leaving legacies

Summer has hit my little camp in the Colorado Rockies! We are finishing up with our first group this afternoon. It has been a whirlwind of a week and I have a sinking feeling this summer is going to fly by.
Sinking feeling? Yes, see this is my last summer at camp. I recently took a job in Colorado Springs that I will be starting in the middle of August. I came into this summer so excited and wanting to make it the best summer ever and I am finding I have been distracted.

 I want to be so present! I want to soak up every moment and love on our staff and groups that come on site. I have spent the last 5 summers at this camp pouring into and serving the guests we have up here week after week. God has changed my heart from when I started here in 2012.

2012:
I was fresh out of college and ready to be back in Colorado. A place where God had shown me what community looked like. A place where he had started to break me and watch me grow at my time with Focus Leadership Institute in 2011. I was so excited to get to camp and start on my tan. My boss, Zak and his wife Katrina welcomed me into their lives by having me and a few others over for movie nights and sonic runs. They poured into my heart and showed me what hospitality and welcoming people into your home looks like. I strive to do what they did for me one day.

2013:
I came back after my first semester with Axis with a stronger faith and an excitement to be back around my second family again. It was a bittersweet summer knowing Zak and Katrina and their daughters, who I had grown closer to over the last year, were moving to Oregon at the end of the summer. My brother and sister were at camp with me and I had gotten one of my Axis teammates a job as well for the summer. I had a lot to learn about relationships and some circumstances that happened really opened my eyes on how I should be investing. God gave me opportunities to pour into my siblings in a way I never had been able to before. I injured my back during the summer and God showed me the value on depending on others. Zak and Katrina spent the summer pouring into Jeff, Sam, and I and about had me convinced to move to Oregon with them after my next year at Axis. It was a bittersweet ending and I did not think I would be back again.

2014:
Axis was over and I felt God pulling me somewhere else. On the end of processing through Axis and
a new relationship possibility looming in the horizon I entered my third summer in a different role. Coming in to being the assistant to the Guest Services Director I had no idea what to expect and then getting thrown in as the Guest Services Director, I tried to stay above water as I floundered through all summer. I am so grateful for the groups and the grace they showed me as I tried to learn my new role. Juggling friends and staff and camp life and trying to build a life outside of camp was difficult and God was teaching me what it looked like to completely trust Him.

2015:
First full summer as full time staff from start of planning through the end. I had an assistant, Abby, who was incredible! Summer was full of plot twists and freak out moments and the biggest lesson was trying to figure out how to rest. God spoke through groups and staff telling me to not do it all myself and it is something I am still struggling with. Two of my siblings were out again for the summer and it was an interesting dynamic being their supervisor and finding time to be their sister. I loved pouring into the staff and seeing the kids come each week and be a part of their experience.

2016:
And here I sit...fifth summer and I still feel like God is teaching me something every single day. This summer I am making time to invest in the girls staff with a girls bible study. I am trying to make it the best experience for our staff and groups. God has been teaching me a lot through the years about serving and how to serve well. I still struggle with confrontation with staff but God has been showing me His grace day after day. Every time I fail or make a mistake He has shown me why He brought me here.

I could have left in 2012 and never came back but I never would have experienced what I have over the past few years. The family I have created with this full time staff and the legacy each group has left on my heart will always stay with me. It was a long and hard journey and there were mountains to conquer and times where I was not sure if I could make it.

My favorite parts were the moments I could hear about the kids experience. How they saw Christ in a new light or how they experienced Him for the first time! I love sharing comments from groups saying how relaxing their weekend was and how everyone had a good time. That is what motivated me every week. Knowing that my staff, with their heart and passion for this camp, are making a difference in the lives of people every single week! This camp has changed my life in so many ways and I am so grateful to have been a part of their story the past few years.