Tyrek is a young man on one of our recent backpacking adventures. Tyrek struggled through the first couple of days as he adjusted to his new outdoor surroundings. He and his teammates were well out of their comfort zones but beginning to embrace their challenge. Our second to last morning, Tyrek was volunteered as our Leader of the Day. He would be responsible for his teammate’s well-being, their route, and their morale. Nervously, he accepted the challenge. Tyrek’s first action after receiving his briefing, was to grab his water bottle and precede to the stream – leaving camp in disarray and the group without direction. The Camptown staff leader followed Tyrek to the stream and told him, “today is going to be the hardest day yet for any of our leaders. You not only have to help your group through the woods, but we will be in the van in a few hours and your role doesn’t end there. You must get your group set up at the campground and make sure everyone is fed and bathed.” He was then asked to take notice of camp. He noticed that camp was disorderly and that he had put his own need for water above the group’s need for leadership. Tyrek battled through the rest of the day with his very smelly group. You see, all week he had been longing and talking about a shower. More so than the others in the group. Rain put our group a few hours behind schedule, but we finally made it to the campground. Tents were set up, dinner was made, bags were unpacked, and showers were taken… and the mess left behind resembled a Kansas trailer park after a tornado! It was at this point that Tyrek’s leadership really came through. The 9 other people in his group had gone off to take care of their needs (showers, etc) but Tyrek remained behind to take care of camp. He had not showered or changed his clothes in four days, yet he remained behind to put the group’s needs above his own. He sacrificed his own comfort to clean up camp and get “bear proof” before sundown. Tyrek grew on his day as Leader of the Day. Most importantly, Tyrek was recognized and praised by his group for his leadership – this young man became a walking example for his peers.
