First off, let me apologize for the length of this post. It’s long, but I feel it’s important.
As many of you likely already know, Charlie and I met and became friends at EWALU Bible Camp outside of Strawberry Point, Iowa. We were both on staff there in the summer of 1993, and EWALU has remained an important, special part of our lives in the years since.
My experiences at EWALU were life-changing. As my freshman year of college was winding down, I realized that I needed something to do over the summer. I had been a camper at EWALU as a kid, had gone there for church and school events, and one of my older sisters had been on staff there a few years prior. I loved the outdoors and camping, so I decided I’d look into working there. I must admit, I was wary about leading Bible studies and singing stupid camp songs, but figured I could suffer through that for the chance to spend the summer outside.
I contacted EWALU, and as luck would have it, they were desperate for male counselors that summer. I interviewed a short while later and was offered a counselor position. I was fortunate that they were so desperate for staff, otherwise I don’t think I’d have gotten the job. I was still on the fence about whether or not I really wanted to work at Bible camp, but decided to give it a shot.
From my first nervous day on site for staff training, I knew that I was part of something special. There was an immediate and obvious sense of community, and I quickly made many close friends. As the summer progressed, I felt a sense of call and a sense of purpose I’d never felt before. By the end of that summer, I knew that I no longer wanted to pursue a degree in architecture, but I hadn’t yet clearly heard the call to what I was supposed to do with my life. I went back to school confused, with little sense of direction. The one thing I did know was that I missed camp. I missed my new friends. I missed that sense of community.
The next summer, I was back at EWALU as a program coordinator instead of as a counselor. Again, I had a great summer and met a lot of wonderful people. I knew that I didn’t want to go back to Iowa State in the fall, but didn’t know yet what I wanted to do or where I wanted to go. At some point during that summer, my mom happened to be talking to Dr. Fred Strickert, a religion professor at Wartburg College, and mentioned to him how much I enjoyed working at camp. He then told her about Wartburg’s new Camping Ministry program. She called me soon after their conversation and told me about it. I contacted Wartburg, and finally had a strong sense of what to do with my life and career. The wheels were set in motion, and soon I was enrolled for fall classes at Wartburg.
Many of my camp friends were also Wartburg students, and so I immediately had a network of friends there that continued the sense of community from camp. I got involved in Faith Alive, Wartburg’s student-led outreach ministry, and Campus Ministry. That first year at Wartburg is when Charlie and I began singing and playing guitar together. My calling finally was clear to me.
I continued working at EWALU in the spring of 1995 and in the summers of 1995 and ‘97 (I spent the summer of 1996 at Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp in Montana). In the fall of ‘97 I took a full-time youth ministry job in Iowa City and regularly brought groups up to EWALU. Charlie and I worked together as youth directors in another Iowa City congregation and often took groups to camp. We have also led music for several junior high retreats at EWALU. Charlie actually went back to camp for a couple summers recently, and I currently serve on EWALU’s Board of Directors.
I would not be where I am today or who I am today if not for my experiences at EWALU Bible Camp. I would not have heard the call to camping and youth ministry. Charlie and I would never have become friends, and I might not have picked up a guitar. I would not have transferred to Wartburg, and therefore would not have met my wonderful wife nor had my beautiful daughter. All of the best things in my life right now can be attributed to my time at EWALU, and I would never have worked at EWALU if I had not been a camper there first.
Various studies show that anywhere from 60-90% of seminary students credit an experience at Bible camp as one of the primary reasons for becoming pastors. Camp staff often go on to become leaders in their churches and communities, and before they work at camp, they usually go to camp.
So what’s my point with all of this? Send your kids to camp! Encourage your friends and relatives and congregation members to send their kids to camp! It doesn’t have to be EWALU, though I definitely recommend it. A week at Bible camp as a 5th or 6th grader might just be the time when that mustard seed is planted. It might be 10 or 15 years before the seed grows, but it’s impossible to tell unless the seed is planted. And this isn’t just about church leaders. This isn’t just about creating future pastors. This is about enriching the lives of your children, and those of the people they touch.
I know that not every kid who goes to camp will have the same types of experiences that I had. I know that not every person who works at camp will be called to ministry or have a life-changing experience. But they might. I know that I am a much better person thanks to my time at EWALU, and I know it wasn’t just luck or fate–it was the Holy Spirit moving in small, nearly indiscernable ways, but moving without doubt.
