Linda Bonnar-Ivery found her calling at Pine Tree Camp

Linda Bonnar-Ivery says with no hesitation that her years working at Pine Tree Camp were the best times of her life. 

“Definitely the best times of my life. I matured there and made lasting friendships with campers and fellow staff alike. And it’s where I learned I wanted to work in a career that had a positive impact on people.”

When Linda first came to camp to work as a counselor, she was fresh out of college with a degree in Speech-Language Pathology. Filled with confidence and a can-do spirit, she felt ready to take on the world. 

She quickly learned, however, that her experiences had actually been very isolated up until that point.

“I thought I had the world in the palm of my hand but quickly realized that I wasn’t as big of a deal as I thought I was at that age. It was a very humbling experience. I grew to learn so much more about people with disabilities and, during my years there, the campers taught me so much more than I was ever going to bring to them.”

After that first summer, she never looked back. Her purpose was clear.

Linda Bonnar-Ivery found her calling at Pine Tree Camp
Linda Bonnar-Ivery found her calling at Pine Tree Camp

“At Pine Tree Camp, I had the opportunity to begin to develop my skills as a speech pathologist and it solidified my career choice at that point. I knew I was in a career where I could make an impact.” 

Her job as a speech pathologist in public schools gave her the summers off and she spent 16 seasons at camp as a counselor, director of the drama program and counselor supervisor. In 1996, she took a full-time job with Pine Tree Society and has served as Director of the Speech-Language and Assistive Technology Department for 24 years.

She gets back to Pine Tree Camp as often as she can to assist with staff training, connect with campers and lead specialized programs.

“You really don’t know the impact you make until you see that one experience that changes a person’s life and you say ‘Wow, I just had a part of that!’ Your whole soul is uplifted. My memories of camp are all about impact, connections, friendships and empowering people to do things they may have imagined they couldn’t. It’s about figuring out how they can and allowing them to reach their utmost potential. I feel truly blessed to still be a part of camp and Pine Tree Society as a whole.”

Linda Bonnar-Ivery found her calling at Pine Tree Camp
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