My definition for camp is simple: Camp is a set-apart space that facilitates relational encounter between the self, the other, and God. Relational encounter with others is the primary pedagogical tool of summer camp. It is why camp works. Notice that the relational...
The 5 Fundamentals: Faith-Centered
It is the most important part of what we do. When we center everything on our faith in Jesus Christ, all the other characteristics of camp are transformed and aligned with the coming reign of God. Camp becomes what it is meant to be: a glimpse of God’s kingdom here on...
The 5 Fundamentals: Unplugged from Home
Our Plugged-In World The world moves at a frenetic pace. We all feel it, and social scientists rush to define it. It is a loneliness epidemic. An anxious generation. A lack of grit. A surreal state of being “alone together.” A nature deficit disorder. We are more...
Breaking Down Breakdowns in the Camp Model
Camp is perfect, right? Right? At least, my camp is... You've thought it. So have we, and so has every camp enthusiast since the beginning of camp-time. And yet, we know that sometimes people have an experience that is less positive than we planned and prepared for....
The 5 Fundamentals: Camp is a Safe Space
“You are on God’s belay.” My friend and mentor Paul Hill always signed his emails and letters this way. Even in retirement, Paul has always been a self-proclaimed “adrenaline junky,” feeling most at home paddling through a surprise rainstorm in the Boundary Waters of...











