On Your Marks, Get Set…
Our 2024 summer staff team!
Orientation – the two weeks we spend training our summer staff before we start summer camps - is a highlight of the year for a lot of the Echo Ranch staff as we get to welcome in the new batch of summer staff, hear the testimonies of what God has done in their lives, and spend time walking with them very intentionally as they prepare to be at the frontlines of the camp ministry. Our hope is that through all the sessions and activities we do throughout orientation, we can equip our counselors to share the Gospel well in their cabins and give them tools to draw from when they’re asked difficult questions. As we’re in the midst of transitioning from orientation into our first week of summer camp, we rest and reflect on how God has prepared us for His good work.
There are so many emotions that our counselors bring with them to Juneau; excitement, nervousness, and anticipation, just to name a few. For some of them, it takes a day’s worth of travel just to get to Juneau, where they land in a very unfamiliar environment, get driven 40 miles outside of town to a secluded cove, get driven down a bumpy beach road, and finally arrive at camp. I always wonder what kind of thoughts are running through their minds during that trip! Then there's the few local summer staff who are still relatively close to home when they’re at camp, but for them, 40 miles still feels like a long way from home, and they still have to say goodbye to their family and friends for the summer.
Growing up in Juneau and having been a camper at Echo Ranch, I knew what to expect when I became a counselor, but I still had a lot of anxious feelings, so it’s hard to imagine those feelings amplified even more for those summer staff who are coming to Alaska for the first time. The unknowns can be scary, but the Lord turns those anxious feelings into a readiness to serve him and the kids of southeast Alaska. Over the course of the two weeks of summer staff orientation, our collection of summer staff go from being strangers to a closeknit team that has one mission: to echo God’s glory by building the body of Christ through Christian camping in partnership with the church.
A verse that comes to mind when I think about orientation is Hebrews 12:1, which says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us”. Hebrews was written to believers as a way of encouraging them to be steadfast in their Christian walk when trials and tribulations come their way. In some ways, our counselors will be running a race this summer. It’s been a while since I last ran a race, but I do know that there’s a lot of preparation and training that goes into running one. They need to build up their milage over time, practice speed work to increase cardio capacity, and rest to prevent injury or burnout. Our summer staff come to camp with a solid foundation in Christ (base milage) that is ready to be built up through mentorships and relationships that grow. By having them attend orientation sessions like “How to Share the Gospel” and “Basics of Biblical Counseling”, they are increasing their knowledge of the Gospel and how to counsel kids well (speed work). We also emphasize the importance of prioritizing rest and time with the Lord (rest and recovery) so that they don’t get burnt out from counseling. Most of them will be in a cabin almost every week and will feel the weight of it both physically and spiritually. But our hope is that they will rely on the Lord for patience, peace, and rest to have the perseverance to finish the summer with joy.
As we serve in our first week of summer camp, will you join us in praying for our summer staff?