By Austin Gonzales

Sitting in a crowded Chinese buffet restaurant, I watch our purple-haired waiter smoothly refill our water. “What do you see as the value of a Christian camp?” I ask the fledgling youth director in front of me. He pauses. “Wow, dude, that’s a big one! Let me think.” After some beard scratching, he dives into an animated summary of how camp drastically impacted his life and the lives of his campers.

My further interviews with a camp director, a children’s pastor, male and female counselors, and a camper all reveal common elements that make the “church camp” an invaluable experience for campers and staff alike. This longstanding ministry proves itself as a catalyst of change for generations.