Alli Muser is excited to be getting back into the workforce – and in her dream job at that. This mother of two, who originally hails from Rockland County, NY, has taken on the role of the Macks CJE (Center for Jewish Education) Camp Connector, helping families find the best camp for their children.
It’s the perfect position for this former teacher, and long-time camper, who grew up attending Tranquility Camp in upstate New York. Camp had a major impact on Alli’s life, and she wants to share that with others in the community.
A graduate of Towson University, where she received her Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education, Alli sat down with us to talk about her new role, what camp means to her and how she hopes to help her adopted Baltimore Jewish community, a place she now affectionately calls home.
How has Camp impacted your life? What is a Camp Connector? In addition to helping parents and campers choose which camp best suits them, I’m also an advocate for the idea of Jewish camping in the community. My hope is to encourage more families to choose Jewish camping opportunities for their children.
I started going to sleepaway camp very young. It gave me such a sense of independence and an opportunity to really figure out who I was. You get to choose your activities and you get to make your own friends. At home, your parents sighed you up for whatever sport you were going to play. But at camp, you get to choose. This may be cliché, but it was very life changing. I think parents are far more intimidated by overnight camp, and I can leverage my experiences to help the parents in that process.
I’m a liaison between camps and directors and campers and families. I’ve been developing relationships with the directors of the camps that are part of our network and work with parents to help connect them to the right people. I help people figure out which is the best for them while providing them all the information I possibly can.
