Question 1

What is volunteering at Camp Agape like?

Accepted Answer

Camp Agape is FUN. It has all the fun of a regular summer Christian camp: lake activities, waterslides, archery, gaga ball, horses, a pool, games, worship, and team building activities. You will have fun and the kids will have fun! There are solemn moments throughout the camp: there are group therapy sessions and activities that help the child process the loss and all the emotions they are feeling, there's a candlelight ceremony which honors the child's loved one, and a special session at the end of camp which ties in all of the sessions together and points the children to their Great Comforter, Jesus Christ. We hope they leave with amazing memories of the fun they had with new friends, the tools to continue grieving and processing their loss, and we hope they leave with an understanding that the Lord is their strength and their buddy.

Question 2

What is being a Buddy like?

Accepted Answer

If you don't know, every camper who attends Camp Agape is assigned a buddy. A buddy is one of the volunteer roles you can apply for! The buddy does every activity with their camper. You have the amazing opportunity to be God's hands and feet. My camper was pretty closed off at first, there were some big walls around her heart and with good reason. She had experienced several losses in a short span of time. My story was similar. I saw myself in her in a lot of ways. Saturday afternoon we did horse therapy and those walls she had built came tumbling down. Right after there was a journaling exercise and that was when she told me her whole story. It was nothing I said, nothing I did. It was the work of the Lord and the therapy activities that did all the work. I just got to witness it all happen. But that's not to say you are not playing an important role as a buddy. You'll be an open ear for them, a shoulder to cry on, a voice of wisdom and their first friend at camp. You aren't an expert, you're not their savior, and you're not going to heal them completely. But that shouldn't discourage you, it should take the pressure off! Jesus loves them so much more than you ever could and He has their hurting hearts in His hands.

Question 3

Is it hard being at camp with kids who have lost loved ones?

Accepted Answer

Yes and no. No, because these are normal kids, they are goofy, they have a lot of energy, they laugh, and joke and run around. To anyone just walking by the camp, they are just normal kids. But we know they are carrying great burdens of grief, confusion, anger, and sadness.

Question 4

How can my loss be of any use if it was so long ago?

Accepted Answer

Most, if not all of our volunteers have experienced loss. Losing someone is a unique experience and one that's hard to understand unless you've been through it. If you've experienced loss, you can be a great help for the campers no matter how long ago the loss was. In fact your perspective is a unique one, because you can offer a great deal of wisdom. The kids are all facing recent loss, within the last few years. You can sit in front of them and say “I got through this, and so can you.”

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