This summer, junior dietetics major Georgia McArtney is combining her love of nutrition, adventure and teaching to go work as a counselor and intern at Summercise Camp in the small coastal city of Nome, Alaska.
According to McArtney, since Alaska has the highest rate of diabetes in the United States, Summercise makes an effort to raise awareness.
“They want to make living a healthy lifestyle attainable for kids,” McArtney said.
The opportunity appeared in McCartney’s life last fall.
“I got an out-of-the-blue email from my professor about Summercise last October. I didn’t think I could do it because that’s a big commitment to make for a whole summer,” she said.
However, she decided that the internship was an opportunity to step out of her comfort zone.
“I kept thinking about it and realized that I was passionate about everything that the camp entails.”
McCartney said that during her 10-week stay in Nome, she is going to teach classes on nutrition and cooking, as well as various physical activities such as hiking, biking, camping and yoga.
“I love making nutrition approachable to people. It doesn’t have to be about strict dieting. It can be small lifestyle changes that are fun, too,” McArtney said.
Not only will she teach various classes, but she is also in charge of creating her own curriculum for each one.
“Taking responsibility for my own classes will be both challenging and rewarding,” McArtney said.
Aside from working at Summercise, McArtney is also looking forward to exploring Alaska in her free time and especially taking advantage of the great fishing and camping opportunities.
Despite her excitement about this new adventure, McArtney said that she has some reservations about traveling to the middle of nowhere and living with fellow interns she hasn’t met yet.
“Living with people I don’t know in a place I’ve never been will bring out my strengths, weaknesses and trust in God,” McArtney said. “It will be interesting to see how I grow personally.”