Shaping Young Leaders: Lessons from the CEO Leadership Program

[00:00:11.700] – Speaker 1
Well, hey, everyone. I’m Chris Tompkins, and welcome to the Shaping Our World podcast. My goal is to invite you into a conversation that will leave you more confident in understanding and inspiring the young people in your life. Each episode, we talk with leading experts and offer relevant resources to dive deeper into the world of our youth today. Today, I’m joined by two special guests who know firsthand what it means to grow as young leaders at Muskoka Woods. Joel Krishnan and Joy Montemurro are both alumni of our CEO Leadership Program, a transformative summer experience designed to empower teens to lead with confidence, clarity, and compassion. Not only did Joel and Joy complete the CEO program, but they both took part in the powerful serve trip opportunity that follows. And then they both chose to come back to Muskoka Woods and serve the next generation by being a part of our summer staff team. In this conversation, we’ll explore how the CEO program impacted their leadership journey and why they believe today’s young people are more ready than ever to step into purpose. You’ll also hear inspiring stories from their serve trip and their take on how service, community, and personal growth go hand in hand.

[00:01:24.500] – Speaker 1
Thanks for coming and joining us today.

[00:01:26.980] – Speaker 2
Yeah, thank you guys so much for having us.

[00:01:28.480] – Speaker 1
We’re deviant on a little bit from our normal rhythm of conversation, and we’re actually talking to some young people. We’re going to hear a little bit about your world from your perspective, and we want to dive into some conversations around leadership development and serving others and international trips. But before we get into the big topics, let’s get to know you a little bit more. Why don’t we start with you, Joy? When you were growing up, what shaped your world when you were a kid? What were the big influences in your life?

[00:01:58.240] – Speaker 3
When I was growing up, I would say that my biggest influence was my family, my parents, especially, and I have three older siblings as well. I would say they have shaped how I have learned to grow in leadership and how I’ve grown as a person as well, my hobbies and my interests and even school, especially. I’ve really grown to love math and science, and I would say that’s from my oldest brother. I would say that my family has shaped me the most to who I am today.

[00:02:26.520] – Speaker 1
Okay, quickly, what’s it like being the youngest in a big family? Give us a couple of little insight scoop on that.

[00:02:33.060] – Speaker 3
I really like to be the youngest. I think it’s great because I can learn from my older siblings and I can see the way they live their lives and how I can learn from the mistakes and also grow to be similar to them as well.

[00:02:46.080] – Speaker 1
Probably they would say, and then you get away with everything from mom and dad, right? Probably. Joel is not the youngest, so he probably has commentary on what that’s like. He’s a middle child. Joel, why don’t you tell us what shaped your world you were growing up? What are some big influences for you?

[00:03:02.320] – Speaker 2
Yeah, definitely. Very similar to Joy is my family and my older brother. That definitely shaped a lot of my views and just my interest and everything like that. I definitely see my peers. When I was growing up, I was a very big people pleaser, and I still am today. Just trying to stay cool with whatever’s trending. That definitely shaped my world. Sometimes for the good, but sometimes for the not so good. But then also my faith with God influenced a lot of my decisions and things that I’d be doing. But yeah, being a middle child is very different than being a younger child. You got to try and lead, but also not be falling in the shadow of your older brother, which I’d very hard not to do.

[00:03:41.040] – Speaker 1
Yeah. I know your siblings. Well, I know Joyce as well, just from being around this place a bit. Okay, Joel, going back now. You said when you’re a kid influenced by a lot of… Do you look back on any of your childhood and go, What was I thinking being into that? Clothes or toys or anything. You’re just like, What was I thinking?

[00:04:03.640] – Speaker 2
Yeah, definitely. I know I spent way too much time playing video games. I wish I could go back some of those hours. Now, looking back, all I remember is just the relationships I’ve had with people and the actual good experience and being outdoor. I wish I could take back a lot of those hours set in my basement. Other than that, I feel like I lived a pretty normal childhood, so not too many regrets, but yeah.

[00:04:25.360] – Speaker 1
What was your go-to video game when you were growing up?

[00:04:28.840] – Speaker 2
Oh, man, I’d play anything. I tried to just play Minecraft on my iPad, or then as soon as we got a PS4, we’d play all the first-person shooter games and all that. Then two very big one. I still play that to this day. Yeah.

[00:04:42.960] – Speaker 1
Okay, so what’s shaping your world today? You’re both finishing up high school. What are some interests in your life, hobbies? What do you spend your time doing? Joy, again, why don’t we go with you and then over to Joel.

[00:04:57.120] – Speaker 3
I would say the thing that’s shaping my world the most right now is my friends. I’m going into grade 12, so definitely thinking a lot about universities and programs. I think my friends and my family are helping me decide where I should be going and where the next path of my life is leading, as well as my teachers and guidance counselors helping me decide where my next path is.

[00:05:21.040] – Speaker 1
It’s a big thing in grade 12 to work that out. Do you play sports? Do you have any extracurriculars around school?

[00:05:28.780] – Speaker 3
I’m involved in I have quite a few extracurriculars in my school, one of which being student government. I’m the house captain, basically. My school has four different houses, which means we all have a spirit group, if that makes sense. I’m in the red house. It’s called Bella. Now I’m in charge of all the houses. So last year, I was in charge of my house for my whole school. And then this year, I’ll be in charge of all of the houses. So that’s been an extracurricular I’m in now.

[00:05:56.800] – Speaker 1
Yeah, a lot of leadership involved in that. We’ll We’ll talk about that in a little bit. Joel, what about you? What’s shaping your world today?

[00:06:05.780] – Speaker 2
Yeah, so definitely, again, like Joey, my friends and definitely my people who are giving me advice. I’m going into my first year of university, so I just finished high school. Looking back, I feel like I’m at a point where I was like, Okay, those are the things in high school that shape my world. That’s people, that’s peers, opportunities, and the stuff that I learned. Now I’m going to see how that translate into a new scenario where I don’t know as many people and I’m going to have to stay true to the good things that have been in me and who I am as a person. I feel like there’s a lot of things that I’m going into that can shape my world, but looking back, so many things that have shaped it in the past, like friends and experiences and stuff that I’ve learned as well.

[00:06:43.960] – Speaker 1
I have a little bias in this interview because I know you both a little bit. You also are into music, sports as well. Those are important things in your life?

[00:06:52.640] – Speaker 2
Oh, yeah. Sports have always been just a part of my life ever since I was little. I played basketball growing up, a little bit of football. I love frisbe as well. Frisby is such an underrated sport. Also, I’m a big musician, so I play drums. That’s probably my main instrument. But then I mess around with piano and guitar. Then I also make my own music as well. I make electronic beats. Then I just love music. Music has always been a big influence, whether listening to it or playing it or just hearing it in worship or just listening to it in my headphones. It’s always been just a huge influence on how I spend my free time and my hobbies.

[00:07:25.880] – Speaker 1
Well, the listeners, if you’re tracking with this show for long time, you know that I work at Ms. Cook-woods. Every once in a while, we go into the best and brightest of our young people to pull them into some interviews. Today, we wanted to hear from some young people, and that’s how I know both of these young staff They are currently working with us at Muskoka Woods. As we’re recording this, we’re coming to the end of our summer in 2025, and both of you are working here. Joel, why don’t we start with you and then go to Joy. Tell us a little bit about your job at Muskoka Woods.

[00:07:59.300] – Speaker 2
I’m paintball area head. I’m just the organizer of the paintball activity that we have. It’s all the way up on the hill. No, it’s a great time up there. I have a great staff as well. We just go, we run a couple of games for the kids, we get them going in. Obviously, with the proper safety equipment. As an area head, it’s a bit different. I just have to organize, all right, how are we going to use our air and our paint and what guns need fixing and how I’m going to make this time for the kids, especially those who are a little scared of paintball. How can I make it a little bit more engaging and sometimes less painful and a bit crafty with it sometimes. But yeah, it’s just a great time. I get a lot of freedom to create and innovate and spend time with the kids.

[00:08:39.660] – Speaker 1
That’s awesome. Thank you for mentioning the safety part because I know as soon as parents hear that, they’re like, What paintball? Joy, tell us about your job.

[00:08:47.740] – Speaker 3
My job is I’m a wild host. I take the youngest age group, which is ages 6 to 8, around to all their different activities. And honestly, I’ve been loving it so much because I get to go around to every single activity and meet all the staff from the activities and see how the kids love each and every single activity. I love seeing the different kids trying new things and engaging, and you really get to build a connection with each of the kids because you’re with the same cabin for the whole week. And yeah, it’s just been a great job so far.

[00:09:15.230] – Speaker 1
And those kids are adorable. Oh, so cute. No disrespect to the rest of camp, but seeing the little six and seven and eight-year-olds, but mostly the six and seven-year-olds go around as a group to the different activities. What’s their favorite? What do they love doing the most at camp?

[00:09:30.440] – Speaker 3
Always number one favorites are Wibbit, Toobing, and Kraken. So all the water activities, basically.

[00:09:35.640] – Speaker 1
Yeah. So you got to explain to people what the Wibbit is.

[00:09:38.780] – Speaker 3
So the Wibbit, it’s basically a giant inflatable obstacle course that’s in the lake. And there’s different things you can do. So for example, there’s the iceberg, that’s the big inflatable, and they can slide down it and go into the water, and they just love it so, so, so much.

[00:09:55.480] – Speaker 1
It’s awesome. And it’s so fun to watch them. And you both… You’ve Had journeys through Muskoka Woods, but very recently, you were part of our CEO Leadership Program. And for those listening who might not know what that means, we have a four-week leadership program at Muskoka Woods that young people who are 15 to 16 apply and are interviewed and get accepted to. We run two sessions, one in July for four weeks and one in August. The kids get a grade 11 credit for their time in the CEO Leadership program, but we do experiential leadership teaching in the morning. They do a canoe trip for a few days at the beginning. They help instruct our arts and athletics activities. Then they run programs for the littlest kids, or they do their own fun programs in the evenings as well. CEO stands for Challenge Experience Opportunity. But that’s the formal thing. Maybe one of you can tell us in your own words, how would you describe the CEO Leadership Program to people who might not know what that is at Miskoquets?

[00:10:55.740] – Speaker 3
I would say that the CEO Leadership is just the best way to learn of how to be yourself and how to be a leader in your world. One thing that I really loved about CEO is it didn’t just talk about anyone forming their own opinions on anything. It was very immersive to the person specific. You learn how to shape your own world so that when you leave the CEO program, you can bring that into your world and figure out what that means to be a leader in your world.

[00:11:24.040] – Speaker 2
No, yeah. George said it perfectly. There’s just so many things you could learn about yourself. We did a lot of personality quizzes and different leadership types and love languages. Then we did a project at the end where we had to figure out how we can add that leadership roles into our communities, which is really empowering to see how everyone was going to do it. Then also got us thinking about how we can change our world, even the slightest way. It was a really great opportunity.

[00:11:47.340] – Speaker 1
Awesome. Okay, so let’s go back before the CEO program. What made you want to apply and pursue the program? Be honest, too. You don’t have to sound fancy. Some of it could just be like, I wanted to be at camp four weeks. What was the drive for each of you to apply for the program?

[00:12:05.600] – Speaker 2
If I’m going to be completely honest, the reason I even considered it was because my older brother went. Although I’m trying not to follow in his footsteps, he said it was a great time. That just got me thinking about it. And then after hearing about other people’s reviews of it, and then also just the leadership experience that you can get, I was like, yeah, it’s probably definitely could not hurt, especially with four weeks at camp. It’s just amazing. You can’t really beat that. But then also I was stepping into a leadership role at that time as well. I worked at Chick-fil-A, and I’d just been trying to work on my ranks into a shift supervisor, a team leader. I just got in that role right before I went into the leadership program. I was like, What put a place to learn about leadership in Scolka Woods? It just fit in perfectly to my role there.

[00:12:47.220] – Speaker 1
What about you, Joy?

[00:12:48.520] – Speaker 3
Well, I’ve been going to camp ever since I was around 12, so I’ve always definitely loved Scolka Woods, and I wanted to keep going to Scolka Woods, as well as my sister and older brother both did CEO, and they both loved it so, so much. Just seeing how they grew in confidence and independence and even their faith and just how it makes you just a better person. So watching them go through that and seeing how much fun they had as well through the whole experience just made me want to do it so, so, so badly.

[00:13:16.580] – Speaker 1
You’ve used a lot of the words that we would describe about the program. It’s very intentional. There’s intensity, but not in a bad way. You’ve got 40 something young people living and eating and learning and playing and laughing all in that same environment. The out trip is you go to Algonquin Park and everyone’s on a level playing field. It’s very immersive, like you mentioned, deeply personal, yet some real broad truths about life and leadership and helping you with leadership skills, et cetera. What were some of the ways you grew in your own leadership development through the program? When you look back now, what are the couple of takeaways that are still with you today from your time there? Why don’t we start with you, Joy?

[00:14:07.660] – Speaker 3
I would say the biggest takeaway for me is growing in confidence. I mean, a few of the sessions you have talk about something called assumed constraint, which is basically when you assume something that is restraining you back from doing something great. So once you learn to take down that framework, you learn to grow in confidence and learn to be yourself first, and then Then ask questions after if that makes sense. Really putting yourself out there and being confident in everything that you do. That was my biggest takeaway, personally.

[00:14:40.340] – Speaker 1
That’s great. Joel, what about you?

[00:14:42.480] – Speaker 2
Yeah, obviously, and I’m pretty sure if you ask any CEO, they would say the exact same thing. Confidence is definitely the biggest place you go. For me, personally, definitely, it wasn’t just like that. My confidence grew, but a lot of my fears just went away. I was no longer, like she said, assuming constraints. I was no longer I’m thinking, what if they think this about me or what if I mess up? Or what if this goes wrong? The CEO Leadership Program, after every trial and error and opportunity and every program that we do, it teaches me that, A, it’s good to fail, but B, don’t be scared because if you don’t fail and you try something hard, you’re just going to exceed even more. When we were doing a cooking competition for one of our programs the night, I just went around and just asked all the judges, Do you guys like spicy food? Or do you not? When I heard that a lot of them like spicy food, there you go. Now it helps me complete that task better. But because I wasn’t like, Oh, they probably won’t like spice. I didn’t assume anything.

[00:15:37.560] – Speaker 2
I just went for it and just asked and just never assumed constraints or wonder what they’re going to think about me or stuff like that. It just And then it just helps you succeed in every way.

[00:15:47.040] – Speaker 3
Yeah, it really helps take away the what-if component of life. Yeah.

[00:15:51.380] – Speaker 1
Well, that’s great. It’s encouraging to hear. And you both might be able to go back and remember, I always talk to the CEOs on the last day, and we actually come on the first day and tell them, everyone’s watching you. Everyone knows who a CEO is at camp and that you get to determine what it means to be a CEO. But then the last time I come and say, actually, I tricked you, the CEO program hasn’t even started yet. It’s what you do with it afterwards. And Ms. Cokowicz is committed to continuing the journey with CEOs after we have some follow-up events. But one of them is a unique experience that we offer to CEOs that they can in after they go, and that’s the serve trip. So both of you were participants on that. Joel, why don’t you tell us a little bit about what that serve trip is, and Joy, you can fill in any of the gaps.

[00:16:42.240] – Speaker 2
Yeah, so the serve trip, we were up in the Dominican Republic for about nine days. We were in the section Porta Plata. It was really just an amazing opportunity where you get to go and you get to build a house with a bunch of contractors and obviously with a lot of guidance for a couple of families. We had some families that that had recently had their house destroyed. We were just so privileged to just help them and just connect with them as we were building the house. We had great leadership there. We were partnered with LiveDifferent. They had a whole team there, including translators and then contractors to to help us build, but also to help build the relationship and the connection with the people in that community there. We built for nine days, had a lot of build days. Then we had, obviously, you got to see the nice parts of Dominican. We were on this beautiful spot right by the ocean. And then we got to go into the town, do a little zip line, everything like that. But again, the most empowering part was just building and meeting the families and giving something that we are so blessed to have, healthy bodies and a lot of people.

[00:17:41.810] – Speaker 2
So then we just did anything that we could to help them. And it was amazing.

[00:17:46.700] – Speaker 3
I think the best thing for me was the connections you make. Not only do you make connections with the people you’re with, like the CEOs you’re with, but also connections with the families there. And you get to really talk to them and understand their stories. And it just makes you so grateful for everything you have. There’s also a day where you go and you zip line and you go to a monkey jungle. That day was so much fun because you get to talk to CEOs and really make friends with even the session beforehand. For me, I did session two, but I also got to meet a lot of people from Session 1, which was really amazing.

[00:18:19.420] – Speaker 1
I don’t want to digress too much for our listeners, but you know if you’re tracking with this show, I spend a lot of time talking to professionals and young people and do a lot of reading my own life outside of the podcast and the work that I’m doing. And I just keep coming back to one of the central keys for all of us as human beings in flourishing, but particularly in the formative times of our development in teenage years is community and the people you surround yourself with. And there’s countless research projects that talk about the benefit of relationships and what they do to human thriving and ticking the boxes in all the ways that we grow as human beings. I love, Joy, that you just added that at the end because I don’t think it can be understated just how important a community is. We’ll get back to that in a minute. As you were saying that, I was just thinking that about one of the huge benefits for kids, young people coming to something like camp or being part of a trip is being with people in doing that and making memories and friendships.

[00:19:27.500] – Speaker 1
We have CEOs that are the best man or maid of honors in each other’s weddings down the road because they form lifelong friendships as part of that. That doesn’t happen for everyone, but it is a big significant part of the program. I want to go back. What made you want to be part of the serve trip? When you heard about it, what was growing in you? Was there something in your experience as CEO or other parts of life that just made you want to say, Yeah, that’s something I want to do? Because it was a big commitment. Financially, time, you gave up your March break. Why did you want to be part of the serve trip?

[00:20:02.020] – Speaker 3
To be completely honest, the first reason why I wanted to be part of the serve trip was because my friends were going and I was really excited to hang out with them and then also for a greater purpose. So I felt like it was checking two boxes off. So I was really excited to be with all my CEO friends as well as help others. And then when I got there, I just realized how grateful I was that I did end up going because it’s just such an unreal experience where you just become so grateful and you just really connect again with the families and everyone. I feel like it’s so important to help and give back because we are so beyond privileged to have what we have and to be able to give back is such an important thing, I think.

[00:20:43.500] – Speaker 2
I grew up in the church and my dad was a pastor, so I’ve always heard about mission trips, and he’s always like, Oh, Joel, when you’re going to go on your first mission trip, not pushing me, but he’s like, Joel, this is an amazing thing. You don’t really want to miss out. Then I heard about this CEO serve trip. My older brother had been on it before, and he was like, It was just an amazing experience. I’m like, Yeah, and I believe that. First of all, again, joy just a week in the Dominican with my friends. Amazing. But then also I’ve always wanted to go on that mission trip. I serve a lot in my church. I do drums for worship and I like to do greeting sometimes. Serving in my church and serving people is a really big empowering part of my faith, and I just love doing it. I feel so fulfilled, but also fulfilled in others because I’ve been on the receiving end of service and it fulfills me just as much. Given the opportunity to a full on hands on serve for a whole other community for a bunch of people that I’ve never met, I was like, yes, sign me up.

[00:21:36.980] – Speaker 2
It was a really just fulfilling experience.

[00:21:40.040] – Speaker 1
I had the opportunity before we started these trips to go to the Dominican with LiveDifferent. We took some of our senior people just before we decided to partner with them to see what was going on and be in those communities. I know the communities that you’re in. I’ve seen them firsthand. My daughter went actually with your brother, on that trip. I got all the firsthand experience coming home. I know how powerful it can be. It’s pretty significant. One of the things maybe for our listeners to know is that these young People literally work with the organization and build a home from the ground up, and they meet the families that will go into the homes. They spend time with them, and then they actually move them in at the end. And so, man, to see that happen is pretty powerful. I wonder if each of you can share a story or a moment from that trip that really stood out to you, whether it changed a part of you, opened your eyes, shaped your worldview. Can you maybe share something you learned about the world and maybe a story around that? Why don’t we start with you, Joy?

[00:22:52.020] – Speaker 3
I would say one of the biggest experiences, the biggest takeaways that I had was this one day we had community connections, which is basically you go to the community and you spend a meal with one of the families. And it just really opened my eyes seeing how little they have and how grateful they were and how happy they were. And it just made me really reflect on my life back at home and all the complaints I have back home and really how little those complaints mean to me versus the rest of the world and how everyone else is living. And it really opened my eyes to be more grateful for what I have and how I want to help out more. So after the I went back to all my friends and I was like, We have to go on another mission trip. We have to help them more. We’re not doing enough. So it just really opened my eyes to see truly how so much of the world is living and how I want to be helping out more around my community and around the world around me.

[00:23:47.960] – Speaker 1
It’s amazing. What about you, Joel? Do you have a story to share?

[00:23:51.200] – Speaker 2
Yeah. So again, just to add on, the community connections were amazing. It was so incredible to see multiple different families, not just the one that we’re building for, but it’s everyone in that community. But I A specific moment that I wouldn’t really share because I was a part of it. But Mark Cunningham had talked to me after what he said. So he had the pleasure of coming on the trip with us, and he was a great leader on that as well. But he was talking to one of our builders, and he was just looking at everything that was going on while we were building. We had people mixing concrete all together, yelling and screaming and laughing. We had people dancing, just like people in the community that just came by and we were just dancing the music. Then the rest of us were connecting with the community or were up in build spots, connecting with of the contractors and just talking to them about that. Mark was talking to one of our leaders, the leader’s name was Mitch, and they were like, This is probably the closest thing that we have to God’s Kingdom on Earth.

[00:24:39.170] – Speaker 2
It was just a beautiful representation of what community looks like, of what hard work looks like, which is something that is so respected and what God wants us to do. It just shows it’s such an eye on it to, all right, this is what purpose and living for others looks like. It was just such a beautiful moment that I was so glad to be a part of. But then even after looking back I’m like, Yeah, that’s probably the closest thing that we have to God’s Kingdom on Earth. It was just so beautiful to see.

[00:25:06.360] – Speaker 1
Joy, you mentioned it a little bit, but I wonder if each of you can share how participating in this changed you. When you come home now, Was there anything different, either personally, spiritually, or how you view leadership? Is there something that didn’t just end there when you took off? It fowards something in you that is making making a difference in your world today?

[00:25:32.680] – Speaker 3
I would say it did change my view on leadership. I mean, in CEO, my view on leadership was completely changed. Just understanding that leadership isn’t just about taking charge, but it’s also about having empathy. I really got to, I feel, put that into play during the serve trip and just seeing how leadership isn’t just about being a leader for others to follow, but also for being with the followers, if that makes sense. Empathizing with the family and empathizing with the family, empathizing with the contractors, and really having heart to hearts with everyone, being able to really be where your feet are.

[00:26:08.120] – Speaker 1
Partially, you’re describing a concept people talk about as servant leadership as well, not seeing being a leader as something above, but also being down and with others as well. That’s great. What about you, Joel?

[00:26:21.220] – Speaker 2
There’s so many different things that you just come back, especially the day you get home, you’re like, Wow, air conditioning. This is something that some people don’t I don’t have. Or literally, I walk on my door and see 50 things that I take for granted that I see that other people don’t have. But the biggest thing that I had seen was the connection between the community. Sometimes I don’t even know half my neighbors on my block, but everybody in this town knew everybody word for word. They just all knew everything about each other. Then seeing the joy in little people, they’d go. This one kid was having the time of his life raking leaves with a crappy broom that was just made sticks. Seeing that, I was like, All right, there’s so many things that I can be thankful for, and there’s so many places for me to find joy. Because I have so much more about how can I find joy even in the little things and the joy that they have, just pure the happiness of being alive and existing with other people. That just inspired me so much to just be like, All right, I’m taking in every moment that I have.

[00:27:19.940] – Speaker 2
There’s a big turnaround, especially with my school and my friends. I was ending off my high school career, so I was sad that I was be leaving a lot of my friends and the connection I made there. Just taking advantage of that in the last two months. The surfeor definitely helped open my eyes and take advantage of all the communities and the relationships that I’m so blessed to have.

[00:27:36.640] – Speaker 1
That’s awesome for both of you. Joel, I hope you applied that to living at Whitmock this summer. It’s a little inside joke for Joel and I listeners, the guy’s accommodation might be less than stellar for some of our staff here at Muscoquets. They do have to rough it up top of the hill. We’ve all done it, Joel, but I think maybe that was good practice for Whitmack. There’s a lot of stuff as we’ve been talking with experts and people that work with young people today and research and statistics and all that about young people. One of the things we talk about on the show is trying to not have this inherently negative view of the younger generation and saying, Yeah, there’s things that we want to talk about, but also things that are awesome about this next generation. What keeps coming up often is that your generation of people are really interested in things that matter, purpose, that you want to make the world a better place. But I want to ask you, that’s statistics and research. Do you think that’s true? Are you two part of the exception to the rule that would choose to spend your March break on a service project?

[00:28:49.910] – Speaker 1
Or do you think young people today do really care about global service and community-based projects like this?

[00:28:56.640] – Speaker 2
I definitely think we are not just the exception. I literally had probably about half my grade from my school that they also went on a similar trip to Belize, where they went and they built houses, and they helped rebuild a school there, which is obviously incredible. I do not think that we are just an exception, and everyone else just doesn’t really care. I think every time, and even when I’m telling people my age about the trip that I did, they’re like, Oh, that’s amazing. I’ve always wanted to go on one of those. How empowering was that for you? It wasn’t just like, Oh, you got to go to Dominican. How nice is that? It’s like, No, how was that experience being so hands-on in the place that started them from us? It wasn’t just like, You’re so amazing. I can never do that. It’s like a curate aus. It is like, That is amazing. I think more people should do that, and I want to start doing that and everything like that. I feel like seeing all that and seeing half my grade do that as well, it definitely gave me a lot of hope and faith in my generation.

[00:29:47.920] – Speaker 2
Even though we do get ragged on a lot for being a little lazier because there’s so technology and zoned in our screens, but no, there’s so much awareness and just care for just serving even people we don’t even know, just going across seas and blindly diving in and just serving for God’s purpose, but also just for the purpose of the world and helping others that are just as human as us. It was amazing to see all that.

[00:30:09.460] – Speaker 3
I would fully agree. I think there is definitely a passion for serving others as young people. I think especially once people start to experience community-based projects and global service, that’s when they want to continue it further, and that’s when they want to continue to serve others. I think once you start to help others, you get such a joy in you and feel so fulfilled that you continue to want to go. Even all my friends back home, once you start to help others, you want to help others more. I think I definitely see that in all my friends and all people around me.

[00:30:40.740] – Speaker 1
What advice would you give to parents or adults that care about young people, so maybe teachers or youth leaders, who maybe see some of this care or concern or interest in helping in the world, what can they do to come alongside people like you? What did the adults in your life do to support you in this, to champion this, to keep the fires burning around this interest? What could we do to help kids that are maybe starting to ask questions about this or are interested? What can we do to support them as adults?

[00:31:18.800] – Speaker 2
The first thing that came to mind when you said just supporting is just fundraising. We had to raise money in order to pay for the surf trip. Just having people from my church, my friends, some of the CEOs even helped each other. Then just even relatives and everything like that, just helping us fundraise. It may seem like, Oh, it’s just money. It’s not really like a… No. That is what helped a lot of us go on that trip in the first place. Then, of course, after you donate that money, just follow up with it. Say, my grandma, she was a big contributor in helping fundraise. But then her asking those deep questions about it because she wants to know where her money goes. But also, I can tell she was invested in that, and she was empowering me. In a sense, she was on that journey with me because she’s like, All right, this is what, not only my grandson, but someone that I’ve given financial need to, how are they going to strive in a place where I physically can’t be? Because she’s older, she can’t maybe go on all these trips. But she’s seeing her immense engagement in that.

[00:32:22.390] – Speaker 2
It’s so powerful. You may think, Oh, how was your trip? It may seem like, Oh, that’s basic. They probably don’t want to hear that. Even the fact that remembered or the fact that people are asking me about it and I would love to talk about it. I love to tell you about the amazing experience that I had. Just staying in contact with that. Then obviously, it’s the first fundraising if you can. It’s just such a great way to help all these different movements that they do.

[00:32:45.600] – Speaker 1
Great answers. Joy to have anything to add?

[00:32:48.280] – Speaker 3
I think that’s an amazing answer as well. I would just, in addition, say just connecting with the people who want to go on it and who might just even just be thinking about it and just understanding why they want to go on it, why they might not want to go on it, and just seeing where they’re at. Because I think genuinely, almost anyone could benefit from a mission trip, not only the families that you’re helping, but also personally, spiritually, personally in leadership ways, in every which way you do benefit from it. So making that connection with the person who wants to go on it or who is thinking even about it and understanding why they want to and then, again, following through as they go through it because there are so many life-changing moments you experience on a mission trip. To be able to talk about it and really it is really helpful. Connecting by asking questions, talking with them, and understanding why they want to go on it, and then afterwards connecting of how it went.

[00:33:41.080] – Speaker 1
Those are both great answers. I would add to, like Joy was saying, just on connecting, I think a lot of times on this show, we talk about asking kids good questions and open questions and getting involved and being curious about their world, not just trying to impose our hope for their world on them. And so I think part of that connecting, like you were saying, Joy, is around asking good questions about what are the things that the kids in our lives are interested in? What do they care about? We have a phrase at Muskoka Woods around defining leadership that says, Leaders are people that look at their world and say it doesn’t have to be this way, and they do something about it. I think as parents, to say, Yeah, what is it, people like you both, when you look at the world and you say it doesn’t have to be this way, what are those things? What are the topics? What are the things that get you fired up? It’s going to be different for other kids, but they’re there.

[00:34:40.850] – Speaker 2
Oh, yeah, 100%. Since the CEO program, asking that question of what doesn’t have to be this way and then doing something about it, it’s just something that’s always ringing through my head, and it’s a great way to start looking at how to shape your world and just leadership in general.

[00:34:54.720] – Speaker 3
You can think about it in so many big ways and so many small ways as all. It doesn’t have to be necessarily starting something big. It can be something as small as picking trash up or something like small acts of kindness that can really help someone else’s day.

[00:35:07.720] – Speaker 1
That’s awesome. You’ve both been guests at Ms. Scolkowoods before. You did the CEO program, you went on the serve trip, And now you’re working, and we talked about that at the beginning. There’s other places where you could be making a lot more money, though the youth labor market has turned a little bit. But there are other opportunities. There are things you could do with your summer. Why are you here working at Muskoka Woods?

[00:35:33.780] – Speaker 3
I’m just so beyond grateful to be working here at Muskoka Woods because I think the biggest draw for me is the community and the people making so many friends and connections and small things like going out by the docks to your friends or spending time with the kids and hearing their stories. There is just genuinely so many connections you make with so many different people. At home, to be honest, I think I’d be pretty bored. But here there are so many fun things to do absolutely all the time and so many people to meet and so many just amazing memories to be made.

[00:36:07.040] – Speaker 2
Yeah, I think the original vision I applied was because every staff member I talked to, what are we doing CEO? They said working staff was a lot better. So part of it was just taking their word for it. But also just the thing that had made camp so amazing was obviously the, which is just incredible. It was awesome. But A, the connection that made there and B, the connection that made with the leaders. So just all I remember having such deep conversations with… I was lucky to have one of our CEO counselors, Jamie. He was also my senior high counselor. I remember that was some of the first times that I had deep conversations with an adult who looked at me like an adult. It wasn’t just like, Oh, he’s a little kid. Oh, it’s nice that you follow Jesus and you do all that. No, we had deep conversations and then he looked at me and I was like, All right, this is what having a relationship with other people through God looked like. I was like, This is one of the first place where I I experienced that. Then doing the CEO program, obviously, the staff there were amazing, just helping out with all that.

[00:37:05.940] – Speaker 2
I know it’s a little different applying for an instructor, but at the same time, I was like, Well, I love sports and just being athletic and everything like that. Definitely I think with paintball is definitely getting kids to break out of their comfort zone. That, I think, is such a huge part. I think being fearless is amazing. Even if I can’t make the super deep connections that counselors can have in a cabin chat, just even telling kids that, Hey, it’s okay. I’m going to help through this, even if it hurts in the paintball and helping them when they need it and if they’re scared, and then them having that trust in me, so fulfilling. Just hearing from that from staff members, I was like, Yeah, there’s nothing that can really go wrong with any of this.

[00:37:41.740] – Speaker 1
This is awesome. One of the things when you look at all the research behind summer camp, leadership is something that’s woven all the way through it. Even when you’re a young kid, we might not see it as leadership, but this building of confidence. We even talk about for many of these kids that come to camp, it’s their first time having to pick their own food at the buffet or having to figure out their way, even when they’re with their cabin, to pack for the day and to get to different activities and have to get the courage to try an activity that they’ve never tried before. For many of the young kids that Joy works with, even going down the crack is a big deal. It’s a six-lane water slide. But when you see just the growth in them there, and then obviously the CEO leadership program, it’s called the Leadership Program, and it’s intentional. There is a lot of leadership that is fused into the work that you do. We give a lot of real-life responsibility to our staff. Joel’s a teenager, and he’s responsible for other staff and literally things that shoot pellets at people.

[00:38:50.980] – Speaker 1
And so we have had an exemplary safe paintball area because Joel’s leading. And, Joy, you’re taking the the youngest kids around camp and making sure they’re wearing their sunscreen and drinking water and hydrating and having fun at the same time and they’ve packed the right shoes and all that stuff. I’m saying through all of summer camp, leadership is woven in. Let’s assume that life takes you on to a different path after this summer. What will you look back at your time at camp? What will have shaped you into to the human being that you want to be? As a leader, as a contributor society, personally, professionally, spiritually, whatever that looks like, what are you going to take away from your time at camp as something that has shaped you personally?

[00:39:48.880] – Speaker 2
Obviously, there’s so many just things. Nothing beats real-world. Nothing beats leadership than a hands-on real-world experience of being a leader. Even if it’s a silly game like paintball, It’s just leading a group of people, not only just the kids and telling them how things work, but leading the people, like my staff that I have. Having people that are… Even if they’re older, you have them look up to me for decisions and how we’re going to take on this day and how we’re going to handle this, maybe sometimes difficult group of kids. Just having that hands-on leadership experience, it’s just, I think, the greatest way to be like, All right, so this is how I’m going to have to take on life, whether I’m in a leadership position or even if I’m just working a desk job. All right, how am I going to… Maybe if I have an intern or someone who’s doing an apprenticeship, how can I teach them the same things that I was taught, not only here, but in any other leadership experience that I have? Then how can I handle bad situations in an easy way? It seems maybe even less serious at paintball.

[00:40:49.660] – Speaker 2
But then when I take it to the real world, how can I make it that it’s not life and death if they feel like they’re going to make a mistake? If they maybe mess up one of the guns when they’re loading up the air, I can’t yell at and be mad at them. That’s not how right leadership works. It’s the growth in their mistakes and stuff that I’ve had to face with when I make mistakes. It’s not always helpful to yell that. Then taking that into literally any leadership role, it’s just so powerful. Like I said, the hands-on experience is the best way to learn.

[00:41:17.220] – Speaker 3
I would say the biggest takeaway for me, as I said before, is just confidence. You make so many friends, and to be able to be confident enough in yourself to make those connections with other friends around you. I still remember in the out trip, one of the leaders told me that they met there, but made of honor there. I was like, Ha ha, funny. I’m not going to meet my best friend at CEO. I made two of my best friends ever as CEO. I’m still so close with them now as they work here as well. Just making those connections and learning how to make connections and be so confident in who you are to be able to make those connections, I think is so important. That’s something I think I’ll take with me absolutely forever.

[00:41:55.540] – Speaker 1
That’s awesome. CEO has been a central part of our conversation today. While it’s specific to Muskoka Woods, it does represent leadership programs and getting kids involved. But let’s talk specifically about the CEO program for a minute. What advice would you give a young person, a teen, considering the CEO program or to a parent who’s listening to this and is thinking to encourage their child to apply? What would you tell them? Why should they consider the CEO program at Muskoka Woods?

[00:42:27.560] – Speaker 3
I would say you should absolutely just go for it. Go For It is the theme of our summer this year, but I find myself applying it to everything. I would say, Absolutely Go For It because it is one of the best programs I think I’ve ever been involved in. Not only do you grow personally so much in your leadership skills and learning everything about yourself and about others and making connections. But you’re also learning about others and you’re also building connections while also having absolutely so much fun. Looking back, the memories we made, all the different activities and programs that were planned for us were so, so, so fun. It’s such a good balance between learning about yourself and others and God and growing your faith and also having so much fun and having like, sizzle, we call it, incorporated in, which is the fun aspect of camp. I would say just go for it. It’s the best.

[00:43:20.700] – Speaker 2
Yeah, 100%. Just literally just, even if you’re considering it, I highly would recommend. It’s just a great place to meet people. Even if you’re an introvert, you’re still going to be able to break out of that shell, but then also find people who are at either the same part of life with you or a completely different stage of life than you, and you will still build that connection over doing the same activities and the same leadership experience that you do. You get a taste. If you’re even thinking about coming working here, CEO is a great stepping point into that. You do a lot of the same things that the staff do. But then also you still get that amazing, joyful experience that you used to have as a camper. Like Joyce said, sizzle. It’s nothing short of an amazing time there. And then obviously the growth in the leadership and in yourself as well, 100% do it.

[00:44:05.440] – Speaker 1
Really, the focus of our interview today was to get a look at two young people who I think represent the best of this generation of young people. We’ve talked about around Muskoka Woods’s CEO program and a serve trip that operates in partnership with LiveDifferent. But I think the message is, yes, Consider applying to CEO parents if you have a kid in that age group or share it with your friends who do 100%, send them to camp, encourage them to work at Muskoka Woods. But this is really about how we come alongside young people as parents to encourage them to have these type of life-shaping experiences. There are so much learning and growth and development that comes when you step out of your natural environment, when you step into a world that’s supportive, that’s encouraging, that has unique experiences, that allows you to develop community. We have 180 international staff here. Kids that come as campers get to meet counselors from other parts of the world, and they get in cabins with kids from other parts of the world. Just getting out of our normal environment. But that doesn’t have to be coming all the way to camp.

[00:45:20.220] – Speaker 1
That could be leadership programs in your city. That could be extracurricular activities. They could be clubs. They could be anything that gets us into a different environment with different people that’s focused on learning, that’s focused on growth, can be so important, not just for the practical things that we learn, but for the relationships that are forged, for the growth that happens, like socially and emotionally as well. I hope that you’ve seen parents and listeners and youth leaders and teachers, whoever’s listening today, that through Joy and Joel, just what this type of experience can do for young people as we as adults invest in them and as they get all these experiences to chalk them up in their memory banks and apply them to their lives at home and go on and literally shape the world for us. And so that’s my encouragement as we wrap up. Joy and Joel, you’re going on your night off, so I won’t keep you any longer. But it was great to chat with you today. Thank you for sharing with us. And thanks for being a part of our team at Muskoka Woods.

[00:46:29.040] – Speaker 3
Thank you so much for having us. We really enjoyed it.

[00:46:31.230] – Speaker 2
Yeah. Thank you so much. It’s an amazing opportunity.

[00:46:35.900] – Speaker 1
Well, that’s it for today’s episode. Talk about some amazing young people. If hearing from Joel and Joy inspired you to think differently about leadership, service, and how teens grow through challenge, head over to muskokawoods.com. There you’ll find a blog post with key takeaways from this conversation and a link to listen again. You may also want to scour the archives of our podcast to find an episode where we to talk with Charles Roberts, the CEO of LiveDifferent, the organization we partnered with to go to the serve trip. You can also explore more about the CEO Leadership program on our website. A unique experience designed to help teens develop resilience, character, and a clear sense of who they’re becoming. Don’t forget to subscribe to Shaping Our World and share this episode with a parent or educator who’s passionate about shaping confident, compassionate young leaders. I’m sure also many of you can think of a teenager who might benefit from hearing this conversation, too. Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time.