One Heart Summer Camp

The One Heart High School Summer Retreat continues to be a very popular week in the San Bernadino Mountains for Unificationist-born youth and their friends. The camp took place from June 26 – July 2, 2016, and this year and last have seen record numbers of participants and college age staff.

The camp is located near the heart rock, which is a very well known hiking destination for tourists. One Heart Camp has been in existence for 27 years, started by Unificationist families to give young people a place to discover God and True Parents and make lifelong friends. Pastor Kevin Thompson of the Bay Area Family Church has been teaching there for 24 years and was the main lecturer again this year, giving presentations and leading discussions throughout the week. The theme of camp this year was “Hearts on Fire”.

Participants came from North and South California as well as Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Alaska and Washington states. A total of almost 200 staff and high school students participated. The morning is dedicated to the study of the Holy Scriptures, morning service and lectures. The rest of the day includes time for fun through games, swimming, skits and entertainment. Staff also prepare challenges and group activities to keep everyone inspired and stimulated.

“Before we knew it, the week was over, tears were shed as we packed up and said goodbye and determined to stay in touch and help each other to stay on track,” said Rev. Thompson.

The weather cooled down quite a bit for the One Heart Middle School Camp but the passion and the enthusiasm of these wonderful kids was just as great as the high school retreat one week before. A fantastic staff of college and high school students headed by Ryan Steinbronn and Sonomi Nozawa organized a great experience for every child who attended.

With the opportunity to get closer to God and True Parents and to feel the love of their elders, the week was filled with creativity, games, deep talks and testimonies, Divine Principle lectures and so much fun. Sixty middle school students came together from as far away as Korea and North and South California to share in an opportunity for new friendships and life-long closeness to begin. Many of the campers testified that they came to understand who True Parents are and their own value as a child of God.

As summer continues, stay tuned to hear more about our exciting Unificationist summer camps and workshops happening around the nation! You can share your summer camp experiences at familyfed.org/share-a-story.