Summer Camps Begin!
School is out and summer is here! It’s time for summer camps to be held all across America! Nearly every district in the US holds a summer camp for every school age group: elementary, middle school and high school. Some districts work together to offer a bigger and better experience. Here is a summary of ongoing and past camps this summer. Consider attending one near you, this year or next!
District 2
Camp Sunrise in Harriman State Park has served the children of New York and New Jersey for over 20 years. Camp Directors Brian Sabourin and Debby Grodner made a bold fundraising effort this year to keep the camp going. So far the effort seems to have paid off, as attendance in the three camps has topped 110 children. A weekly day camp for younger children is offered as well, and many families in the area utilize the camp and its facilities for short weekend getaways.
Emily Zochol, Camp Coordinator, says, “We are integrating True Father’s teachings into all activities. We want the children to feel proud and confident of their faith. They leave camp feeling a sense of community and belonging.”
District 4 In the Northeast, Camp Aurora is located in the beautiful New Hampshire wilderness and runs a simultaneous program for elementary, middle and high school children. “Having kids together of all ages is a big plus,” said Marjorie Buessing, one of the camp’s founders. “The high school kids have one or two buddies from the middle school or elementary camp. These relationships can last for years. They spend time together every day.”
Districts 6 and 7
Camp is held at Camp KOHOE (which stands for Kingdom of Heaven on Earth!) in Benton Harbor, MI. Sixty participants and twelve staff members attended the high school camp with the theme, “Rooted”, which stressed the importance of being “rooted” in their faith. Max Heuft said, “The message the kids get is that you’re not the only one facing challenges.“
Forty middle schoolers attended their camp a few days later at the same location—staffed mainly by high schoolers who had just completed their camp. The high schoolers got to see what it takes to be a leader, planning the schedule and becoming deeply involved with planning curriculum.
District 8
Camp Agape was held at a YMCA camp in Boone, Iowa this year. For the families scattered over the area, summer camp is a very special time to come together. It is seen by all as one of the most important events of the year; a time for bonding as a district family.
This year’s presenter, “Uncle Gerry” Servito said, “The group leaders all grew up in this community. They know each other’s situation and have a connection in heart. That connection of heart ran through the entire camp.”
District 10
In the Northwestern corner of America, District 10 holds two camps during the summer. Camp Tong I for elementary and middle school age had over 20 participants, and was hosted in a church family’s home in Westport, Washington. The older kids participated in an overnight kayaking expedition, which included sleeping out under the stars.
Twenty high school age participants and college aged staff participated in the district’s challenge camp called T-2. Unlike the usual indoor workshop setting, camp T-2 is all about adventure. The week-long backpacking expedition took place in pristine Olympia National Park, in the northwest corner of Washington State. The group was awestruck at the beautiful yet powerful surroundings, and the wildlife they encountered.
District 9
Camp Lone Star had over 80 participants ranging in age from 13 to 18 years old in the great state of Texas. One of the directors, Jin Sook Sakai said “Our theme this year was ‘Let Us Become’, inspired by True Mother’s motto for 2014-2020 of ‘Let us become owners of Cheon Il Guk who practice true love in resemblance to our creator, the Heavenly Parent!’ Our vision and hope for this summer was to provide the youth with the resources for them to reflect about what kind of person they would like to become, to discover how we can each take responsibility for our future, and to experience and understand God’s heart on a deeper level.”
One of the highlights from this summer was Challenge Night, a tradition at Camp Lone Star. The purpose of Challenge Night is to provide the youth with opportunities to understand and experience God and True Parent’s love, heart, and pain through internal and external challenges. One youth shared: “I realized that God’s heart is one of so much sorrow and pain and yet He still tries to save us over and over again. I also realized how much True Parents loved God and how they just wanted to take God’s pain away.”
Congratulations and a big thank you to the brothers and sisters across the country who took on the job of organizing their local camps, and to those who helped staff, those who taught, those who cooked, prayed, chauffeured and paid money to make sure their camps went well. May God bless them all, and allow their camps to get even bigger and reach more people with the heart, love and understanding of True Parents next summer!
For more information of other summer programs that took place in the summer of 2014 across the states, click here.