Winter was warm and fuzzy during the Ability Tree AT Station winter retreat. A group of campers and chaperones came together from New York to Oklahoma. No traveling involved since this was our second virtual retreat. But this didn’t deter the camp from having fun. Again we got to meet everyone in their home environment and meet some of the special family members in their lives. The weekend was a mystery as we tried to figure out the theme for 2021, it had been taken!! But how, who, when, where? What were we going to do? Fortunately, AT Special detective Burt Macklon was on the case. We played games, had group BINGO (a camper favorite) saw our medical team in action and learned from our recreation team how to make a HUGE mug of cocoa. But most importantly we were able to spend time worshipping and learning more about God during our service times. In the end, through all of the activities the theme was recovered. 2021 brings with it “FREEDOM”. Freedom to be who God created us to be and to walk in faith and discover our purpose as we serve HIM! What will 2021 look like? Stay tuned for the next episode of AT Station.
Camp
Virtual Camp Awakens
To say that 2020 brought change is perhaps an understatement but what didn’t change was the excitement of coming together for a week of camp. For the past 4 years we have taken a team as part of the staff for Ability Camp, a physical camp for individuals with special needs, 18 years and up. This year was the first online camp, launching AT Station, an online gathering space for Ability Tree events geared for individuals with and without special needs.
Despite transitioning from a physical to virtual experience this year, campers were still able to interact with one another, take part in art classes, play bingo, exercise, participate in all camp activities and hear God’s word through dynamic speakers and it was all done online through video. Sure, it looked different but it didn’t change the fact that relationships grew between campers, chaperones and most importantly with Christ.
If I could use one word to describe the Ability tree camp experience I would say, ‘Heaven’. What a joy to be part of a camp where everyone is so encouraging, accepting, gracious, excited and full of love. I would encourage anyone to take advantage of the opportunity and serve at Ability Camp or be part of AT Station events. If you’d like to be part of the next camp experience, complete our Volunteer form and a real person will get back with you. In the meantime a picture is worth a thousand words. Take a look at just a few.
Virtual Camp Behind the Scenes
We’ve been making preparations to be part of the team conducting a virtual camp for special needs adults. This would have been our fifth year working alongside Ability Tree as we gathered in Pennsylvania at Refreshing Mountain Camp but this year is going to look a bit different. We are taking camp to the cloud and transform the experience to reach even more campers. Our team has been creating the raw video for various segments of the camp week and then sending them to Ability Tree staff to edit. We are typically responsible for building the campfire and you can’t beat this team as they get ready for S’MORE night.
We visited Inglish Homesteaders and captured some video of their farm animals for the virtual petting zoo. My favorite was the Jake Turkey strut.
Rooster Ready
Summers are typically filled with several camps spanning from Pennsylvania to Arizona but this year we are limited to the borders of Maryland. COVID19 has changed the landscape of our summer activities and we have adapted to a new and interesting way of engaging campers and giving them a quality camp experience, even in the midst of change.
We are going Virtual
As unprecedented as virtual camp sounds there are some exciting things being developed to allow campers to feel connected and loved as they have fun, build relationships and most importantly draw closer to Jesus.
Our camp team, for the fifth year will be leading organized recreation and special activities for the campers. You’re kidding, right! How can you have organized recreation and special activities virtually? That was my exact question when this opportunity was presented to me. Three weeks and three zoom conferences later, with an amazing team spanning from New York to Arkansas, I’m beginning to see how this is going to work and we are only limited by the creativity that God has given to us as a team. I’m not a fan of videotaping so this has stretched my ability to communicate beyond face to face interaction but thankfully God brought along Jake and EmmaLeigh to lead the charge and come up with our team’s introduction video to the campers. Here is the raw clip before any editing. We will keep you posted as things develop.
Enrichment Camp
All I can say is WOW! I had the opportunity to minister with Lantern and Compass over a two week period this summer as we served the children attending the Frederick Rescue Mission Enrichment Camp in Thurmont MD. The camp was designed for kids that are usually targeted by the local school’s liaisons as kids who are homeless, at risk for making grade level, lower income or English is their second language.
Originally we were expecting to go in one direction to minister to the children, the Lord led us down another path! We went from sharing Bible stories to presenting God’s love and His salvation for all! The children, coming from diverse home lives, were so hungry to hear about God’s truth and His unconditional love for them. We were blessed to be part of God moving in the lives of children and being witness to 12 kids added to the kingdom of God during those two weeks.
The Lord definitely moved among our team as He is stretched us to rely more on Him and His agenda! I was so grateful to be a part of Lantern and Compass for a few weeks. Terry and the Team are on fire for a move of God in the children and the Lord is blessing them with unbelievable opportunities to present His truth!
By Tina Taylor – Camp Team Member