Cissy Byrd
Cissy Byrd grew up in Davidson, NC. She attended Wake Forest University and graduated with a B.A. in Elementary and Intermediate Education. She now lives in Spartanburg, SC with her husband, Rich. Their four sons, Nathan, Taylor, Andrew and Michael make their homes from Miami to the Carolinas. She has fulfilled her passion for children and education as a preschool teacher for the past 20 years.
Cissy began coming to Eagle’s Nest Camp as a child in the 1960’s when her father, John Kelton, was Program Director for Dr. Alex Waite. She spent many summers at camp with her entire family. In the ‘70’s Cissy returned as a camp counselor for many summers while she was in college. During the summer of 1979 she met Rich Byrd who was on the medical staff for “Diabetic Camp”. They married in the summer of 1980 and Cissy continued to work at camp during the summers for several years. Rich and Cissy both returned to camp in the early 90’s with their three, soon to be four, sons when they were camper age. She has worked at Eagle’s Nest each summer since then as her sons attended camp, Hante, JC and Outdoor Academy programs. She has been on the Board of Trustees for ENF for many years.
Working and watching her sons grow up at Camp and the Outdoor Academy, Cissy has seen the profound and positive impact of Eagle’s Nest on children from a front row seat! She watched as her children gained confidence, knowledge, independence and strong friendships while living and working at Eagle’s Nest.
Cissy and her family enjoy camping, canoeing and bicycling trips together. They love spending time at Byrd’s Nest, their “little slice of heaven” in Black Mountain, NC. She also enjoys reading and making pottery.
