Camp 2021
Pastor Steve getting the consolation prize after the water gun fight.
Camp, Year 5 - We’re back & it feels so good! For those of us who’ve been to camp before it even feels like coming home. The memories we hold close are brought back to life as soon as we pull into camp. We remember the dear ones we’ve met over the last several years, the moments that changed lives, the many walks to and from activities that were full of good and hard conversations, and the joy of watching kids put down their walls and embrace the goodness around them.
The first day here is full of preparation for the week ahead, which concludes with a bonfire and communion. The buzz of energy coursing through camp is topped only by the campers’ red-carpet entrance we’ll experience today. More than 12 churches are represented among us and we’ve come together, as Camp Director Mindy reminds us, as the hands & feet of Christ to truly love on the kids we will meet this week. We draw our buzz of energy down to a slight hum and we stop for a moment. Moments of silence before the noise of the week ahead of us. Moments of peace before the joyous chaos. Moments of centering before we enter into the lives of children who’ve endured trauma.
And we remember why we are here. We remember what we have signed up for and what is being asked of us. We know the great responsibility of caring for each camper this week with intentionality & empathy and we do not take lightly their lived realities. Our prayer this week is that each child leaves camp with memories that can sustain them when all else feels dark. That they feel deeply the love of God who created within them a purpose beyond the trauma they’ve experienced.
Pray with us and for us this week. Most of all, pray for our campers as we are heading there now to pick them up.
Day #1
It is hard to believe that day one is already on the books. Yesterday, a small team of staff went back to church to meet the kids at registration. We arrived to white and purple balloons everywhere and a very excited registration team. When the first camper came through the doors, this year’s camp season came to life as we greeted previous campers who have grown like weeds and welcomed first-time campers to RFK. We loaded the bus and took off to camp with 25 campers in tow.
The true beginning of camp is marked by the red carpet. As the bus pulls onto camp property the staff lines up and starts going wild with cheers & clapping. Each kid who steps off the bus is announced by name and runs onto the red carpet lined with staff cheering them on along the way. This moment is truly special. What a joy it is to meet our campers in this way! It sets the tone for the whole week.
This year’s theme is the Olympics & today’s big lesson was “Jesus wants me on his team.” For children in foster care, this can be hard to believe. A lot of our campers have felt deeply rejected in their short little lives making them feel unwanted and abandoned. The radical truth today is that no matter what has happened in your life - Jesus wants you on his team. Jesus will never leave you sitting on the bench. Jesus will always pick you.
Our administrative staff is overwhelmed by seeing the fruit of their work over the last year. After clocking in many long hours to make sure this camp is a success, seeing the campers running off the bus with smiles on their face makes it all worth it. We are off to a great start & we can’t wait to see what the rest of the week has in store. Thank you for your prayers, we can feel them!
Day #2
Yesterday was our first full day with the campers. They’re starting to come out of their shells as they begin to realize this is a safe place. They are dancing along to the camp music, making friends, and opening up to us more. We seeing kids begin facing some fears or doing things for the very first time. Our oldest camper has never dove off of a diving board before and a good 30 minutes of this afternoon’s swim time was spent cheering her on as she stood just at the edge of her comfort zone. The whole pool was invested & went wild when she finally jumped. She emerged from the water with the biggest smile on her face. Just the day before, she had been crying in the pool. Transformation is already happening.
The girls had a special treat yesterday afternoon - our annual tea party! The girls chose a dress from our finest formal dresses and wore it while we escorted them down the gravel road of camp in a convertible so they could practice their princess waves. They came back and lined up while two of our men at camp wore their suits and escorted them, arm in arm, to the tea party. They took pictures with our guests - Carlinville Pageant Queens - and spoke with Miss Lisa about their inner and outer beauty. Each girl was given a gift and were named as princess warriors. When Miss Lisa asked why they thought she called them that, they said “Because we’re strong!”
The regular camp activities are in full swing and we’ve been fishing, canoeing, swimming, playing in the activity room, doing archery, singing camp songs, and learning more about God. We’re beginning to hear some of the campers say things that make our hearts melt. After just a few hours one camper said, “Wow, Can I live here!?” Another camper said, “I feel like a kid again - I can’t wait to work here when I’m older!” We’ve regularly heard several campers refer to each day as “the best day ever.” Royal Family Kids Camp truly is a magical place & we’re relishing in being with each camper to give them a week they’ll never forget.
Day #3
You know it is has been a good day when you ask several campers and staff what their favorite part was and they can’t single out just one thing. We went hard yesterday & when it came time for sleep, most everyone hit the pillow and was out. The boys had their annual water gun fight & its often hard to tell who is having more fun: the campers or the staff. Each boy is given a water gun and for 30-40 minutes pure chaos breaks loose. At the end of the water gun fight the boys circled around Pastor Steve and poured buckets of water all over him!
This week’s chapel curriculum is all about how Jesus sees us, wants us, and is with us in the storms of life. Today’s lesson was about the miracle of Jesus walking on water and calming the stormy waters that held his disciples fishing boat. Today’s lesson was also very interactive and included many volunteer actors to play out this scene. Pastor Steve brought particular attention to the wind and waves throughout the scripture reading. Each time the waves were mentioned he threw water on the four campers acting as the disciples, you know - to really get the point across. Who knows if this was planned all along or if he was just getting back at the boys for the earlier water gun mayhem...
The lesson wrapped up with a reminder that Jesus is with us through all of our storms. Pastor Steve asked the campers if they had examples of storms they have weathered or are weathering. Heartbreaking responses flowed in and our chapel time ended with group prayer and a reminder that we are never alone in the storm. Our hope is that our campers remember this truth when they leave in a couple of days. They are never alone.
Day #4
We wished a Royal Happy Birthday to all of our campers (and two of our staff!) yesterday with inflatable obstacle courses, personalized birthday cakes, cotton candy, and many great gifts. Spiderman & Captain America also showed up and hung out with our campers. The birthday party is a time for us to remind them they are so special and worthy of celebration. The hard reality is that some of our campers haven’t had many birthday parties. One camper went 10 years without a birthday party. She had her first party with her foster parents last year & when she opened her gifts today she said, “This makes up for the last 10 years of no birthday parties!” Her excitement made us all stop for a moment and take it in.
Thursday is a hard day for our campers. They begin to realize that camp is coming to an end and they have to go home. Camp cousins (counselors) started the morning reflecting on what they needed to finish the week well. They talked about endurance, patience, tolerance, faith, hope, and trust. The common theme was the desire to bring the same energy today that we brought on day one & to trust that God will continue to keep our campers safe when they leave.
We’ve built beautiful relationships this week. As our campers get closer to the end of the day we start to see certain behaviors show up. We don’t see these behaviors as “bad”. We recognize that our campers have been through many tough transitions in their lives and they are beginning to put certain walls back up in order to cope. Today we head back home & say goodbye to our campers. Will you continue to pray for us and for our campers? We know that today will be hard.
As Winnie the Pooh says, “How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”
Day #5
Yesterday morning was our variety show which showcased many acts ranging from a boys interpretative dance to “Let it Go”, a bug presentation, original skits, to historical trivia. It made for a lot of laughs and moments of pride to see our campers shine on stage. The final day of camp is bittersweet - we’re moved by the way we’ve seen campers come to life in new ways throughout the week and we also have to say goodbye. We had our sack lunches after the variety show and loaded the bus for home. On the bus-ride home they are presented with photo albums of their week at camp & are given Mp3 players that have all of the skits, songs, and puppet show materials.
Continuing in our theme of the olympics, our campers rolled into town on our big bus with a police & fire escort like the winning team they are. Cars pulled over and waved as our bus came through town making the kids feel so special. Once we got back to the church we joined our campers families in the sanctuary for a closing ceremony. We sang songs from camp for their families, we watched a recap video of the week of camp, and we had a graduation ceremony for 5 graduating campers. Some of those campers had been there from our very first camp and their cousins spoke about how much they have seen them grow from their first year to this last year.
Royal Family Kids Camp contributed greatly to their healing. We watched it happen for 5 years. We saw those scared, angry, and uncertain children come to camp for their first year and emerge after their fifth year as leaders, full of life. It is a great honor to know these kids and to be part of their stories, if only for a week each year. As we said goodbye to our campers this week we prayed for their safety. We prayed that our God protect them and keep them until we meet again. Saying goodbye after a week like we just had is the hardest thing, but we put our faith and trust in a God whose love for these kids is greater than we can ever imagine.
Thank you for your prayers and a big thank you to those who donated their time, gifts and talents to be with our campers this week. Until next year!
