Pros
I loved my summer with WestCoast Connection. I was a lifeguard on a trip to California and Arizona, and my trip had about 50 kids on it (most of them were going into grade 10) and six staff. Here are some of the pros:
- Share new experiences with awesome people - I loved the staff on my trip and the kids were awesome, adventurous, funny, and great company to have on the trip. We made so many memories together that I'll cherish forever!
- Work on your leadership skills - While I felt like I had some good leadership qualities prior to the trip, I felt like I really grew as a person because of the large responsibility, which is honestly really empowering.
- Travel - of course this is a big one. Getting to see new places is a great reason to become involved with West Coast. Just remember that you're there to make the kids experience amazing! It was great to see California and AZ but the memories with the group are what stand out to me.
- Other: WestCoast takes care of their staff. Of course you have to pay for personal things you want to buy on the trip, but they take care of the necessities, which makes working with WCC a great opportunity for those looking to provide kids with a great life experience, while also gaining a great life experience for yourself!
Cons
I honestly have no real cons, however, in order to this job you need to really love kids and be prepared to give up personal time in order to make their experience incredible. I never found this to be an issue and I genuinely loved spending time with the kids, but if this isn't your personality the job could get tiring.