!

Every month, we're asking a question to all of the Camp Harmony Lifers, so you can get to know them better.

This month's question:

"What do you do in the 'off-season', when you are not at camp?"

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When I am not at camp, my primary activity is counting down the days until camp. I sit in my room with a LARGE calendar (even larger than the top field.....just kidding.....I can't afford a calendar that big) and put large Xs on each day that passes. Did you know we are less than 6 months away from Jerry standing in front of us and saying, "Welcome to Camp Harmony 2008!!!!"? Sometimes, I try to leave the house, wearing my Camp Harmony t-shirts and driving my camp van, hoping that it will help camp start early, but that doesn't seem to work. Then, I try some UGGA BUGGAs in front of my house.....my neighbors give me funny looks and I try to explain that I do it to make the rain go away. So much for getting to know my neighbors. Other than that, I am a math teacher. My favorite lesson is teaching my students how to convert days to hours and minutes. "Hi, class....did you know there are less than 259,200 minutes until camp starts?"
-- Todd Ranger

 

In the off season, I generally sit around reminiscing about the summer that has just gone by. I watch the camp videos over and over, sing camp songs, look at all my cool skill pins, and count the days till I'll be back at Harmony again. When I'm not busy looking forward to the upcoming summer, I occupy my time by caring for my two little children. ( Chloe is 5 and will be a Big Fry this summer. Charlie is 3 and will be a Blueberry 1 ! ) They keep me pretty busy during the year. Both are in preschool and both have pretty active social lives. We spend a lot of time on the playground, at Soccer practice, and going to play dates and Birthday parties. We have a lot of fun during the year; but nothing compares to camp! Can't wait to be back in June! Ugga Bugga to all
-- Glad Shadyside

 

During the "off-season", I teach elementary school (dream of camp), take care of my two daughters (dream of camp), do yoga (dream of camp), and of course...I dream of camp.
-- Loren DUH

 

In the off season: I camp out in Jerry and Carol's basement!! I like to put on sun tan lotion (cause it smells like summer) and try on all the costumes and hats in the infamous "costume closet".
-- Elyse Willowbrook

 

Besides cavorting with sleazy elements of society, I work on camp stuff and then I work on more camp stuff.  I party some, and then I send birthday cards to my  campers.  Did I mention that I work on camp stuff?
-- Jerry Director

 

In the off season Eric Program keeps things busy. At the moment he's employed as an educational consultant working in the Jersey City school system. He enjoys working with teachers in getting teachers to discover alternate ways to reach students. As a songwriter/musician, Eric is always looking to expand his musical boundaries so he's currently taking guitar lessons. "As a song writer, every instrument offers a unique sound and inspires you in a different way." To keep himself fit, he plays in a men's basketball league. He's not very good but enjoys the sweating and competition part of it the most. He's not the only Demel playing basketball, he's the assistant coach to his son Jared CIT's basketball team and enjoys watching his other son Taylor play in the league as well. In the spring, he switches to softball, (Eric is an avid baseball fan-Mets), and plans on playing well into his Social Security check cashing days, if possible. In his spare time, if he has any, he enjoys cuddling up with his lovely wife Felicia to watch a good movie. Even with all this going on, camp is never far away from Eric as he books camp vendors, shows and trips during the year. In addition, he along with Steve Webmaster Kolton, put together the monthly Schmata.  When Eric's not writing articles or making puzzles for that, he's writing, editing and shooting video for the Camp Harmony summer video.
-- Eric Program

 

I am working on my doctoral dissertation and hope to be Dr. Carol by the time camp starts this year.
-- Carol Director

 

What do I do in the off season? I cry. I cry and cry and cry. But to get me through, through each day, and closer and closer to the opening day of camp, I teach at Mountain Top, where I am fortunate enough to see a lot of those smiling camper's faces throughout the year. We reminisce about the good times, and share our thoughts on the summer ahead and what a great time we will have. Most of them involve learning to swim in the big pool and going down the big waterslide! I also get together a lot with other camp staff and lifers, just to keep me going. And when I am feeling really down, I play games with Leo on the Ugga Bugga website. Just seeing the cartoon picture of the Camp's grounds makes me feel better instantly. I can't wait for the new camp video either, that always makes me giggle. So, I sit and count the days until we are all back together in June again. How many is that now?
-- Pam Willowbrook

 

In the "off-season" I try to stay dry and warm. After running around all summer in a bathing suit and swimming in the pool, it's nice to to wear long pants, long sleeves and sit on a nice cushy couch. But I usually can't wait to get back to the pool!
-- Kristen Pool

 

I wear many different hats in the off season...althoughnot as many as Jerry! I am a Dance Instructor teaching ballet, tap and jazz/hip hop at the Dance Express in Warren (for the past 12 years!) At Children's House Montessori School in Highland Park I am the Financial Admin.,Dir. of Staff Dev. AND the Dir. of the Music & Movement program...i'm a busy lady...that's when i'm not making sure Amelia has the best care :)
-- Kristin Trans & Allergy

 

This is a tough one. While I am at camp I go to the beach almost every weekend. Now, I spend most of my days indoors teaching instead of outside enjoying nature and students. Still I am a full time Mom and have a lot of family time. Going to the park and hiking are just two of the activities the family does. We also go to Maryland more to visit my family during the "off season".
-- Cara Pool

 

In the off-season, Craig DUH is an 8th grade math teacher at Theodore Schor Middle School in Piscataway. I love to hang out my 2 girls Rebecca and Emily. I eat lots of Chinese food (that might not count, cause I do that in the summer too!!). In the fall, I spend every Sunday watching my favorite football team in the entire world, the Miami Dolphins!!!! Throughout the year I anxiously wait for the next great Camp Harmony to arrive!!!
-- Craig DUH