Meet Volunteers Ian & Colin
Por Veronica Kuffel
Last summer, Ian and Colin volunteered together in the Osprey Cabin. They bonded as Cabin Leads, leaving their adult lives at the gate and leaning into the magic of camp.
“It’s helped me kind of come out of my shell a little bit,” Colin said. “I’m a very reserved person, but here, I feel comfortable being goofy and being loud and all that. And it’s great, it’s different than my normal life.”
Colin is studying Health and Exercise Science at Colorado State University, and had heard of Roundup River Ranch from his guidance counselor. Colin was inspired to volunteer due to his career interests in healthcare, and he wanted to see an environment outside of the traditional medical setting.
Ian first volunteered for Flying Horse Farms before moving to Colorado, and wanted to continue his involvement with the SeriousFun Children’s Network, leading him to Roundup River Ranch. His sister passed away after a misdiagnosed heart condition, and he wanted to provide support to campers and families who had similar experiences. He especially loved that Summer Camp includes siblings.
“Our family went through what a lot of these families do,” Ian said. “To be just a small part of camp for these kids, especially the siblings… and knowing as a sibling what that feels like, and to get away and leave everything behind, is incredible.”
Both were surprised at how quickly they found their place at camp. Ian loved hanging with the older campers at CROM -camp prom – and dancing freely during the Silent Disco.
Colin’s favorite memory was at Archery, where the campers decided to combine their skills with bows and paintbrushes. If campers hit a piece of paper on the target, they could paint their counselor’s faces.
“And they all came up to me and told me they were going to paint my face,” Colin said. “I was covered in paint afterward. And it was a lot of fun.”
During their session, camp staff started Operation Kindness, a fun twist on pranks. Each cabin gave a fun and kind surprise to another cabin, and their group made bracelets for the Aspen Cabin. That was their favorite part of camp – everyone was so inclusive, and kindness was easily encouraged.
Roundup River Ranch invites many campers with serious diagnoses, and Ian and Colin were grateful to feel supported by camp and medical staff while they led their cabin.
“You have so much help here, and not everything’s reliant on you if something goes wrong,” Colin noted. “There are so many systems in place, so many people to help you. It can be scary to think about these kids with these very serious diagnoses, but they are just kids at the end of the day.”
To anyone considering a volunteer experience, their biggest piece of advice is to embrace camp, and the campers will follow you.
“When you’re in this scenario, embrace the silliness – grab a costume from the costume closet, and just have a blast,” Ian said. “Because the kids see you doing it, and then they just follow suit.”
