Staff Profile: Gráinne Deasy

Hi everyone, I’m Gráinne!  I am really excited about coming to camp this summer and to meet everyone! I’m most looking forward to getting to America and seeing the camp for the first time. I can’t wait to spend the summer by the water having fun and also to get to know everyone. I’m from Cork in Ireland. We don’t get great weather here in the summer so I’m also looking forward to that! I go to university in Dublin and so throughout the year I divide my time between being at home in Cork most weekends and then Dublin during the week.  I live at home with my parents, my brother and my granddad and in Dublin I live with my friends so I benefit from the best of both environments.

My parents love to travel so I have been lucky enough to accompany them on most of their adventures. My favourite memory of a family holiday is our first trip to America. We spent 3 weeks travelling around Florida. It was amazing! One of the Harry Potter books had just come out and so in between looking up now and then at the various sites, I spent my time in the back of the car reading non-stop! We spent one week in Orlando visiting most of the Disney adventure parks. I love roller-coasters and so my mum came with me onto one of the biggest ones at the time there. I was wearing flip-flops and one of them ended up falling off mid-ride! I didn’t realise until the ride was coming to an end as something felt a bit odd. Even though I loved those flip-flops, I ended up getting new Disney themed ones which were so much better.

I adore most sweets and chocolate. I go through phases of being a complete chocoholic to being turned off it. …That never lasts too long though!  I remember the chocolate in America being quite different to that at home here and so it might be a good thing for me if I don’t end up liking it as much over there! …I like healthy foods too of course.

My favourite costume is this tiger costume that I have. I’m involved in the Windsurfing club in university and for the fresher’s trip last October there was a themed night which was the zoo. Three of my friends and I found the costumes in a department store and so we looked like some sort of tiger band for the night! We also painted our faces orange with the white and black stripes. It was a great night and I have never been so comfy either!

I spent four months in a boarding school in France when I was 15 in order to improve my level of French.  Each weekend we went on trips and adventures around the area. The school is in the South-West of France right by the Pyrenees Mountains that divide France and Spain. One weekend we travelled to the mountains in a bus and followed the never-ending winding road all the way to the top to admire the views and to explore the tiny country of Andorra. On the way back down we stopped half way in an adventure centre and we went white water rafting down the rest of the way - or what felt like the rest of the way down! It was just so much fun and exhilarating being up that high looking down around at the country side below. I still remember the water being so cold, clean and pure.

I don’t really know where I’ll be in 20 years’ time. I’d like to think that my plans for becoming a Speech and Language Therapist will have come through and that I might have a family. Hopefully I will have travelled a lot and have gone to all or most of the countries that I want to visit. Of course, as well, I hope to be still happy, active and healthy. I’m not too sure what else I see for myself. I love the TV show Private Practice and I have always thought that working in a place like that would be perfect! I think I’ll be happy though for whatever I am doing in 20 years’ time.

Again, I'm really excited about the summer and spending time at the camp with all of you and getting to know everyone!