Director & Staff
Camp Director
Anna Hopkins believes in the power of summer camp to empower children, enrich family life, and create a more peaceful world! Anna has been the Camp Director at Friends Camp since 2016, following several summers on staff as an Assistant Director, Watercraft Director, and counselor. In the summer season, Anna can be seen supporting counselors in their work, communicating with families, and helping our kitchen, maintenance, and health hut teams thrive. In the fall, winter, and spring months, Anna spends her time managing all camp operations, including talking with new camp families, recruiting staff, dreaming up big new ideas for camp, and working with the Friends Camp Committee to keep camp safe and sustainable for the future. When not at camp, Anna lives in Natick, Massachusetts with her husband and young daughter.
Anna loves to learn and is always seeking ways to become a better Camp Director. She is a Board Member for American Camp Association, New England, as well as involved with Maine Summer Camps. Before her work with Friends Camp, Anna was a science teacher and is a graduate of Williams College with a degree in Biology and Leadership Studies. Anna also received a Masters of Business Administration in Social Impact from Boston University.
Counselors
Camp counselors and staff are chosen from students and graduates of colleges and universities in the United States, and from around the world. We seek young adults ages 19 to 26 who are caring and loving people with character, maturity, and a sincere interest in making our world a better and more peaceful place for everyone.
Most importantly, we look for staff members who have the judgment and the maturity to ensure that all of our campers are emotionally and physically safe during their time at Friends Camp. We look for counselors who have a sincere desire to work and live in community with children.
Our camper-to-counselor ratio is 4 to 1.
Support Staff
Support staff during the summer months at Friends Camp include a cook and kitchen staff, a part-time nurse, health hut counselor(s), a Maintenance Director, a Waterfront Director, a Program Director, and an Assistant Director. We also usually have individuals outside of these specific roles who help support campers and staff with programming and physical and emotional wellbeing. Most of our support team are returning staff members with 4-10 years of experience at Friends Camp and are invaluable members of the community. Many are teachers and educators year-round who return to camp each summer for some or all of the season. Support staff are selected for their good judgment, skills in their area, leadership ability, compassion, and communication skills.