The World Class Leaders of Olympia

Last week I was on a zoom call with Olympia Associate director Greg Rogers and this summer's Unit Leaders and was so enamoured  with the quality of leader that I decided to use the next couple of blogs to give a shout out to these amazing young people and their sense of duty and adventure. The meeting was about the new Olympia App but I couldn't get by the introductions. In listening to these leaders explain where they are and what they are up to made me admire them but also admire the whole hiring process as these young people will continue to inspire others throughout the summer. The people we get to meet on our journey...

I'm on this zoom call from my home office in Burlington Ontario. These young leaders are on the call, some are up at camp, and several of them are at locales all over the world. One is in Australia, one is in Austria, and our featured leader for this blog is in Prague. In A Hero's Journey: Beyond Little Norway and Olympia Sports Camp the hero takes on challenges and adventures as part of the journey, as part of their growth. This group is sure living that journey to the best of their abilities. 

How is this for a journey? Let me introduce you to Nicki Robertson. A grad of Crestwood Secondary School in Peterborough, Nicki went to Laurentian to do a BA in sports psychology and bachelor of education. She credits the people of Olympia for giving her the skills to become a teacher, but an amazing part of her journey is what she is doing now. She is currently studying in Europe on an Erasmus Mundus Scholarship. She is working on a Master of Arts in Sports Ethics and Integrity. Her program has her move around each semester as her course is affiliated with six different universities in 6 different countries! Who takes on such  challenge? Leaders do.

A parallel journey has taken place for Nicki at Olympia. She first went to camp as a camper in 2012 for competitive swimming and just kept coming. She decided to take the three-week Leadership camp, which Greg sometimes calls a three week interview, and decided a new goal was to work at camp. Her first summer on staff was 2016. She loves that she adds tools to her leadership tool box every summer and  meets so many people with amazing stories of overcoming challenges. Her first summer on senior staff was 2018. This summer she will be the Head Unit Leader and working with the Counsellor in Training program.

Back to the Present. Nicky was inspired by others to explore life. She heard about this program last year while teaching in Spain and sees it as an amazing way to travel while chasing the dream of working in the sports industry. Her goal of this educational journey is to figure out ways to make sport a better place, where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. When she got to Prague she was determined to experience as many new things as possible. She felt so privileged to be there for this once in a lifetime opportunity. 

One of those new 'things' were the IIHF World hockey championships.

Nicki always loved watching hockey and when she found out that the world championships were in Prague and that they were looking for volunteers, she signed up. She helped with the accreditation process. She felt it was so cool to work behind the scenes for a major sporting event and meet some of the best hockey players in the world. 

The experience gave Nicki lots of highlights but she mentions the Czechia vs Canada game and the bronze and gold medal games on the last day. She loved the passion of the Czechia people and the way sport brought the whole country together. The arena was packed and the whole downtown of Prague was transformed with 2 outdoor fan zones with huge viewing screens. It was an experience that Nicki will never forget and may be the catalyst for future involvement in world sporting events. The Journey continues.

The Hero's Journey dictates that we step out of our comfort zone and try new things, and once that growth takes place, you never know the result. If Nicki didn't work at Olympia, making connections with so many people who have a desire to push boundaries, she may never have felt brave enough to move to a new country for schooling. If she isn't in that new country she would never had the opportunity to experience the World Championships, and witness the passion of a hockey country winning the gold medal on home soil.

It all returns full circle every summer when Nicki gets back to Olympia. She loves to reach out to new people, especially young counsellors, and help them grow the way that Olympia helped her. 

That is the return of the Hero's Journey. Thanks Nicki.

A Hero's Journey: Beyond Little Norway and Olympia Sports Camp is filled with stories about heroes and their journeys. Nicki's story is just one of the amazing people we hope to connect with through the Olympia Alumni Association and the new Olympia App. Sign up for both today. 

 ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 

The OAA needs your help.  If you are an Olympia Sports Camp Alumni we need you to register for the OAA and get those in your circle of Olympia contacts to do the same. The link is at:

 https://forms.gle/woWsggqM7zpUyHge9

OLYMPIA HAS AN APP! 


Olympia has created an App that will allow Alumni to connect with the camp events, read content about some amazing Olympia people, and maybe sign your child or grandchild up for the week of their lives. Simply use this QR code to get to the App and all it offers. It will take you to the Olympia website and so much more!




Why should I buy a book?

- See the 12 steps of the hero's journey come alive

- Learn a lot about yourself by reading about the journey of others.

-Learn about the land of Interlaken, from its indigenous beginnings, to the European migration, to the Norwegians during the second world war, to the launch of Olympia Sports Camp.

- Learn about the Community of Olympia that spans over 50 years.

- Learn that Olympia is a Community of Everyday Heroes

- Learn that you, too, are a hero of your own journey

How can I buy a book

-available for order through Amazon and Indigo.ca

- available at The Different Drummer Book Store on Locust Street in Burlington

- available at the Olympia Tuck and Pro Shop

- Etransfer me $30 and I'll drive it to your house ! 

- available online at aherosjourney.ca

- audiobook version is available at Audible, Amazon, and iTunes 

If you would like us to come to your town for a book event or get copies into your favourite bookstore , email me at coachdools71@gmail.com. We travel well.








 

Comments

  1. Greg RogersJune 11, 2024 at 8:44 AM

    Nicki is a role model hero of Olympia. She is a positive influence on everyone, always!

    ReplyDelete

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