Kevin really was in diapers when he started coming to the Club. "My aunt ran the swim team at what was then the Irving J. Seher Club, and she used to bring me along," Kevin remembers. "She was in charge of the lifeguard training, and as part of the training, they had to tread water holding a weight. She would have them hold on to me, and they had to keep me out of the water. That put the fear of God in them to keep this baby out of the water," he says with a laugh.
As a Club member, Kevin took part in the swim team, adventure club, archaeology club and the dog training program. He also attended camp in the summers. When he got to high school, he took on leadership roles in those programs, a trend that would continue.
When Kevin turned 18, Keith Henslin, Camp Whitcomb/Mason's program director, encouraged him to join the Leaders in Training (LIT) program. It's the Camp's six-week, overnight program that trains youth counselors and helps develop their overall leadership skills.
"He told me, 'I think you'll do an awesome job.' Now, I'm hiring LITs and looking at the Club members who are turning 18 and giving them a chance. It's great exposure to various jobs at the camp and to life itself," Kevin says. "I really have to thank camp for allowing me to spend a whole summer learning new things once I turned 18 in the LIT program. It's like they said, 'Here's your chance to step up and shine.'"
Now, he's working for the Boys & Girls Clubs full-time teaching the archaeology program at Camp and during the year, at the Clubs. His position at Camp Whitcomb/Mason is funded in large part by AmeriCorps, and in addition to his salary, he'll also earn an educational grant when he completes his 11-month term.
"Kevin is a great example of someone who started in a specialty program as a member, and now he teaches it," says Camp Executive Director Mark Thomas. "That's a great testimony to his accomplishments."
"It's so important for kids to come to camp. They see a different side of life that can inspire success and hope and prosperity in them," says Thomas.
Kevin agrees. "Camp changes you in such a positive way. It's a chance to step off the streets, step back and really look at yourself. It's such a beautiful, awesome place. It all boils down to camp being a chance to get out of the city. It gives kids the opportunity to see a place like this and gives them something to aspire to - to help them see there are places to go."