Super Siblings

 

In the storied history of Olympia Sports Camp there have been lots of siblings who have shared their experience together. The hero’s journey calls us to share our talents, experiences, and passions with others and to be able to share it with a sibling makes it even more special. We introduce you to the Collins sisters. Born and raised in Lindsay.Ontario, Krissy and Jodie have accomplished a lot. They competed against each other in CIS (USports) basketball. Krissy went the academic route, getting her BA from Concordia and her MA at York before etching out a great path at U of Toronto, where she now the assistant dean of Academic Programs in the department of Continuing Studies. Jodie’s path diverged and after doing her BA at Ryerson and her B(ed) at York she took a global journey with the Me To We organization. But it all started in beautiful Interlaken, Ontario.

The vibe and influence of Olympia Sports Camp, because of the passion, confidence, and world view of so many Olympians, has directly and indirectly influenced people across the globe. People like Olympia mainstay and lifer Jodie Collins.

One of the coolest interviews for this book had me on the phone with Jodie, me at my computer in Burlington, Ontario and Jodie sitting on a picnic table in Nairobi, Kenya. Having Jodie's good friend and fellow Olympian Mo Rogers sitting beside her made the whole process even more surreal.

 

Jodie worked for Me to We (We)  for 10 years as director of trips for East Africa, which includes the countries of Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Without a doubt this journey had its beginnings on the shores of OxBow Lake, quite literally.

 

Former CFLer Doug Collins began coaching football at Olympia in 1980 and brought his family for a week every summer when the girls were young. When Jodie was born in 1982, she became another Olympian who began her journey in Interlaken while in diapers. Jodie remembers the walk from the coach’s cabins to the dining hall as being the longest walk ever. Her two sisters Krissy and Peggy would run ahead to get her to catch up and of course the option of riding on dad’s shoulders was always there. The girls watched in awe as the older kids played football, soccer, volleyball and most exciting of all, basketball. They dreamed of being campers someday. The whole vibe was awesome, everyone outside, having fun and playing together, then in the evenings watching inspirational multi-media presentations in the field house.  They knew that Olympia was in their blood and that they would be at Olympia for a long time. Jodie began going as a camper when she was 12. She went for three summers before she was old enough to apply for a job. Her motivation to eventually work at Olympia came through the admiration of a counsellor.

 

“My favourite counsellor was Lee Dixon,” Jodie recalls,” I was enthralled with her energy and spirit, but I also thought it was inspiring that such a cool person actually liked me. I always liked what Olympia did for young people in terms of building confidence, social skills, how to work hard and finding themselves. I was motivated by Lee’s belief in me and thought I could help out, so when I could I applied for a job.”

 

Then Jodie joined her sister Krissy on staff and became one of the cool people the campers looked up to. A summer job is all about the money? No way says Jodie.

 

“It blows my mind with the long days that we put in, with very little sleep, that it could be seen as fun, but it was,” Jodie says,” We all joked about how much we must be earning per hour but to me the experience was priceless. We were having so much fun, doing so much good for others, and learning all about dedication and work ethic. At Olympia I went from showing people who I was to knowing who I was. I grew up at Olympia.”

 

Krissy recalls how proud she was when Jodie joined her on staff after she had been a counsellor for two years,

“We became closer than ever.  Not only was it great to have her there because she was an outstanding counsellor and made me proud, or because I finally had some clothes I could borrow, but mostly because we were able to share such a transformational experience together.”

 

Jodie stopped working at Olympia ten years later.

 

Jodie spent three years as a counsellor and then moved on to become a Unit Leader, assistant waterfront director and eventually became waterfront director. Jodie loved everything about camp, the chance to be outside helping kids have fun, the camaraderie and the culture of pranking so prevalent between Olympia family members, the late-night basketball games in the fieldhouse, but her true happy place was the waterfront early in the morning. 

 

“The lake is like glass every morning and the peacefulness of the early morning belies the fantastic energy that the land and water experience throughout the day. I found the water calming before the day got hectic.”

 

Opportunities often lead to other opportunities. Jodie helped Greg Rogers run the Leadership course and took her first trip to Kenya in 2007. She  became enthralled with the process and  experience and wanted more. Greg’s influence helped Jodie get the job with We and she lived in Kenya for a decade, meeting her husband Santai Kimakeke and becoming the mother of two children, Soila and Nemayian. 

Life has brought her full circle as she and Santai left the We organization and have moved back to Canada. To make the circle complete she is teaching in the same small town of Lindsay where her dad taught a generation ago. The Collins’ just keep on doing for others.

 

Jodie feels she owes much to Dave Grace, and others.

 

“Dave Grace is the definition of a visionary. He always knew how to make things happen. He empowers others to take risks and be willing to fail and thereby gain confidence.  The feeling as a counsellor is that you can do anything, and therefore the staff always became a family. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to join Dave and Greg on a trip to Tanzania after not seeing Dave for years. Talk about a person taking the bat off the shoulder and being out of their comfort zone! Dave and I shared the biggest Olympia hug ever.”

 

“But for all Dave’s beliefs and dedication, it’s those he surrounds himself with that create the camp. He hires good people who want to help others grow. People like Greg Rogers and Wes McConnell are the legacy of the camp, people whose belief in others inspired. The philosophy of Olympia is one of a caring, dynamic place where there is a freedom to explore. Explore our world and our place in it.”

 

Choking up, Jodie describes her journey from a coach’s kid in diapers to a camper, then a staff member and beyond.

 

“Olympia allowed for me and Krissy to become more than sisters, we became best friends, and we still are to this day, but Olympia also gave me the confidence I needed to take on bigger and bigger risks with the belief that I could do it and if I failed it wouldn’t be fatal and would be a learning experience. Olympia took me all the way from Lindsay, Ontario to Kenya, and beyond. Olympia changed my life.”

 

The link to the blog is TuesdayswithDave.blogspot.com

This blog is about the journey of the writing of the book A Hero's Journey: From Little Norway to Olympia Sports Camp. The blog will contain excerpts from the book and my personal thoughts on what the place and the people that make up Olympia's journey is all about. The title comes from the great book Tuesdays With Morrie, by Mitch Albom. The blog's title is recognizing Dave Grace as Camp Director, but all content is my own.