The Summer Camp Staff Experience
This summer, thousands of young adults will serve at Christian camps across the United States and around the world. Serving on summer camp staff will be one of the most rewarding and highly impactful experiences of their lives. They will walk away from the experience...
S1 E14: The State of The Screen
99% We share some statistics and such on this podcast, and that's one we don't share very often. 99% of parents say that camp is a place to unplug from technology. What's even more interesting - the kids like it. On this episode, we're giving a bit of a State of the...
Diversity matters
We have another historic first: President Biden’s nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court of the United States. If confirmed, she will be the first black woman to sit on the court. I applaud this move toward greater diversity and representation. I...
S1 E13: Summer Staff: Finding Them in the Findings
Camp leaders - looking for summer staff? What difference would it make in the recruiting and hiring process if you knew what motivates people to say yes to working at camp? What about in how we support and retain these staff?Church leaders - wonder what difference a...
The Big 4 Ministries
There are four key ministry spaces that are particularly important for faith formation and call to ministry. I focus a lot of my writing on camping ministries. I do this because camping ministry has gotten surprisingly little scholarly attention over the years. This...
S1 E12: Canceled! Pivoting when plans Change
We've been there. Everything is prepared, deposits are made, details are nearly sorted, lodging and transportation and meals - and then the message comes - canceled.Whether it's something epic like the recent cancellation of the ELCA National Young Gathering, a band...
No Shadow this time: camp is on!
We all have COVID-fatigue. Two years into the pandemic, activities continue to be canceled, and we wonder how long it will last. Tradition has it that the groundhog can predict the coming of an early spring. It comes at a time when most people are getting tired of...
S1 E11: Enthusiasts, Accommodators, & Skeptics
Which are you? More importantly, which are they.They are your pastoral partners in ministry, and they've got a POV on camp. What does that look like and why does it matter. In the Camp and Church Leadership Project, we uncovered something we weren't necessarily...
3 tips to find the best camp staff
It is that time of year again for camps across the country. It is the most exciting and oftentimes the most stressful time of year for program staff and directors: summer staff recruiting! I remember the craziness when I was on year-round camp staff. Confession: I...
S1 E10: 5 New Year’s Resolutions for Camp
Happy New Year camp folks! Let's kick off this year with 5 resolutions for camp in 2022. In this episode Jake and Jared offer 5 things camp could focus on this year, based on research, current events, and what might matter most in the months ahead. This episode...
A return to democracy at camp
Democracy is in peril. Not everyone agrees with this, of course. That, in itself, is part of the problem. Pope Francis had something to say about this in a December 4 speech. He called it “a retreat from democracy.” He reflected, “Democracy requires participation and...
S1 E9: A Campy Christmas Episode
Merry Christmas (and Happy Advent if Jake has anything to say about it)!It's a Sacred Playgrounds podcast Christmas episode. We've got a story or two of our own family traditions to share, and then we explore how ritual and tradition, something that camp is incredible...