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Faith Based Camps Shed a Different Light By Teresa Nicodemus Spirit of Caring A ceremony called First Word starts the morning off at Camp Crosley YMCA. Campers from age seven to seventeen gather around the flagpole to learn about the YMCA-wide character values: Caring, Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility. Vibrant colors attach to each value: caring is red, honesty is blue, respect is gold, and responsibility is green. As a brilliant red flag is raised, campers are reminded it’s caring day. For one fifteen-year-old camper, the meaning of caring has deepened ever since his first days at Camp Crosley. Campers have been asked to write a letter about their experiences to a member of the founding family of the camp, John Fisher, on his 90th birthday. What would this young man say to such an important person? He sits on a rustic wooden bench and begins to write: Ever since I started coming here I thought this was like a home to me. About four years ago my parents got a divorce and it broke my heart to see them fight all the time. After they got the divorce I lost it. I got into trouble at school and I didn’t know where my life was going. I won’t go into detail but I had to go to the hospital for care. And finally I’ve been waiting a whole school year just to finally come here and it helped me get away from all my problems. So anyways I would just like to wish you a very Happy Birthday. 90 years old, man, I sure hope I make it there! Also I would like to thank you so very much for your help in the camp and making my life so much better. I truly thank you. Sharing the Gifts For some camps, the natural world, spirituality, and a caring camp staff offer a solace that emanates beyond camp’s boundaries to inspire campers and staff to change lives, offer community service, and improve environmental awareness. Faith-based camps are gaining in popularity. Take Camp Woodbrooke, for example, in the lush woods of Richland Center, Wisconsin, where the program is based on Quaker values and the Quaker belief in the Light of the Spirit present in every individual. A resident, coed camp for seven to fifteen-year-olds “who learn, play, work, and reflect together, deepening their connections with each other, the spirit within, and the natural world,” says Sheila Voss, an assistant director of Camp Woodbrooke. “About fifty percent of the campers and staff come from a Quaker background. Beyond this, we actively seek cultural, racial, religious, and economic diversity, feeling that many children grow up getting few opportunities to know children from different lifestyles and backgrounds. Each of us has gifts to share.” Incorporating Faith, Values, and Cultural Diversity Mingled with the traditional archery, arts and crafts, outdoor living, and canoeing, campers participate in Morning Meeting at Camp Woodbrooke. “It is an opportunity to ‘center’ in a beautiful, alive place. Questions bring a gentle focus to this inward time: How do we create a caring community? How can we care for and respect God’s world? What does it mean to be a true friend? What do I believe and value?” explains Voss. Maureen “Mo” Vazzano, a fifty-year-old, teacher, wife, mother, and grandmother has also served as site director for CYO Camp Cordé in Ohio, proudly states she’s older than most but describes herself as “creative, fun, and can sing great songs, compassionate, caring, and not afraid to be goofy.” She tells the story of one of her counselors who was a former camper. Katie C. returned to her second summer wanting very much to improve her discipline skills. She left for college knowing her campers thought she was the most fair of all the staff and the most loved. “When I asked a camper why Katie was so good, she said because she treats everyone fairly and did not play favorites. She cared about us as ‘people.’ What a great tribute,” says Vazzano. Dealing with Pop Culture Faith-based camps face a unique challenge as they encounter trends in popular culture that are counter-productive to the values they try to convey to campers. Christian music is offered in a fun and upbeat way according to Kim Brosnan, former director of CYO Day Camps in Parma, Ohio. “We foster healthy opportunities for campers to experience music and competition, such as an American Idol contest where the young people perform camp songs or Christian-based music. We ‘camp up’ the Survivor TV show and make it our own. Everybody wins as campers get points for getting caught doing good things.” Staff as Role Models While camps of all denominations weave faith lessons into their camp programming, the counselors are recognized as powerful role models for campers. Rick Cornfield, executive director of Victory Ministries of Alaska, a day camp and resident coed camp for ages five to sixteen nestled in 500 acres of pristine Alaskan woodlands, relies heavily on the faith and perseverance of staffing and a solid volunteer base, which averages seventy volunteers daily. “I think much of our faith is role modeled in our counselors, who all have a strong Christian background. If there is anything they do best, it is to love their campers. The demographics in Alaska show heavy divorce rates and alcohol abuse,” says Cornfield. “I’ve seen many a camper ask counselors if they could be their parents.” Stephanie Levin, director of Camp Kochav Jewish Community Center, explains the powerful connections her campers make to the camp counselors she welcomes to her camp from Israel: “Bringing staff from Israel adds something unique to camp, and as the counselors teach the children about Israel through games and activities, the children begin to realize that being Jewish is a larger culture than just camp. Many camper families have a connection to Israel, and the campers develop special connections to these counselors.” Returning Home Reaching out to a church closest to the faith of the camper is an important element of the return home for campers at Cascade Meadows Baptist Camp and Camp Burton in Vashon, Washington. “We have an invitation night at the campfire where campers are free but not required to make a commitment to their faith. Our commitment then continues as we connect our campers to a church community near their home. For one camper, being part of a gang and brushes with the law were the only family commitments he had. After hearing expressions of faith from the campfire, this young man came forward and said, ‘I’ve been looking for a family.’ We telephoned a church in his neighborhood that had an active youth program. Here the church and camp worked together to help this special camper. He now looks back at camp as a place of peace and good memories,” says Rev. Randolph Farrar, executive director of Cascade Meadows Baptist Camp and Camp Burton. Celebrating Diversity Across the country, faith-based camps welcome campers of all denominations to their camp programs. “We are not evangelizing. We may take a parable out of the New Testament, a character-based theme, or find a story like Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree and wrap our programming around that idea. We are concerned with developing a devotion to prayer and character formation,” comments Brosnan. Director Levin, from Camp Kochav seconds this idea, “We want campers to feel celebrated whatever their background is.” For information about American Camp Association camps, please visit their family-dedicated Web site, www.CampParents.org or call 800-428-CAMP (2267). Originally printed in CAMP Magazine, reprinted
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