Why is Summer Camp Important for Highschoolers?
I know many of your first thought after reading the title was probably "Summer just ended," but I am already thinking about summer 2017 and planning what I'm hoping to do and I know many of you are probably doing the same thing. Summer camp is most definitely on the list for me. Whether that means working there all summer or just going one more year as a camper, I'm hoping to stop by camp.
I have been going to summer camp for 10 years and have loved it every single time. Personally, I think every kid needs to experience summer camp at least once. There are so many values in it, especially for high schoolers. Now every summer camp is going to be different between the way they run things, activities they offer, and programs they have. I'm going to be focusing on Springhill camps, and more specifically their high school program, TST. This summer camp has a special place in my heart for two reasons. First, my mom was a camper at Springhill when she was young and also ended up working there. Second, I have been a camper there since I was 7 years old, so it almost feels like I have grown up there.
Springhill is a Christian camp for kids in the 1st-12th grade. As I said before all my points I make will be geared towards high schoolers (As I think teenagers will benefit from these more than younger kids) and although I'm writing these based on my experience at Springhill I'm sure these points can apply to many different summer camps.
1. Off Screen Time
Springhill thinks it's important for kids to take some time away from the screen and does not allow any kind of electronics at camp (besides cameras of course). I do know from experience at other camps that not all camps do this but personally, I think it is really refreshing to take a week or two and have no phone or internet of any kind. It shows you that it's possible to live without your phone and you don't have to be on social media all the time. Plus it pulls you away from any drama that you can easily start or be dragged into on social media.2. Make Friends
Now this one might sound cheesy but you do have a small family for the week or two that you are at camp. These people you meet might not become your best friends in life, but you do end up befriending different kinds of people that you would never talk to outside of camp. There's such a vast variety of people that you meet at camp. People that have different interests and personalities than you. People that would normally be outside of your friend group at home. But for this time at camp, all these different people come together and become family. You get to know these people on a more personal level and by the end of the week, you feel like you have known them forever.
3. Encouragement
You are engulfed with encouragement when at camp. Staff, counselors, and cabinmates, they all are so encouraging. No matter what you are struggling with someone has your back. Maybe it's an issue at home, a sin that you are battling, or even just an activity at camp that you are scared to do, people will listen and encourage you in every way.
4. Face Your fears
Although it may sound strange, you are confronted by many of your fears while at camp. They could be spiritual fears like a sin that you are battling and are scared of the outcome or consequences it could have, or camp has many different kinds of activities and it could be a more physical fear that showed itself through one of those. For me this past year, one time stands out that showed itself through one of the activities. This story also goes along with my last point too because it really is the people who help you and give you the extra push you need to face your fears. Here is the story, my group was doing an activity called the solo challenge where you put on a harness and climb to the top of a telephone pole and then jump off trying to grab a trapeze bar. Now out of 10 years at camp, I could never bring myself to participate in this activity but I told myself that this was going to be the year. When we got to the activity I thought "I can't do this, there is no way." but I can think of three people specifically who told me "you can and you will" they would not go until I went and I did end up going. Because of the encouragement from them, I concerned a fear I had for 10 years.
5. Judgement Free
Be exactly who God made you, especially at camp because it's is a judgment free zone. I can confidently say that I have never once felt judged or ashamed of who I am or what I look like while at camp. Although everyone is different, most everyone gets along. It's so refreshing to be able to walk around and not constantly be afraid of what others are thinking about you.
6. Try New Things
At camp, you might get the opportunity to try things that you have never done before. Including, horseback riding, zip lining, blobing, paddle boarding, and so much more! Or maybe you have never been away from home for more than a few days, and being away is new to you. No matter what, you will probably try something new each year at camp.
7. Wise Leaders
Christian camps have amazing counselors. Even though they might only be a few years older than you, they seem so much wiser. Something one of my counselor said this past year has stuck with me and even though it seems so obvious I had never thought of it this way. I'm not sure what their exact words were but it was along these lines, "You grow in your relationship with God just like you would with anyone else, you spend time with them. You can't get to know someone if you never talk to them or listen to what they are saying. It's the same way with God if you don't spend time with Him you aren't going to get to know him better or gain anything from Him." Wise people will share with and help you in ways you didn't know you needed it.
8. Learn to Serve Selflessly
This point really shows one of the main reasons I love Springhill camps and their high school program. Out of the 10 years I have gone to Springhill, high school is where I learned the most and that's all thanks to the program they have. For the 9-12th grade teenagers, Springhill has what they call Teen Service Team (TST), and what they do is work half the day and do activities half the day. By the end of two weeks, teenagers will have gained 40+ hours of community service. They will be doing anything from, washing dishes and serving food in the dining hall, scrubbing and mopping floors in bathrooms, shoveling dirt and painting fences outside, to cleaning horse and animal stalls at the ranch. Although some of these jobs really suck, it's through these tough hours of work you start to realize that God wants us to work and do it happily because even though the things we are doing are here on earth, we are working for God. Colossians 3:23 says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters," TST is something I have not seen at any other camp and I think that is what really makes Springhill's high school program so special.
I hope you guys liked this post! I know it was a long one but I just thought I would share my thoughts on summer camp and some past experiences I have had through it! I encourage everyone to go to summer camp if you get the opportunity!
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