A Season of Hospitality: Meet Kanuga’s Summer Staff

07.17.2019 - Kanuga Stories

Summer at Kanuga is a special time filled with conferences, retreats, and Summer Guest Period. To meet our guests’ needs, our staff expands to include a fresh crew of summer staffers.

Spending the Summer at Kanuga

This year, our summer staffers are an energetic group of young adults whose main jobs are assisting and organizing adult and youth programs. While most staffers are either Summer Guest Period alumni or college students from the Southeast, some are also from overseas.

This year, we have staffers from the United Kingdom and South Africa. “It’s a unique opportunity to work with some incredible people, and it’s a chance for them to have an unforgettable experience in America,” says Nate Williams, Adventure and Youth Programs Manager at Kanuga.

Sharing Their Talents through Acts of Service

The summer staffers are multi-talented and can be seen across campus as they lead the sunrise hike, help with the youth wilderness ranger program, organize weekly talent shows, assist with arts and crafts, and teach yoga.

“Service is a big part of what our summer staff provide,” says Nate. “They frequently go the extra mile—sometimes literally. During the fun run they’ll run with the kids and sometimes end up carrying the littlest ones. They work hard, and they have a great energy every day.”

While they spend most of their time working at Kanuga, there’s always opportunities for fun and camaraderie. The staffers live on campus. On their days off, they take organized trips to the nearby jump park or experience local attractions like river tubing. They also participate in developmental workshops to refine interpersonal skills.

Keeping Kanuga in Their Hearts

“I’ve heard from our summer guests that this is the best staff we’ve ever had,” says Nate. “My hope is that they return as guests or staff members in the future, and that they come to understand Kanuga as a special place.”