{"id":24194,"date":"2024-07-18T17:38:49","date_gmt":"2024-07-18T15:38:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/clone\/?p=24194"},"modified":"2024-07-29T15:12:06","modified_gmt":"2024-07-29T13:12:06","slug":"camp-hope-for-kids-onboarding-one-retiree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/camp-hope-for-kids-onboarding-one-retiree\/","title":{"rendered":"Camp Hope for Kids: Onboarding One Retiree"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I hate camping. As a kid, summer camp was never mentioned.\u00a0Never ever. And I didn\u2019t want to go…until I hit retirement.\u00a0Like many who are facing their \u201cgolden years\u201d (a preferable alternative to \u201cthe final chapter\u201d), I consider: What is my legacy? What difference have I made?\u00a0Even better:\u00a0What new thing am I willing to learn?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
A day at R Camp at Camp Hope for Kids.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A few months after my husband and I moved to the Philly area to be near family, I signed up to volunteer at Camp Hope for Kids<\/a> (CHFK) in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania. I remember that my fellow golden-years friend Linda Brumley traveled cross-county and volunteered here, connecting with the campers, inspiring the other volunteers and even running the zip line!\u00a0\u201cThis is one of the best leadership-development programs in our brotherhood,\u201d she was heard to say. Watch and learn, I told my reluctant camper-self!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Camp Hope for Kids in its first iteration in 1995.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This camp had its humble beginnings on a rented farm in Culpepper, Virginia, with 40 campers in 1995. Relocating three years later to a new campsite, campers had to sleep in canvas Army-style tents; bowling lanes were rented for group activities. It may sound like a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants origin story, but \u201cCamp Hope for Kids was and continues to be a work of God through faith,\u201d said Kim Evans, the camp founder, CEO and visionary.\u00a0Like most good ideas, Kim\u2019s passion was born from her own powerful experiences as a child at camp \u2013 and as a parent facing the youth ministry desert at her local church.\u00a0 Despite calamities, catastrophes and the near-collapse of camp funding in 2003, CHFK eventually re-grouped and migrated in 2006 to 88-acres on an exceptionally scenic patch in rural Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For my first camp experience, I chose the kitchen crew.\u00a0 I am no stranger to volunteering, but I found that a week at camp uniquely schools the heart and stretches faith:\u00a0contentment without air-conditioning; camaraderie while cleaning and chopping chicken thighs alongside a non-complaining crew.\u00a0These ridiculously young-looking chefs successfully guided our crew to dish up sustenance to over 150 elementary-aged kids \u2013 picky eaters and all.\u00a0 And the food was good! During good news sharing, several campers commented that lunch was the highlight of their day.\u00a0\u201cYay!\u201d said the grandma in me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
One of this year’s kitchen crews at Camp Hope for Kids.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m curious: why did my seven other cabin-mates come to camp?\u00a0Carolina, a single mother, traveled six hours with her two kids and their three friends (count: five kids in a compact car).\u00a0Two mature women took time off from work \u2013 none of their children or grandchildren were at camp \u2013 and drove over six hours.\u00a0One woman whose kids are no longer campers brought her young nephew, knowing that it will make a difference in his life.\u00a0Two of the women are married to men who do not follow Jesus, one driving over seven hours to camp. Only Carolina and I are newbies; the other six are veterans, coming back each year to these non-resort-like accommodations during heat dome days. They tell me that they come because serving synchronizes an old heart to \u201csee\u201d God moving in these young hearts.\u00a0In this setting they witness spiritual formation \u2013 in kids and adults \u2013 right before their very eyes.\u00a0Now I understand why they keep coming back.\u00a0They don\u2019t want to miss out.\u00a0Camp has become an integral part of their continuing education, an annual deep-dive into living out the serving heart of Jesus.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, if the Lord wills, I will return next year to sing silly camp songs, to curate a clandestine cabin raid, to prep three-meals-a-day of real food alongside selfless volunteers.\u00a0And here\u2019s the thing:\u00a0I am a happy camper.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out Camp Hope for Kids.<\/a>\u00a0In all, approximately 2000 people are served during the camp season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I hate camping. As a kid, summer camp was never mentioned.\u00a0Never ever. And I didn\u2019t want to go…until I hit…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":24200,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[71,12],"tags":[54],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-24194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-testimonials","tag-north-america"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/kitchen-crew.jpg?fit=1440%2C960&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"dtadmin","author_link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/author\/dtadmin\/"},"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phsvEw-6ie","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":23177,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/hope-for-kids-inc-seeks-a-property-manager\/","url_meta":{"origin":24194,"position":0},"title":"Hope for Kids, Inc. 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