In 2017, Katie Brengel went to her first Young Life camp at Rockbridge in Goshen, Virginia. Two years later she is serving at the same camp. Brengel started doing Young Life her freshman year and is an active member to this day.

For three and a half weeks, Brengel will be on work crew, a group of rising seniors and rising college students who serve the campers each summer by cleaning their cabins, serving their meals, washing dishes, and landscaping. Brengel will be a part of the housekeeping group whose main job will be to keep the campers cabins clean and change the bed sheets every couple of days.

Frederick County Young Life leader, and Linganore graduate, Chris Eckard, who was influential in getting Brengel involved in work crew, knows that doing volunteer work for a month will be challenging but worth it. Eckard was part of summer staff when he was in college.

Eckard said, “Hundreds of thousands of students will experience the best week of their life at a Young Life camp this summer — and that is in part due to those who give up part of their summer to serve on work crew. The lifelong impact makes all the hard work behind the scenes worth it.”

While doing volunteer work may not sound like a fun summer activity, Brengel knew she wanted to do this since her freshman year.

“I really enjoy Young Life and want to continue to be a part of it outside of high school. I thought work crew would be a great way to give back,” said Brengel. “My leader, Katie Eckard brought up the idea of work crew to me, and I knew I wanted to do it as soon as I found out about it.”

While Brengel will be serving on work crew from July 23 to August 15, she also has the privilege to go to camp with Frederick County Young Life. This summer, they will be attending Lake Champion, in Glen Spey, New York from July 6 to July 12. This trip is open to any high school students in Frederick County and is still open to register.

Young Life camp is a chance for high schoolers to just let loose and be themselves. It’s all about building relationships, having fun, and learning to cope with pressure and stress.

“Young Life to me is a way to learn how to build personal relationships in a way that is fun and engaging to teenagers,” said Brengel.

Alyson Zieg-Sniffen leads the Trumpet section of the marching band. On June 20, Zieg-Sniffen will further her music education at the Interlochen music summer camp in Interlochen, Michigan. She will be there for six weeks focusing on becoming a better musician, along with 1500 select high school students.

Zieg-Sniffen began her music career when she picked up a trumpet in seventh grade. In addition to marching band, she is in Linganore jazz ensemble, All County band, and All County jazz ensemble.

Zieg-Sniffen heard about this summer camp through her private instructor, Dennis Fraley. In order to earn a spot in this elite arts camp, Zieg-Sniffen had to send in a video application showcasing her musicianship.Through the video application process, she earned a partial scholarship.

“About 17% of the members in America’s biggest symphonies are alumni of the Interlochen music camp. I thought this would be a great opportunity to advance in my music career,” said Zieg-Sniffen. “The Alumni of this camp have won over 125 Grammy awards and 26 Tony awards.”

The Interlochen Center for the Arts is a boarding school focused around all types of performing and visual arts. While not working on her music, Zieg-Sniffen will go hiking and see the Great Lakes

“The Interlochen Music Camp is one of the most prestigious camps in the nation. It’s a real honor to be accepted into it,” said Lloyd.  

This experience is going to challenge Zieg-Sniffen by putting her musical talents to the test, but ultimately, making her a better musician.

Lloyd said, “She is one of the best trumpet players at Linganore, but by being surrounded by those just as good as her, she is going to be challenged.”

Next year, she will also be a part of the Frederick County arts program at Governor Thomas Johnson High School. She will spend half the day at TJ taking classes such as music theory, and then spend the other half of the day at Linganore.

Zieg-Sniffen is the Vice President of Rho Kappa and a member of the mock Trial team, as well as a long time Girl Scout and a member of the National Honor Society.

Helping others and dedicating time to volunteer does not scream “Summer”. For Rachel Eaves, it’s a different story. She will be spending ten days in July to serve others in Copan, Honduras through an opportunity at Damascus Road Community Church (DRCC).

Bekah Davis, a previous leader for the trip at DRCC explains just how eye opening this experience is.

“Being able to give to people and see how much of an impact it has on their lives is humbling,” said Davis.

Mission trips help students learn about other cultures, gain knowledge about other ecosystems, and help serve those who are less fortunate. This has a major impact on both the less fortunate and on the volunteers. Eaves will be working with orphans, building homes, and delivering food to the hungry all while spreading her faith.

Inspiring and teaching others about her beliefs is important. She said, “My faith is my biggest motivator, seeing the impact that I can potentially have on someone in need makes it all worth it.”

This will be Eaves’s first time traveling outside the country, but she will be in good hands. The church volunteers will stay with local Honduran families.

Eaves attends the Damascus youth group, is a Fellowship of Christian Athletes leader, volunteers at middle school youth group, and has helped with Vacation Bible School.

Community members admire her dedication and leadership. Science teacher, Durann Ecalono, and athletic secretary Judi Hardister, as well as others in the community, donated money towards her trip which costs close to 1,700 dollars.

“I’ve seen Rachel participate at church, and her dedication and leadership stands out. I knew she would do great things by helping others, so I was glad to help her in any way possible,” said Mrs. Ecalono.

Hardister strongly agrees with students serving in other countries and thinks it provides a sense of character.

“If you can go to another country and help one or two families, you’re changing the lives of many people to come,” said Hardister

Rising senior Luciano Iocco will be travelling to Spain for ten days to train with the Real Madrid C.F. and the Valencia C.F. Academy coaches. Iocco will be travelling with his club soccer team, F.C. Frederick and will have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play inside of professional teams training grounds and stadiums.

Over the course of the trip he will tour each Madrid, the capital of Spain and Valencia, a city on the east coast of Spain. He could also get a chance to go to the beach on the Mediterranean coast. When he is not on the soccer pitch, he will be able to experience the culture and nightlife of Spain.

Iocco and his club team will spend six days in Madrid and four days in Valencia. In addition to practice every day, the club will play three or four exhibition matches against local club teams. Spain has a reputation as world leaders in soccer, winning the FIFA World Cup in 2010. Soccer in Europe is the equivalent to football in America, therefore, Iocco’s team will be facing some very strong competition, but they’re ready for the challenge.

“I’m excited to see how different teams across the world play differently than us. It should be tiring, but fun,” said Iocco.

Iocco has been devoted to soccer since he was four years old. He started his club soccer career playing for Alliance soccer club when he was 12 years old and then moved to F.C. Frederick two years ago. For his high school soccer career, he is a three year varsity player and was a first year captain for the 2018 season.

Alongside Iocco, 15 members of his team and other members of the club will be travelling to Spain. This international trip was made available for any members of F.C. Frederick who are in high school. A trip like this, is surely not inexpensive, however.

Iocco’s teammate and senior at Tuscarora High School, Jack Lillis is also excited for the trip. “I’m most excited for the chance to learn from coaches of the highest level,” said Lillis. “I expect the coaches to be tough on us, but I want to try and get the most out of each session.”

The club’s trip to Spain was organized by Generation Adidas International (GAI), a company that sets up international trips for teams around the world to experience new styles of soccer and cultures. GAI also helps kids grow by giving them the chance to learn from some of the most prestigious coaches in the world.

“This is an amazing opportunity that I never expected to be a part of and I am very lucky that I have the chance to participate,” said Iocco.

Not everyone has to travel far and wide to get the amazing summer experience. For students like Hunter Wolf, nothing says summer like learning opportunities. She will be working at the National Cancer Institute at Fort Detrick over her break and is eager to continue her biomedical studies.

Between holding a job at Tropical Smoothie and interning, she is fully booked for the three month vacation.

She will work 40 hours a week all summer, and continuing into her senior year. Leaving school half a day for her internship.

Throughout her high school career, Wolf has been involved in the CTC Project Lead the Way Biomedical Science courses. This internship will be a great asset to furthering her education in the biomedical field.

The main reason why she was so interested in the biomed program was her natural love for science and her sudden interest in the field when her grandfather passed away due to primary liver cancer. She attended seminars and lectures to gain more knowledge about it and researched different internships.

Claudine Marcum is Wolf’s biomed teacher who helped her find this internship.

“I had great confidence in her ability to complete an independent project because of her cognitive ability and motivation and therefore encouraged her to apply for an internship at the National Cancer Institute,” said Marcum.

Over the summer, Wolf will be working with her mentor and other students to research and develop RNA-based nanoparticles that can be used as a treatment to interfere with cancer cells.

This will be her first internship, so the anticipation is increasing.

“I am excited to be exposed to real labs and gain further experience with real world research. This internship is a step out of my comfort zone but I can’t wait,” said Wolf.

The process to be chosen was long but well worth the wait. She had to apply and wait to be selected for an interview, and after that she waited for her acceptance letter in the mail. Internships help students move towards real career options and advance their skills.

“When she wants something she goes for it, it is her work ethic her mother and I are most  proud of,” said Hunters father, Jon Wolf.