Camp Greylock Tradition Offers Freshmen Shared Experience

Any Deerfield student who came during their freshman year can share their experience at Camp Greylock during their orientation day. Camp Greylock is a long-held Deerfield tradition, where new freshmen are kept from unpacking in the Village and instead, ushered off on buses for an overnight stay in Becket, Massachusetts in matching class t-shirts.

Camp Becket was the original camp where Deerfield held freshmen orientation, but after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Becket stopped accepting schools and Deerfield turned to Camp Greylock. Describing the origin of this tradition, Dean of Residential Life Dr. Becca Melvoin said, “We wanted to level the playing field. We want students, no matter their background, to start with a shared experience.”

Students engaged in many activities together away from campus, whether those were playing icebreaker games in the camp gymnasium, sharing first meals together in the cafeteria , or making smores by the campfire. In small cabins, students experienced their first Deerfield boarding night in sleeping bags. The next morning, many students also took the swim test before being granted time out in the water. “It was a really nice way to make friends on the first day and it kept me from not being homesick,” said Liesel Stitch ’28. Many upperclassmen look back on Camp Greylock fondly. “It was fun to be in an environment that forced me to get to know all the new faces around me,” said Grace Lodge’27, adding, “I think it’s great we all have something to bond over.”

On the other hand, some students found that Greylock prevented them from making meaningful connections. “I thought it was too short of an experience for me to get close to anyone. Because the cabins were chosen, I didn’t get to pick who I wanted

to spend time with,” said Olivia Minn ’28. Some students felt that Greylock only made surface level friendships, rather than ones that lasted through the year. In their minds, the purpose of the trip was to make meaningful connections with their classmates but failed as it only prolonged the time it took them to make lasting friendships. Aelahni Valdez ’28 explained,

“I think I was able to get closer through sports teams and classes. I don’t think Grelock helped a whole lot.” Many students, like Aelahni, felt they made more sustaining memories outside of Greylock and didn’t see Greylock as an opportunity to make meaningful connections but to merely get to know the people who were going to surround them for the next four years.

One of Dr. Melvoin’s favorite parts from her trips to Camp Greylock are the Deerfield stories that the freshman proctors share by the camp fire. This is a tradition where seniors meet with the new class, tell them about their experiences at Deerfield, and pass along pieces of wisdom or simply humorous anecdotes. “They can be very powerful to

hear,” she said. “I remember that some of [the stories] were really funny and embarrassing,” said Gabby Aguilar ’28, adding, “That was really nice, to have someone go up and be vulnerable in front of people they didn’t know yet.”

Students like Stitch have had a positive experience overall at Greylock, which kept them busy, avoided homesickness, and an opportunity to get to know the faces of their freshman class.

Even though some students disliked the forced connection at Greylock, most of them agree to the fact that Greylock was a necessary experience to get closer with their class. “I think it’s fun, and something you can reflect on back to your freshman year,” said Stitch.

No matter if Greylock was a positive or negative experience, it’s still one thing that that freshman class will have in common for the rest of their Deerfield careers. According to Dr. Melvoin, the school isn’t planning on changing the Greylock freshman trip in the near future but the SLO is always open to suggestions for new ideas.