What Would You Do?

Tuesday, July 26th, 2016

Imagine this scenario: You are a volunteer at a camp and you are instructed to be there at 8 a.m. to be ready for the kids coming at 8:30 a.m. Your co-volunteer called to say she’s running late. Soon after, a mom pulls up to drop off her son early. You know from your training that you aren’t supposed to be there alone with a child. What do you do?

Your instincts are correct; you should not put yourself in a position to be alone with that child. Even though it might be an inconvenience to the parent, ask the parent to stay until another child or adult shows up to camp. Another idea is to “borrow” someone from the camp administration or one of the other camp areas to stay with you for the few minutes you have to be alone with the child. As in all situations, think ahead to do what you can to protect children—and yourself.