Since joining Jett Foundation in 2016, Shannon has fallen in love with her job and has found joy in assisting youth and adults within Jett Foundation’s Camp Promise.
“Camp Promise has become such an important part of my life. Camp staff work all year trying to make camp sessions the most incredible, fun, fresh, and safe weeks for all of our campers,” says Shannon.
Due to the pandemic, Jett Foundation and its camp partners made the tough decision to cancel camp sessions to ensure the campers’ health and safety. However, Shannon and other camp members did not let the closure of camp on-the-ground bring an end to the summer-fun activities. One of Shannon’s greatest accomplishments as a Camp Promise team member was successfully transitioning the camp activities virtually for our muscular dystrophy community.
“Our goal was simply to provide a space for campers to have fun, see their friends, meet some new people, and feel connected,” Shannon says.“We brought participants to a farm, had a magic show, played trivia, learned meditation strategies, had a visit from the dynamic Two Disabled Dudes podcast team, and so much more,” says Shannon. “We are also offering our five camp sessions virtually and are serving more campers than ever AND new campers we have never met.”
Shannon’s involvement with Camp Promise is a continuous rewarding and gratifying experience. Seeing the campers have a positive response to the virtual camp activities was an amazing feeling.
“I feel so lucky to be a part of camp and bring youth and adults together during camp sessions,” says Shannon. “I watched many make new friends, have amazing experiences, and learn new things that they can carry with them after camp is over.”
Given the global pandemic, Jett Foundation staff are working remotely to ensure everyone’s safety. In three words, Shannon can describe her working from home experience: her how summer working from home has been: chaos, challenging, and rewarding! Shannon misses chatting with her co-workers in the office and all other small in-person interactions with her colleagues.
“I miss seeing my co-workers! We are a small but mighty team; when we are in the office, it’s so easy to collaborate on new ideas or solve a problem. We work hard but we enjoy a lot of laughs together too,” says Shannon.
To stay in touch with friends, family, and co-workers while working remotely, Shannon has felt a sense of connectedness by using different communication sources like texting and Facetime.
“Like many people, I had really gotten used to texting my family and friends. With COVID-19, I missed seeing them or hearing their voices and so used Zoom and Facetime to help connect with them.”
A valuable concentration tip Shannon would love to share: when you’re working from home, make sure you are flexible and adaptive.
“Due to family obligations, sometimes I have to work different hours to complete tasks or have to do my work in a room I’m not used to using,” says Shannon. “Being able to accept that every day will be a little different and that I may need to navigate my surroundings has really helped me to manage my work/life balance.”
You can connect with Shannon for all things Camp Promise, program development, and grants by emailing her at shannon@jettfoundation.org. To learn more about Camp Promise, visit jettfoundation.org/camppromise.
