Friday, December 28, 2012

One of our favorites . . .

We love getting notes from campers and parents letting us know how SBC has influenced their lives. This letter from last summer was one of our favorites!
Hello Dave,

I just wanted to let you know how life changing your camp has been for my children and as a result, our entire family! We attend weekly Mass, all four of my children have been baptized, and had first communion. However, your week with them had more of an impact spiritually on each of them than all those years put together. Thank you, Thank you to you and your amazing staff.

My daughter, C, attended trailblazers in July and had Emily for a counselor. She had such a blast and came home raving about not only the activities, but also Jerry. When her 3 brothers heard if all the fun, they couldn't stand it and asked if they could go too! They couldn't wait to do the zipline, watersports, slip n slide etc.
When it came time to pack up after several weeks of "count down", A asked "why do I have to bring a bible?" C quickly responded with "it's a religious based camp goof ball, didn't you hear me talk about Jerry and all stories?" A's response was that he won't bring one and look like a "dork", and after much coaxing and still refusal, Mom gently slipped one into his bag at the last minute.
A has always been the non believer of the family, resists church and anything to do with it except donut time after mass and the big annual festival.
A's counselor was Kodie and he instantly liked him because he quickly found out that Kodie plays Black Ops Too - his favorite all time video game. I worried all week that A would resist the spiritual sessions and make things miserable for everyone. I wondered if anything Jerry or Kodie said would sink in and make a difference for him.
Well, after seeing him melt in Kodie's arms at pick up we were astonished at the impact he had on A. A then said "I'm a believer now!" We were pleasantly "floored". No one has ever been able to reach him deep down inside like that. What a blessing Kodie was to him. Then tonight we found him reading his bible he got from camp at bedtime with his reading glasses on: A has never picked up a bible on his own, hates to read and hates wearing his glasses. Amazing! For this we will always be grateful.
Each of the counselors my children had were amazing: Emily, Megan, jared, and Brian too! The one hour ride we had on the way home felt like 15 minutes to them because they all kept sharing stories from the week nonstop barely taking any breaths to pause. They all can't wait to return to summer camp, and we are considering the sportsmanship camp, and winter camp as well. Thank you for making such a difference in our lives! We look forward to seeing you all real soon!

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