Leadership: What I Want to Be

Like most kids, the answer to "what I want to be when I grow up" changed from year to year, and sometimes from week to week. The advisers in my life recommended everything from elementary school teacher to President of the United States. Even now at a time in my life where I should consider myself "grown up", I'm still not truly sure what I want to be. But today, I realized there's one thing I wanted to be that stayed with me all these years: a role model. I think I might have achieved that goal.

In honor of the Girl Scout's 95th birthday, the Tennessee State Museum  had an entire exhibit on Girl Scouting, which I got to see when I was in Nashville. (I always somehow end up an observer of Girl Scouts' important events. Five years ago on their 90th birthday, they had a sing-a-long at the Washington Monument. Guess who's high school class took a DC trip at the same exact time?) This museum exhibit made me feel especially weird, because some of the artifacts displayed were things that I STILL HAVE at my parents' house!

My passion for camp ministry didn't actually start out with Christian camping. In fact, as an eight year old at my church's family camp, I distinctly remember telling my parents that I did not want to work at that camp. (I ended up starting work there eight years later.) My passion for working at camp started as a Brownie Girl Scout, at a day camp of all places. Although this camp was all volunteer-run, they had the COOLEST staff ever, at least according to my little girl mindset. I think the only reason I kept on going back to that camp year after year was because of the wonderful staff members, and how I desired to be one of them one day. It seems like the only highlight of being a middle schooler was the fact that I was finally old enough to work at that camp. I started helping out there as well as at the Girl Scout resident camp. Under the camp alias of Frog, I was finally one of those cool people that the younger girls looked up to.

When I was fourteen, I decided to give Christian camp ministry a week-long trial. I was the counselor for eleven upper elementary church girls at Mountain Lakes Bible Camp. I enjoyed some aspects of the experience, but I continued the next couple summers strictly at Girl Scout camps.

When I was sixteen, I was involved in a Peru mission trip that got me really involved in pre-trip church ministry. The week of the Girl Scout's day camp was the same week as an important church event, and thus I have not been back to that camp since. But God definitely had a plan, as He had already lined up my very first "real" job for me that summer: working at the Christian camp where eight years ago I said I'd never work. I worked there for three years on summer staff: kitchen, belay, lifeguard, snack shop, cleaning, and groundswork, I did it all. After I started college and got a year-round job, I still managed to make it to camp for a few days of volunteer work, although my sister started working at the camp in my place. God spoke to me so much on the grounds of this camp, but He left out some important life details, like that I was going to be involved in full-time camp ministry, and that this ministry would be 2000 miles away.

So that brings me to about a year and a half ago, when I got the revelation to intern at a Christian camp that ultimately brought me to Camp Rivercrest.

Looking back at elementary school when adults gave me suggestions on what to be when I grow up, I don't remember anyone telling me I should be in camp ministry. (Well, except for that time when my parents told me I should work at the camp we were at and I immediately told them no!) But all the suggestions I was given, like teacher and President, were jobs that heavily involved in leadership. Camp ministry definitely has requires leadership qualities in every aspect. I think those people would be comforted to know that I am taking on leadership roles in my life today.

Over the past two days, I have had the honor of hosting a large Girl Scout troop here at camp. This morning, I took them on a hike around camp. I realized it was the first time I've hiked through these woods with others. (Despite my eleven years in Girl Scouts, I was never a fan of the buddy system rule.) I love walking these trails, but I cut down on walking once hunting season starts, so this was the first time in awhile that I went through the woods. This was a great opportunity to expose the girls to the wildlife (birds and deer), give them some adventure (seeing the zip line, hiking up the lookout tower, and walking along the river), and challenge them (to find the hidden objectives and to carefully navigate the steep parts of the trail system). It reminded me of the days back at Girl Scout camp, and for the first time I realized I actually kind of missed that. Today made me feel the same way I felt as a leader back at day camp. Although I was no longer called "Frog", I was called what I'm now considering my Nebraskan camp name, "Jes". (Kids in Oregon called me "Lippe", and in Nebraska I am very rarely referred to as "Jessica".) The girls left camp this evening, many of them thinking of me as a "cool camp staff", just like the kind that inspired me to get involved in camp work.

I know I'm not popular with people my own age. In fact, come to think of it, I was never well liked among my peers. But I'm happy to give up a social life in my age group if it means I can be a role model for those younger than me. That means comforting a child during the summer when they're away from home and not feeling well. That means encouraging my Truth in Training girls to not only memorize their verses, but to live them. That means taking advantage of those moments at work, at church, and in the community to lift a child's spirits. That means spending weekend afternoons with the camp "brats", whether it's playing games or helping them study. That means living my life out loud for the Lord. I may not know what I want to "be" when I grow up, but I am blessed by being able to "do" what I've always wanted to do.