Oh yeah, that's why.

This last week we had over 300 kids from six different schools. And this weekend we have 600 plus guest. It has been crazy and stressful around these parts to say the least.

Below is an email sent out from our secretary. The teachers mentioned were not a part of the school I worked with this week. But it was a timely reminder of why I do what I do.

God is definitivlty at work here at camp.

I know we are all running around preparing ourselves for this doozy of a weekend, but I had to share an experience with you all regarding one of the schools that just left our campsite.

I have been working with this school for the past three months to even get them to come to camp. There were two teachers that were signed up to come and one teacher had almost her whole class signed up while the other teacher only had 5 students. One teacher was coordinating and getting all excited about coming to camp while the other was calling try to cancel. These two teacher refused to talk to each other and the described themselves as oil and water. It was an interesting few weeks leading up to this Tuesday when they arrived. I had no idea what to expect from what I dubbed the “feuding” teachers and I was in for a surprise. The first day one teacher made her class stay on the bus because she didn’t to get wet, while the other teacher had her class out splashing in the water and getting sandy while it poured at the beach. As the week wore on there was a marked change in the attitude of the two teachers. The quiet one who wanted to cancel was Smiling and there were occasions that the two teacher were sitting together talking. This morning they stopped me and we had a lengthy talk about their week. The quiet teacher was all grins and couldn’t stop talking about how much fun this place has been and how she has found a peace here. (Hum….coincidence? I don’t think so!)

These students from this school had a rough time getting here. There were a few students who didn’t think they could come because they didn’t own two pairs of shoes or pajamas. The school worked so hard to raise extra money and they were able to purchase 6 pairs of shoes, towels for every kid, pajamas for one girl who didn’t have any, ODE shirts for every kid, ponchos, and cameras for each student. A few kids mentioned that it was nice to go somewhere that they could eat as much as they wanted and that there were always seconds. The teacher wrote this on her evaluation about blessings her group received:

“Many 1^st timers to see the ocean, cross a stream, climb on rocks, see Redwoods, see wild deer, be at a campfire, zipline and tree climbing, be away from home overnight, build a sand castle, see a raccoon, play ping pong, have as much to eat and repeated trips for food, play in the rain with permission, have their very own camera, sleep in dorm style, and be trusted to behave as they know best.”

I am blessed to work in a place where we can encourage kids to be kids. This will be an experience they will never forget and it makes all the frustrations worth it! My two “feuding” teachers came here, found peace, and are ready to come back next year!

How amazing is that?

--Jesse "Gonzo" Letourneau
Serving Him alongside all of you, just from a little farther away.