It's time to begin meeting the Mystic Lake staff for this summer! Each week we will be introducing staff! These people are full of positive energy, fun, passionate and ready to give campers memories that will last a lifetime. They are the Mystic Lake counselors of summer 2016!

Hello, I am Matthew. I have been going to camp my whole life and have been working at Mystic for the past 4 years. I am always outdoors whether it is backpacking the North Country Trail and the Manistee River Trail or rock climbing in Colorado. I would rather be outside in the rain then inside on the prettiest days. Camp has helped me grow so much and has helped shaped myself in so many ways, and I cannot wait to help others have the same experiences and help them grow to love this place as much as I do. Can't wait to be a part of your summer.

Hi! My name is Sam. I am from West Bloomfield, Michigan. I was a camper at Mystic Lake for seven years. This is my first year as a counselor. I practice theatre, art and music. I'm studying Communication Studies and Hospitality/ Tourism Management at Grand Valley State University. I love being outside and playing games! I am super excited to explore the beautiful nature of Mystic Lake with my campers, and share with them the excitement of theatre.

Hi my name is Ben! This will be my first year at Mystic Lake as the Adventure Trips Counselor and actually my first year ever! I'm from Fraser, Michigan which is located in the Metro Detroit area. My hobbies outside of camp include music (I love singing and playing piano and other instruments), I really love to hike/backpack, and I enjoy reading especially poetry. I'm really excited to be leading campers on hiking trips and showing others how wonderful nature is!

Hi, I am Taylor. I was a camper for 9 year and this will be my 2nd year as a camp counselor. I am from Lansing, MI and outside of camp I do competitive cheerleading, Color Guard, and I am party of a Dance Company including pointe ballet and tap dance. I also assistant coach cheerleading at my cheer gym. I am very excited this summer to reconnect with old friend, and create new ones. Also, lots and lots of tie-dye.

I'm Michael, I've been a part of Mystic for 10 summers, 9 of them as a camper and last year was my first summer as a counselor. I come from Holt, Michigan, just south of Lansing. I love to ski in the winter and water ski in the summer, as well as archery year round. I'm most excited to meet all the new campers and make this summer as amazing as my summers were as a camper.

My name is Haley S, and this is my first year working at Mystic Lake as a counselor! I spent time as a camper at Mystic Lake during a class trip in 6th grade. I was born and raised in Clare, and now attend Central Michigan University where I study Recreation and Event Management. When I have free time I always find myself with my family and friends, and love to be on or near the water in the summer. This summer I'm looking forward to getting to know the campers and the rest of the Mystic staff, and seeing what fun new experiences camp has to offer!

My name is Maggie and I'm from Okemos, Michigan! Last summer as a CIT was my first time at Mystic Lake and this summer will be my first as a counselor. In my free time I enjoy spelunking, eating guacamole, and playing soccer with my friends. This summer I'm excited to go on lots of night hikes (and eat lots of smacos)!

Hi everyone! My name is Alyssa and I am from Okemos, MI.  I was a camper for 5 years and have been a counselor for 3 years. In my free time I play lacrosse and like to camp. I am most excited to teach kids new things and have them teach me things as well. I also am super excited to experience nature with my campers and teach them all the things I know about the outdoor world.

Ending Summer Learning Loss 

Through The Power of Camp

Mystic Lake is a place for fun and friendships, but did you also know its a place to keep camper's school skills sharp during the summer months? 

What is summer learning loss?

Summer Learning Loss is a decrease in academic level over the course of summer. The National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) survey indicated 66% of teachers spend 3-4 weeks at the beginning of the school year re-teaching previous year, 24% spend at least 5 weeks.

Regardless of income, most children lose 2 months of grade level equivalency in math skills every summer. More than half of the achievement gap between lower- and higher-income youth can be explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities. As a result, low-income youth are less likely to graduate from high school or enter college (Alexander et al, 2007). Here at mystic all campers have access to programs to keep their skills sharp. 

What we do at Mystic to stop summer learning loss

Camp Readers - This program provides children with opportunities to read for a minimum of 30 minutes each day. Reading can be done during Open Choice, cabin time, rest hour and/or in a structured skill clinic. Staff read to kids, kids read on their own, kids read to other kids, etc. Research shows that a child reading for 30 minutes each day over the course of the summer can halt summer learning loss and help close the achievement gap.

STEM (Science Technology, Engineering and Math) programs can include plotting the scientific method, measuring data points and creating hypothesis all while creating working volcanoes in the sand at the waterfront. 

Creative Writing- Everything from comic book creations, short story writing, story performances and group challenges, campers can create imaginative tales to share with their cabin mates and counselors. You may even be able to get your hands on an issue of the Mystic Morning newspaper. 

Drama- Campers create a play in which they are the directors and performers in charge of developing characters, plot and the synopsis of their play. The campers perform their skits at the end of the week for all of camp.

We offer many other programs that keep campers learning, everything from calculating the trajectory of their archery shot to sitting the trot on horseback, campers learn new skills everyday at Mystic Lake. All of these choices help our campers stay sharp in school and gain success over the course of their academic careers. A week at summer camp helps campers to build their social skills, grow in their creativity, make friends and leave with a sense of accomplishment in their skill based classes. We can't wait to have the opportunity to offer these choices to your camper during summer 2016. 

Register now for summer 2016!

Early bird discount until March 31, 2016!

 Seeking Counseling Staff for Summer 2016

It is impossible to convey the importance of being a summer camp counselor in one post. The years I have spent on the shores of YMCA camps offered me tremendous opportunities for growth in my life. I am the person I am today because I took a leap of faith and became a summer camp counselor. 

Teaching children the importance of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility ingrains those values unto yourself. After 10 weeks of putting a group of children's needs before your own, you will grow into a person who has a greater understanding of what it means to be a citizen of the world. You create bonds with children whom you may never see again, but who have made a spot in your heart that only they can fill. Guiding children will make you grow more as a person than you could at any other time. 

There is a special sort of magic that happens when you are in charge of someone else's most prized possession for a week at a time. For 7 days you are there to keep those children safe, happy and awestruck by your amazing skills at the archery range or your lanyard creations. You become a role model that fills children with the knowledge that they can accomplish great things. A trip to the top of the climbing wall teaches campers to trust in others while they are on belay, to rely on their cabin mates when they couldn't quite see that hand hold that was a bit to the left, and to trust in themselves. Even if they do not make it to the top their effort of getting their sneakers off the wood chips shows them that a small step in the right direction can lead to big changes in their lives. All the while as a counselor you are watching this magnificent metamorphosis and realizing that your presence is letting all of these experiences come together to help the world be better, one camper climbing the rock wall at a time. 

Our world is better because of summer camp, better because we teach campers how to speak to one another face to face while sitting in the sun eating grapes, instead of through a screen alone in their room. Summer camp lets campers jump into an ice cold lake at 7:00 in the morning, lets them fling Jell-O at their friends across a field, or lets them "smuggle" snacks out of the kitchen while the program director is "asleep" on guard. It makes magic out of sweeping, and adventures out of walks to the bath house. Its all amazing, all at once, and there is so much more to it than that.

All of this is possible if you choose to spend your summer at a YMCA resident camp. We choose to work for others as opposed to serving ourselves. We choose to help children grow, and in turn help the world grow into a more tolerant and peaceful world. Working at a YMCA Camp brings you into a movement of thousands of people who want to change the world, who want to give children new experiences, and who are comfortable in a job in which lake showers are a regular hobby. 

The summer 2016 applications are now open, and if you are a creative and hardworking individual we hope to see your application. Being a camp counselor is the most challenging position you can take on, but I promise there is none more special, or more rewarding. 

http://www.ymcaoflansing.org/mystic-employment/ 

THE KIDS ARE BACK TO SCHOOL, NOW I’TS BACK TO YOU! Join us for the 2^nd annual RENEW Women’s Wellness Retreat, October 2 – 4, 2015 AT MYSTIC LAKE YMCA CAMP!

REWEW women’s weekend was designed to help YOU to renew, in the beautiful, natural setting that Mystic Lake YMCA Camp has to offer. Enjoy a variety of activities designed to empower women of all ages. Saturday and Sunday activities will include: Zumba, Yoga, Tai Chi, Good Form Clinics, hiking, bike riding (bikes available or bring your own), meditation, trail running or walking, kayaking, pontoon cruises and more.

The weekend can be as active or as laid back as you would like it to be. Read by the lake; talk with friends around a camp fire. 

Check in Friday at 7:00pm and check out Sunday at 12:00pm (noon). Fee includes all classes and workshops, lodging, snacks, three meals on Saturday and breakfast Sunday morning. Must provide own transportation to and from camp.

Last year’s retreat was a great experience for everyone that attended.  Women share their life experiences, laughed, ate and enjoyed a weekend of fun, friendship and food! 

Call the Y for more information or to register! (517) 827-9660 or (517) 827-9656. 

90 Years of Mystic Magic

Where will you be Sunday, September 6?
WE HOPE AT MYSTIC LAKE YMCA CAMP!

We will be celebrating 90 years of camping at the most beautiful place on Earth! Our special Alumni Gathering and 90th Anniversary will take place on Sunday, September 6, 2015.

All friends of Mystic Lake are welcome to this free event! Whether you were a camper, a parent, a teacher, a counselor, a director, or any other supporter of camp we want you here! We are hoping to meet campers and staff from all decades of our long history. Share this date with everyone you know!

Stay tuned for more details!

We can't wait to see you and share all of our Mystic memories together!

If you have a memory of Mystic that you would like to share with fellow alumni please email your story to Amiee at awoodrow@ymcaoflansing.org and we'll post it on the blog!

Camp Starlight

Michigan Dyslexia Institute and Mystic Lake YMCA Camp formed a partnership over nineteen years ago.  This partnership has enabled us to work together to help and encourage numerous campers.  This year Camp Starlight will celebrate its 20th anniversary with Starlight campers, counselors and the extended family of Mystic Lake. The dates for Camp Starlight are June 21-27, 2015.


Camp Starlight is one-week overnight camp.  The camp is specifically for children with dyslexia and provides campers with the chance to gain a better understanding of dyslexia, build self-esteem, enhance social skills, and most importantly to have fun.  The camp atmosphere gives campers an opportunity to interact with other children with dyslexia in a positive, supportive environment.  Many of the campers return year after year and develop lifelong friendships.

Goals and Objectives
• Demonstrate to campers they have the ability to become strong and independent leaders
• Encourage campers to reinforce their strengths
• Teach self-advocacy
• Present adult guest speakers who share their real life experience and how dyslexia is an advantage

If you are interested in finding out more about Camp Starlight, please feel free to contact Michigan Dyslexia Institute at 517-485-4000.

Mystic Joins In!

Raggers begins this summer 2015!

The Raggers program has been a part of YMCA resident camping for 99 years. This goal setting and personal growth program will make it's Mystic debut this year.

The program is designed to help campers take a closer look at themselves in relationship to their own strengths and weaknesses, religious beliefs and relationships that surround them. It provides an opportunity to promote positive personal growth. Growth in spirit, mind and body is incorporated into the program. This program also follows in line with what YMCA's strive to accomplish through our mission.


Each Rag has a specific challenge and is accompanied by a personal goal developed by the individual. All of our campers who choose to participate in the program will be accepting the challenge of a blue rag this year, which will be the challenge of loyalty to their God, country, one's best self and the Ragger's Creed.

The raggers creed: 

I would be true, for there are those who trust me;
I would be pure, for there are those who care;
I would be strong, for there is much to suffer;
I would be brave, for there is much to dare;
I would be friend to all - the foe, the friendless;
I would be giving, and forget the gift;
I would be humble, for I know my weakness;
I would look up, and laugh, and love and lift.

We're looking forward to sharing this program with our campers!

"CONFERENCES." Rag/Leather Programs. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2015. <http://www.christianleadershipconf.org/rags>.