This summer, through Colgate’s Upstate Institute, I was honored to work at Camp Fiver in Poolville, N.Y. Through their 10-year commitment, the Fiver Children’s Foundation provides experiences that challenge and build relationships, nurturing youth from systemically under-resourced communities in New York to create their own positive futures. Fiver does this through two-week sessions during summer and year-long programs. As an Upstate Institute fellow, I worked as a history associate, creating historical content for campers, staff members, and other Camp Fiver attendees to know the land’s history. I also worked in collaboration with the Serve Program, 17 and 18-year-old campers in specialty classes. For my project, I split the history of the land into three parts: the Oneida Indian Nation, the Hamlet of Poolville, and Camp Fiver. Each part required a different set of research skills from exploring archives and interviewing Poolville residents to reading lesson plans curated by the Shako:wi Cultural Center.
As I developed a deeper understanding of the Oneida Indian Nation, Poolville, and Camp Fiver, I created lesson plans for Serve campers that focused on researching and creating historical content, mainly posters. The results of this project are three educational posters displaying descriptions and timelines, highlighting important events from each session. In the future, these posters will be displayed throughout the camp property.
This process gave me a deeper appreciation for educators and reaffirmed for me the importance of community building — whether sharing a laugh and forgetting the formality of an interview, racing to see who’s the fastest as a break from researching, or getting to know camp counselors, during their busy days. The history of this land and its inhabitants not only lies in beautiful personal stories, but also in the people who tirelessly uphold their communities, be it a nonprofit organization, community center, or cultural center.
I have to admit that at first, I did not see the connection between my studies and working at a summer camp. However, I found myself relating to campers, many of whom came from the same place as me in Brooklyn and Queens. As someone passionate about environmental justice through green space and accessibility to healthy food, I loved seeing campers of all ages find adventure and tranquility in a vast green space they don’t often have access to. Working at Camp Fiver has changed my focus from solely community gardens to encouraging youth to learn about environmental justice and their food systems.
I would like to thank the Upstate Institute and my adviser Bruce Moseley, my Camp Fiver adviser Anthony Silvera, Mabel Munoz, and Mary Lee Dinski for giving me this opportunity and leaving a lasting impact on me.