Parent Erika Wold tells of the importance of Children’s Camp at Camp Wapo, a place to be “Together,” to grow in faith and instill community and friendships that will last a lifetime:
It can be hard to plan for summer when the winter temps are in the negative digits yet when I look out my frosty windows, why is it that summer is all I can think about? I’ll admit I am not winter’s biggest fan. I mean, there are a couple of positives like Christmas and hot cocoa; but summer, SUMMER is my favorite season. Blue skies, the heat from the radiating sun, longer days, the beach, and SUMMER CAMP.
I find it a little ironic that I have such nostalgia for summer camp considering that I never attended any summer camps as a child. More humorous yet is that, with zero childhood camp experience, I spend my weekdays working with overnight and day camps. But even with little first-hand knowledge the value of camp is not lost on me. I know what the opportunity to go to camp means to so many children, including my own. Camp is a place where children are able to grow in confidence, develop new skills, experience the beauty of nature and the world around them and build relationships and friendships that
last a lifetime. And at Camp WAPO, they gain an opportunity to grow in a faith and community with their peers within our own church community and beyond – “TOGETHER”, WAPO’s 2018 summer theme.
“Worship services were really good. We sang really fun songs, and had a really good time. We would also have lessons -like Sunday School- and we would sit and talk about life and read from the Bible.” ~Kaelyn Wold
Children and Family Ministry has been re-vitalizing our long-term relationship with Camp WAPO over the past few years and together growing our ties and connections. We have been blessed to utilize WAPO’s facilities for our family camp adventures and last summer sent a group of PoP kids to camp. Our relationship has only continued to grow as we prepare to send another group this summer.
“When you go to Camp WAPO you can meet other people who are like you and many of them are nice. The songs, food and games are excellent, too.” -Charlie Burkhart
“I liked Camp WAPO because the counselors were really engaging and fun to be around and the church lessons and teachings were good. I also liked hanging out with friends there. It was a good environment.” ~Ashwini Sandanayake
It is the Children Ministry’s goal to make sure any and all youth from Prince of Peace are afforded the opportunities and memories that summer camp provides and we are on a mission to support all our youth through prayer, financial contributions to make camp affordable, providing scholarships to those needed, and to re-start a long-beloved summer tradition. If your child is interested in camp, let’s connect. And for those of you who have those wonderful memories of camp or understand just how much Children’s Ministry values our mission to send all of POPs kids to camp, consider working with us through prayer, hands-on activities, or financial contributions to keep this one of our traditions for years to come. Let’s do this “Together.”
“This summer I am going to Camp Youth WAPO for the first time and I hope that my friends from church are going to go with me. I have been to camps before but none of them have been overnight and I am excited to experience being away from home.” ~Enna Wold
“You play new games. You make new friends. You have s’mores 1 time a night. You sing lots of songs and they have this fair and that’s why I like Camp WAPO” -Esmie Sandanayake
Erika Wold’s email address is erikagustum@hotmail.com.