2011 KAA Kamp Reflections

2011 KAA Kamp Reflections
by Brenda Lampela, Oasis of Hope Children's Developer

Wow – we recently returned from Kids Across America Kamp taking 19 of our youth and 3 adults, and what a GREAT week we had! KAA is a Christian sports camp located on a beautiful mountaintop in the Ozarks near Branson, MO, far away from civilization – but the place itself is anything but dull and quiet.  The moment we arrived, camp counselors dressed in crazy costumes, chanting and singing, descended on our bus and literally carried our kids away on their shoulders.  Some of the older kids who had been to camp before knew this was going to happen, but the younger, first-time campers were a little wide-eyed at this point, to say the least!  And the counselors’ enthusiasm never died down all week, even in near 100° temperatures!

KAA is divided into 3 different camps, separated by age groups, and each camp has activities designed for that age range.  The kids participate in lots of these fun activities and challenges, but also get to choose one specialty sport in which they receive intensive training and practice throughout the week.  Many of the challenges, such as the high-ropes courses, tubing in the lake, high-diving board into the pool, and zip-lines through the trees, to name just a few, really help the kids to overcome fears and other social anxieties that go along with being a teenager.  It’s always so great to see the look of amazement and pride on their faces when they accomplish something that they thought was too hard for them!

More importantly, though, KAA is all about sharing the good news of Christ with the campers and the adult leaders who come along, as well.  The theme this year was “He Did That” based on Romans 5:8 ~ while we were still sinners, Christ died for us ~ and in addition to all of the fun activities, the kids were being poured into by their counselors and camp staff with Bible studies and inspirational messages about how to live out their faith in spite of the difficulties that face many of these urban kids. And of course, there was no shortage of camp cheers, crazy games in the dining hall, and dancing and singing to loud Christian Hip-Hop and Rap music piped throughout the camp!

KAA is definitely a very special place, and I feel humbled and blessed to have been given the opportunity to go through this amazing experience with these kids—each one of them a uniquely special child of God! Thanks SO much to all of our faithful sponsors for making this incredible week possible!  Please pray that the passion for Jesus that was ignited in their hearts continues to burn strongly in the upcoming days and years of their lives.

“Because He did that for us, we’re gonna go hard for Him!”