Mackle Park Looking for High School Volunteers

Mackle Parks and Recreation staff want to give more opportunities to high school students to earn community volunteer hours for when they return to school in August.

“The City of Marco Island Parks and Recreation department’s Leadership in Training (LIT) program is open to high school students in grades nine through 12 who are looking to earn community service hours, gain leadership experience, build workplace skills, and have fun while working with children in a positive camp environment,” said Manager of Parks, Culture and Recreation, Samantha Malloy. There is a training session on Friday, May 22, from 1:00 PM-2:30 PM, with the final session on Thursday, May 28, from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM. These sessions consist of a brief PowerPoint presentation covering information about Camp Mackle, how the LIT scheduling process works, program expectations, and important camp safety procedures. Participants will also receive a brief tour of the facility, and, of course, there will be some games and activities mixed in as well. Wear comfortable clothing and shoes during training sessions. Additional apparel information will be shared during the leadership training for camp.

LITs will be responsible for assisting Camp Counselors with daily activities and providing extra support and encouragement to campers. LITs are the heart of the camp since their main job is to help create a fun, safe, and engaging experience for all the attendees. This is a great opportunity to develop leadership skills and time management skills that will be very useful when they return to high school. Over the past few years, the program has become more structured with scheduled volunteer shifts. Time management becomes a key trait for the LITs, so they manage their own schedules for when they will be coming to volunteer for Camp Mackle. The structured schedule also helps maintain appropriate staffing levels while supporting the overall safety and organization of camp operations. LITs always seem to gravitate towards wanting to be more involved in the sun and fun interactive activities that the camp offers, from being a strong participant in camp games to being the first to raise their hand to attend camp field trips, which is always a favorite in one of the many summer events Parks and Recreation organizes for the camp.

“ Many of our LITs choose to participate because they previously attended Camp Mackle themselves and are excited to return as role models for younger campers,” said Malloy, who mentioned that Camp counselors began as LIT volunteers. Joining the Marco Island Parks and Recreation summer camp would help prevent the pressure of cramming in community service hours during the busy and high-stress period of the new school year. All training sessions for LITs are held at the Mackle Park home base. The park staff also generously provides food and snacks for training courses. Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to gain quality traits of leadership mixed with the fun and exciting experience of working with kids!

Students should have a completed and signed LIT application with them. If they do not have one completed beforehand, they are still welcome to attend the training and fill out an application on-site.