JBY VANESSA VERA
Mendham Chester Washington Township this week.com
• July 22, 2009

Being the second oldest of seven children, 18-year-old Christina Morra knows a thing or two about working with kids of all ages.

So being surrounded by dozens of children as a counselor at the Washington Township Recreation Summer Camp is something the Long Valley resident handles well.

Morra is a head counselor who has been working at the summer camp for five years. It was her first job, said Morra, a genetic engineering major going into her junior year at Cedar Crest College in Allentown, Pa. She earned 34 college credits while in high school.

She likes learning about her campers' different personalities and working with them to develop their social skills, Morra said. But while campers are with her, she also wants them to have a good time, she said..

"They need to have fun. It's their summer vacation. They don't want to sit. They don't want to be buckled down," Morra said. "They want to enjoy themselves, and you have to help them do that safely."

The Washington Township Recreation Summer Camp, held at Long Valley Middle School, is a five-week program ending July 31.

It's a half-day camp where kids participate in various recreational activities like sports, arts and crafts, games and field trips. There is also a science component to the program.

"We pack a lot into three hours," said Chris Tamburro, 26, camp director.

Tamburro, a high school history teacher in Verona, said his goal for the program is that kids enjoy their summer and try new things. The camp staff works hard to come up with innovative activities for the children, he said.

Whenever she's not at camp during the summer, 7-year-old Sarah Trupp of Long Valley usually ends up going to work with her father or grandfather, something she doesn't always find very entertaining.

But going to camp is fun because there's lots to do, she said.

"I like all the counselors and friends because I like to play with them," she said. "It's fun, instead of just sitting around and doing nothing at home."

For the last three years, 7-year-old Julia Trethaway of Long Valley has been attending the camp.

"I didn't want to sit around the whole summer in front of the TV," Julia said of her reasons for attending camp. "I like meeting other people and doing the activities we do."

Her school classmate, Leo Scotti, 7, of Long Valley also attends the camp.

Leo said he enjoys camp activities, especially sports.

Camp counselor Andy Bansch, 16, of Schooley's Mountain has been working at the camp for five years. But before he was a counselor, he was a camper in the program.

In fact, he was Morra's camper at one point.

Because he had such a good camp experience, he wanted to come back and pass that on to other kids, Andy said.

His experience as a counselor has also been positive, he said. Because he works with a small group of kindergarteners, competing for time among counselors and kids is not an issue, he said.

"It feels like I can really pay attention to kids," he said.

Counselors are role models to campers, Andy said, and he wanted an opportunity to step into that role.

"I thought I could also be a role model to these kids and give them a good time," he said.

Vanessa Vera: 973-428-6574; vvera@gannett.com