Catching Up With CAT: Coming To Terms With Summer Ending

Hey, this is Liz! I was on summer staff with CAT this year for the second time. I had an incredibly fun and rewarding summer with CAT, from working with our weekly returning groups, to meeting families at community climbing days, to signing with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing teens when they came rock climbing with us. For the groups we see every week, getting to know them and witnessing them become more open and confident in adventure sports is one of my favorite things about working with CAT. I got to see participants go from unsure about trying something new out to being able to explain it to their friends. Another highlight of my summer was introducing tons of families to rock climbing at Steelworkers Park. Sharing the history of the area, as well as getting participants climbing and facing fears is something I love. The best part is standing on top of the wall and getting to greet climbers as they make it over the edge, proud that they were able to accomplish something challenging or scary. I was very excited to work with the Deaf parks district group because I’m also an ASL interpreter - the kids were so funny and surprised themselves with how much they were able to accomplish. 

This was the first summer in a few years that we have had a team of summer interns join us. They came with varying skill levels in climbing, paddling, biking, and leading a group, and I saw everyone work incredibly hard to improve and provide the best programming possible. I enjoyed the opportunity to teach some skills and help them get better at belaying and kayaking. Our interns were hard working, compassionate, and helped build connections with many of our young people. They were undoubtedly a huge part of making this a successful summer season.

I’m always sad when summer ends and programming starts winding down, but I look forward to next season and all of the adventure it’ll bring.

-Liz