We recently asked a few of our staff members some questions so that you could get to know them better as camp nears. Meet Mary Cortese!
Q. How many summer’s have you worked at Tate’s Day Camp?
A. This will be my fifth summer at Tate’s Day Camp.
Q. What is your job title?
A. I am the Special Areas Director.
Q. What does your job entail?
A. As Special Areas Director, I help to oversee all RATT activities. Those include low ropes, archery, climbing tower, tree climbing, zipline, and marksmanship. I work with other staff members to be sure equipment and facilities are maintained and safety procedures are in place and enforced. In addition, I work directly with the challenge course, target sports, and nature instructor to be sure they are comfortable facilitating activities.
Q. What is your favorite part about camp?
A. One of my favorite parts about being a member of the RATT pack is getting to help children overcome their fears and accomplish things they never thought they could do.
Q. Are you currently in school? If so, what are you studying?
A. I am graduating in May with a BS in Marine Science. I chose to study this because there is so much about the ocean we don’t know, and the beach seems like a pretty nice place to have an office. I wasn’t raised with much knowledge about the ocean, so everything I learn in class is new and really exciting. Through marine science I get to go on adventures like scuba diving in Maine or growing corals in the Caribbean, all so that we can learn more about how the ocean works.
Q. What are you most looking forward to this summer?
A. I am most looking forward to being back with my Tate’s family. Over the last five years I have really made a home at Tate’s. I look forward to continuing to grow through my director position and working with an incredible group of teammates. I’m also very excited to get to see some of my ideas come to life through the low ropes course.