The water I looked down at from the diving platform looked dark and intimidating. I was very nervous because I wasn't a great swimmer. I reluctantly jumped in the lake and it was as if I had jumped into a bucket of ice. Keeping myself moving to avoid being chilled to the bone, I eventually made it to the other side of the dock. I was eight years old, and this was my first of many experiences on Lake Placid.

At summer camp for two months, Lake Placid is my home. It is where I learned to waterski, wakeboard, wakesurf, canoe and sail. On Lake Placid I have had both good and bad memories, but for every swim test I did not pass and for every time the canoe tipped, I have incredible memories of joy and elation from when I first got up on two waterskis and mastered how to operate a sailboat. Lake Placid is a part of who I am, and every year I look forward to the first day that I can get in the water at my home away from home.