Camp Glory Celebrates 11th Season with Director Susie Pundmann

For parents, summer camps can be a great opportunity to send their kids off to a safe and fun place while they go to work or get other things done. For kids, camp can be a great way to grow socially and make fun memories. As Camp Glory enters its 11th season this summer, we’re celebrating its showrunner, Susie Pundmann.

Pundmann has been running things at Camp Glory for three years. The camp is open from 7:30 in the morning until 5:30 in the evening, and there are different program options depending on how many days per week children attend. The camp is held in St. Charles Christian Church.

“We rent the church from them and they've been incredible partners for us for the entire 11 years,” Pundmann said.

The camp allows kids to take part in a variety of activities: they swim twice a week, go fishing once a week, have a day for ‘camper’s choice’ and have a day dedicated to character counselors. Character counselors gives the kids a chance to sit down with their age group and talk through some more serious topics.

“It's typically a topic that either has to do with bullying, has to do with your self-worth and other people's self-worth and making sure that we're, instead of pushing people away because they're different, that we're celebrating our differences,” Pundmann said.

She said it’s her goal to hire a variety of people and personalities on her staff.

“I want some kids to see that leaders can also hang back and read the room a little bit and find a way to incorporate their gifts instead of everybody trying to be this perfect mold of what the world seems to think a leader or a positive influence on their community is,” she said.

An important mission of the camp is to make sure no kids are left out. There are kids who may be a little more extroverted, and then some kids may keep to themselves more. It’s the camp’s goal to make sure everyone gets what they need from the camp.

“We're always scanning for the kids who just need a little bit of an extra support and encouragement in helping navigate things a little bit,” Pundmann said.

In addition to watching kids grow and connect with one another, one thing Pundmann didn’t expect is how fulfilling it would be to watch the effect on the staff.

“I didn't realize how cool it would be to watch my staff grow and benefit from having these kids look up to them and lean on them and see them as valuable people. So it's really exciting to not just serve the kids, but to be able to serve as a mentor,” she said.

The community is even involved in Camp Glory. Some people will sponsor pizza or ice cream for campers. They even help keep kids safe in case of inclement weather.

“I've got a text group of people who have given permission and been background checked and all of that, that if we need shelter, we can go to their basement and they will either leave a key for me or give me the code to their house or whatever it is and I'll let them know if we have to come over,” she said.

Being involved in the community runs in Pundmann’s blood.

“(My mom) was somebody who, when there was a crisis in our community, she would be the connector between the people who could help and the people who needed help and the agencies who weren't sure where to go first,” she said.

Pundmann went to Lindenwood, and after graduating she was hired on to do fundraising for the college. She worked in fundraising in St. Charles County for 25 years.

Of course, things haven’t always been easy. Pundmann came to a point in her life roughly 20 years ago when she ended up moving to New Town with her three young children. She reached a point where she was struggling to make ends meet.

“That night, I didn't know what I was going to do in the morning if we're going to have groceries or pull ups,” she said.

Then she opened her door to see a Bible laying on her doormat.

“I opened it up to where it fell open and in there was a handwritten note that said, ‘You don't know me and you won't ever know me, but I see you and I see the good that you're trying to do.’ And there was a $500 gift card in there for a grocery store. I still don't know who that person is, whether it was a neighbor or a family member or whomever, and I never want to know because I want to pay it back like they did,” she said.

Pundmann found ways in her life to pay it forward. If it wasn't financial support, she spent time just listening to others and letting them know they weren’t alone.

Another example of her heart for giving is a project that she and those at St. Charles Christian Church worked on. During the government shutdown in October, the church opened a porch pantry so people could take the things they needed when times were tight.

“We really don't know exactly how many we served and it's kind of beautiful,” Pundmann said.

They ended up going through more than 10,000 items in the span of three months.

As much as she’s done for the community, Pundmann credits the community for being such a support.

“I know the heart of Newtown. I know the heart of our neighbors,” she said.

She added, “There are so many kind and generous and thoughtful people in this neighborhood who rally together to support each other quietly in times of need.”

To learn more about Camp Glory, visit their website.