Happy July! This month, Camp Fire National Headquarters is celebrating Camp Fire alum and legacy, and Camp Fire First Texas is happy to join in the celebration by honoring a few of our own. Every Friday this month, we will feature the stories of either a former and/or current camper, staff member, or honorary member from across our programs.
Kicking off the celebration is… (drum roll, please) Sara Mitchell! We recently sat down with Sara where she shared how Camp Fire has shaped her, what she is proud to tell others about Camp Fire today, and where she would like to see Camp Fire First Texas go in the future.
As a 3rd generation El Tesoro camper (her mom and grandmother went before her), Sara participated in Camp Fire youth programs as a child. Additionally, her dad worked on the maintenance staff at Camp El Tesoro from 2010-2015.
“I was born in Houston. We moved to Waxahachie right before I started third grade, and so I joined Camp Fire up here,” Sara shares. “They had a club meeting night where you went with your parents. They had a meeting for the Girl Scouts and a meeting for Camp Fire. In the meeting for the Girl Scouts, they were just talking to the parents. But in the Camp Fire meeting, they did an activity where we built a little campfire out of pretzel sticks, marshmallows, and candy corn, and we were taught how to build a fire. And I was like, ‘Oh, that looks like the one for me.'”
And Camp Fire has been the one for Sara ever since.
In the summers before her junior and senior high school years, Sara joined the Counselor-in-Training (CIT) program at Camp El Tesoro and earned her red counselor tie. She also earned the WoHeLo Medallion – Camp Fire’s highest youth honor, and often recalls the songs, friendships, adventures, skills, and magic from her time at camp.
When asked about her most memorable moment as a camper, Sara admitted it is hard to pick just one, but her experience as a canoe torchbearer definitely stands out. “Leaning into that leadership role was big for me,” she says. “I really enjoyed the freedom and the adventure we got to have as teens, but also we were teaching the younger kids.”
Another standout moment was when she earned her counselor tie at her CIT graduation. “Laurie Garner was the camp director at the time and she tied my tie and that was really cool,” Sara says.
Today, Sara serves as the brand manager at Camp Fire First Texas where she is responsible for graphic design, social media, digital communications, and the production of Camp Fire program materials.
“The camper law back in my day was about speaking knowledge and giving service. Those were two of the points that always stuck with me as guideposts for my life,” Sara says. “I’m a lifelong learner and I’m interested in how things work and I want to know all the things and I feel like that curiosity was sparked for me with Camp Fire.”
Sara enjoys seeing children participate in and learn to love the same programs she was involved in as a child. And she hopes to see her two children, son Eli and daughter Maggie, spend many of their summers experiencing “the treasure” that’s nestled along the Brazos River in Granbury, Texas.
