Our 4th and 5th graders just returned from their camps. The girls went to CentriKid camp at Eagle Eyrie Conference Center in Lynchburg, VA and the boys went to Camp Caraway in Greensboro, NC. Graffiti 2 has been so blessed by many people so that these kids can attend an away camp at very little cost. Both groups received complete scholarships to attend camp. The boys also received plane tickets to get to camp. The girls received a donation from Wilkes Ministry of H.O.P.E. to rent a van. The camp team at Lifeway also contributed a donation to help cover travel expenses.
CentriKid was an incredible experience for me as the group leader. I know the girls had fun and loved their time at camp (because they kept asking to come back as 6th graders instead of going on the youth trip)! But I was so impressed with how well done the camp was and how all of the staff executed the camp. I want to know what their process is for recruiting and training their staff because I was blown away with each and every one of them. They weren’t there to build relationships with each other, even though you could tell that they were all close. They focused on the kids 100% of the time and incorporated Bible study and life application in everything. And I mean EVERYTHING! CentriKid is famous for OMC (Organized Mass Chaos). It is a huge messy game and even that had a purpose! I think my favorite part was how I didn’t have to plan anything, but I wasn’t hands off the whole time. We had church group time every night after worship to discuss any questions they had from Bible study that day or from worship. We also had meals with them and free time to hang out together. I left encouraged and ready to take another group next year!