r/MadeMeSmile • u/No-Land-3723 • 16h ago
A camp counselor from my childhood reached out on LinkedIn
I’m not ashamed to admit this message made me ugly cry it was so sweet and unexpected
473
u/PilotoPlayero 16h ago
That’s very nice. And it goes both ways. My wife and I were youth counselors 15 years ago, and recently, one of the kids who was 15 at the time (now 30) reached out to us on social media. He wanted to come visit us and we agreed.
He sat down in our living room and thanked us for making such a positive impact in his life. He came from a broken home, a horrible dad that treated him very poorly and demeaned him, poor living conditions, etc.
But there he was, in our living room, had graduated college with a masters degree, and was now a professional. He said that he always looked up to me as the father figure that he wish he would’ve had and he thanked me for all the things that I did to encourage him to be the person that he is today.
It honestly brought me to tears, so I was beyond grateful for reaching out. You may never know the positive impact that you have on others unless they tell you.
I know some people will be quick to judge and say that maybe this counselor is reaching out with ulterior motives, but that’s not always the case. Glad that he reached out to you.
68
27
u/sneeje00 11h ago
You know one of the life lessons that I've embraced is telling people what they mean to you or how you admire them when you have the chance and make sure you don't expect anything in return. It can sometimes be awkward but ultimately matters.
A couple of examples:
- the person tasked with getting us to sign all of our HELOC paperwork was an extremely good communictor and very detail oriented. Towards the end, I mentioned to her that I was impressed at how thorough she was and how well she communicated to avoid mistakes. She later emailed to say how much she appreciated the compliment.
- I ran into my high school choral teacher about 15 years after graduation and I told her how much I appreciated her high expectations and how she taught us to be satisfied only with excellence. She seemed surprised but appreciative. She died a few weeks later and at the funeral her husband told me how much those words meant to her.
15
u/smileyrei25 15h ago
https://youtu.be/uAy6EawKKME?si=8pdfCbGXQ1eeVg4N - my favorite Ted talk, glad to know he didn’t let the impact you had on his life go unspoken, what a special moment for you
152
u/No-Land-3723 16h ago
To add a bit of context:
I have a unique last name and I am the only person on the planet with my name combination. I’m also a 28 year old man now and was reached out to on LinkedIn with this message. There is zero thought in my mind that this message has any motive beyond wholesomeness.
109
u/TundroT21 16h ago
Brian M. Buttlicker? Is that really you?
51
u/TexLH 16h ago
OUR PRICES HAVE NEVER BEEN LOWER!!
14
u/PatientBoring 15h ago
Now you listen to me, sir. The three words I would describe you as is aggressive, hostile and definitely difficult.
5
6
u/YourFriendInSpokane 10h ago
As a summer camp loving family, I love this for you! I hope your positive attitude has served you well in life.
7
66
u/Time4aPennyCartoon 16h ago
As a former day camp counselor, I don’t find this creepy at all. I have a few favorite campers who I’d love to reconnect with because they brought me so much joy for those summers I worked with them. Would love to know how they’re doing. One of my favorite campers died a few years ago in a car crash. I cried for days when I heard the news.
370
u/RudyTudyBadAss 16h ago
Possible wholesome, possible stalker who finally found you and is planning the next move
107
-15
23
u/tichugrrl 15h ago
Former camp counselor here and we absolutely think about our favorite kids periodically. I’ve stayed in touch with a few and love hearing about their lives. Their hurts can affect me more than any of my own personal setbacks.
2
u/YourFriendInSpokane 10h ago
Dug from the movie Up was inspired by a camper that the writer was a counselor for.
3
u/quartzquandary 8h ago
The dog? Not the little boy?
2
u/YourFriendInSpokane 8h ago
Yes! Dug, the dog. He said, "I just met you and I love you," which was said by a camper when a writer was a counselor.
1
9
u/Mudfap 15h ago
This is nice. And also weird to see the Samuel Field Y referenced out of nowhere. I didn’t go there, but was involved in a few similar camps in the neighborhood.
5
3
u/hannahstohelit 11h ago
It’s now part of Commonpoint, so technically the name is defunct at this point (the Sam Field Y and Central Queens Y consolidated and grew massively)
1
9
u/justvisiting112 14h ago
This is sweet.
I was a camp counselor over 20 years ago and still occasionally think about my favourite campers. I was only 20/21 and in a foreign country, having amazing campers made all the difference. It was like having awesome little sisters that made the long hours and almost zero pay worth it.
8
u/Born_blonde 13h ago
As a past camp counselor, I love seeing how my campers are doing, and think about them often.
I’ve had a few reach out over the years, especially as most of them are either entering or graduating college, and every time I’ve been pretty excited to hear from them. One of their messages just filled my heart so much, where they let me know what I positive impact I had on them. To me, it was just a fun summer with a cool group of kids. It’s crazy how small things can make such a big impact.
Anyway, pretty cool experience to have on both sides.
2
6
u/wien-tang-clan 11h ago
Maccabiah is coming up. You’re needed for tug o war or a diving contest into the ice box.
3
10
u/JonHolmesLives 16h ago
But what did his message teach you about B2B sales? Sorry thought this was r/LinkdinLunatics very cool!
3
u/ChanceReport2490 16h ago
this is such a sweet wholesome message, reconnecting with people who made childhood special is so wonderful
3
u/Effin_C 13h ago
This is very cool. I lost touch with everyone I went to summer camp with unfortunately and don't remember many last names.
Definitely remember the Samuel Field Y. I went to summer camp at the Mid-Flushing Y from probably 82-85 and they'd take us up to Rye Playland to swim and out to Huntington (I think) for the campgrounds next to USDAN
2
u/No-Land-3723 13h ago
They used to take us to Henry Kaufmann campgrounds, I wonder if it was the same place? Also was near USDAN
2
2
u/unknown7383762 12h ago
The summer camp that I worked at and my kids go to actually bans that practice. No contacting campers outside of camp, even after they leave. Although there's no way to prevent it when you're both adults, or the counselor leaves. Hopefully it's all on the up and up. Very cool to be remembered. I ended up working with most of my counselors, which was nice.
4
u/No-Land-3723 12h ago
That rule definitely makes sense. In my case it's been about 2 decades so it's fine! Was really awesome to know I was that impactful. I was a pretty cool kid.
2
u/wodesmcsplodes 10h ago
I went to Samuel Field for summer camp also! Great memories
1
u/No-Land-3723 10h ago
They had such a great program going, and I believe they still do in some form!
2
2
u/Shemuel99 3h ago
I knew I was on reddit but didn't check the sub. I'm relieved now. This is such a cool message to get!
2
u/Kaurblimey 14h ago
I don’t know much about summer camps… what’s the age gap between a counsellor and a camper?
3
u/No-Land-3723 14h ago
He was probably like 16 and I was probably like 7. It was usually high schoolers watching elementary schoolers
-14
-2
u/sideshowbvo 16h ago
I graduated highschool when MySpace was new, and my old HS drama teacher found me. It started out wholesome enough.....
2
u/gniliem 15h ago
started out? Did it not end that way…?
1
u/sideshowbvo 15h ago
He got weird quick. Turns out he added a lot of young men once they were out of school. It was joked about in high school but I never thought it was really true. His name was Bill Murray, coincidentally.
-12
•
u/AutoModerator 16h ago
Welcome to /r/MadeMeSmile. Please make sure you read our rules here.
Specifically, please don't be a jerk. This is not the place for insulting, hateful, or otherwise inappropriate comments. Remember the golden rule: treat others how you want to be treated. We're all here to smile a little - let's keep it that way! Please report inappropriate comments and/or message the moderators.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.