Give the Gift of Camp
By: Anthony Aranico
Camp is a special four letter word here at Foothills UMC. There are a lot of oppotunities: Family Camp on Memorial Day weekend, camping with Tent Pegs, or District Church Camp at Cedar Glen in the summer. The latter is what I'm writing about in this article. Summer church camp is an experience that can change someone's life. We heard it this past week on Youth Sunday; all five of the senior girls who helped bring the message "Our Story" to life, held camp as a major setting in their faith development.
Camp Cedar Glen is literally set apart from "the world;" it is up in Julian, CA, but what makes this campground special is that you will never see any neighbors next to the campground. It is surrounded by protected forests, and no one can build there. It is in this place, that I, along with many other youth directors before me found a call into ministry. More importantly, it is a place where youth are put into life-changing fellowship experiences for six days; It is here that they learn more about what it means to live in Christian, loving community. They are no longer connected by the internet, but by personal connection. If you have ever talked to anyone about Camp Cedar Glen, you'll know that it is hard to put into words what makes it so special, but the one thing we know is that it is.
Every year we make it known that if money is an issue for youth to get up to camp, then we will help. This year is the same. We have about 10 children and youth requesting scholarships, this equals about $4,000. Please help get our youth up to camp by donating to our campership fund and by holding us in prayer as we're up there. The dates of camp (Senior High through Young Elementary) are from July 7- July 27th.