Category Archives: Youth Peace Travel Team

Youth Peace Travel Team

Youth Peace Travel Team at Camp Mardela

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Camp Mardela Quilt 2
Camp Mardela
July 14 -20, 2013

Unexpected. This word describes many of the experiences we’ve had on the Youth Peace Travel Team and the ways God works. Our week at Mardela wasn’t any different.

During our week, there were surprise blessings, such as Heather and Jacob surprising me with an “Appreciate Amanda Day” and a random dance party in the kitchen. There were also unexpected jobs, such as the day I had to help the kitchen staff chase a squirrel out of the dining hall with brooms, boxes, and air horns (don’t worry, the squirrel eventually returned to his tree safely!).

We also saw God work in unexpected ways. There were times when the campers didn’t seem to be listening. But then, during our biblical peacemaking session, they surprised us with enthusiastic participation in skits and songs. When campers shared what they had learned at camp at the Thursday night campfire, I was overjoyed when a majority of campers shared something they had learned at peace sessions.

We could also see God in the spirit of the campers. They enjoyed God’s creation while fishing and swimming. They showed the creating spirit God gives us by drawing and making bracelets. And they were joyful when we taught songs to them that we had learned at other camps.

There were ups and downs this week, but God blessed us and the campers. I think we all learned that we can expect the unexpected and God always has a plan for us.

Youth Peace Travel Team

YPTT at Camp Ithiel

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July 7 – 15, 2013

A reflection on Camp Ithiel from Heather

Camp Ithiel.

Just another way of saying “God is with us.”

A little bit of harmony in the midst of city life.

A small group of Jr. Highers came to camp and tried to leave behind things from home as they discovered what it means to follow Jesus. We were part of a family at Camp Ithiel. We played “9 square in the air” and sang about how God makes beautiful things. We saw snake friends and marveled at the grey color that the lake turned when the rain fell.

We wondered,

Does an alligator really live in there, and when had we seen a brighter double rainbow?

Campers and staff learned about peace and being connected with one another.

Camp Ithiel.

Youth Peace Travel Team

The 2013 Youth Peace Travel Team visits Camp Bethel!

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June 30 – July 5, 2013

“The Church isn’t the building, it’s the people.” Each camp we’ve visited has its own landmarks and specific charm, for sure, but the previous statement can certainly be applied to church camps. Our experience at Camp Bethel was augmented by the presence of an enthusiastic staff who put one hundred and ten percent into everything they did. If campers lacked energy or enthusiasm for an activity, their counselors were there to pick up the slack and refresh the campers’ spark. Even kitchen staff got in on the fun, creatively passing out ice cream bars via “Sheriff Twin Pop” and having everyone eat one of the dinners with unusual utensils (ladles, ice cream scoops, tongs…). A meal time which ended without a time for singing, jumping, and clapping did not exist at any point this week.
This group of campers participated and stayed attentive throughout our Peace Sessions every morning. They added a part of a massive “peace quilt” at the end of every session throughout the week to reflect that session’s theme (Conflict Transformation, Creation Peace, Biblical Peacemaking, Bullying, and Just Peace). Morning watches, vespers, and skit night all utilized the staff, counselors, and campers abilities to speak, act, sing, and reflect. Did we mention it poured rain every single day of camp this week? It took a lot of energy sometimes to make up for the weather and we’d like shout out to Katie and Maureen who did phenomenally as they organized and led the camp!

On another note, the 2013 YPTT crew has essentially transformed part of its downtime into a theological book club and here are some of the things we’ve been reading:

A Quaker Book of Wisdom – Robert Lawrence Smith
Biblical Peacemaking – Dale Brown
Velvet Elvis – Rob Bell
Jesus for President – Shane Claibourne
How Coffee Saved My Life: And Other Stories of Stumbling to Grace – Ellie Roscher
The Book of Psalms – Robert Alter
Love Wins – Rob Bell
The Middle Man – Dorothy Brandt Davis and Sara Elizabeth Davis
Enemy Pie – Derek Munson
Alexander Mack: A Man Who Rippled the Waters – Myrna Grove

Youth Peace Travel Team

YPTT at Camp Eder

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YPTT at Camp Eder

June 16 – 27, 2013

God is everywhere, and he smiles a lot. I grew up knowing that God’s presence was all around me but I’ve never thought of it as I have this week. God is always present, and it is me that is arriving on the scene. I have felt that way this week at Camp Eder in Fairfield, PA. I understand my role as a part of Christ’s body better now and I feel that he loves me more than ever. Please enjoy my top ten reasons to return to Camp Eder.

10) To count how many toads I see. (I saw three on the first night!)

9) There is a camp dog! (Buddy, a beagle)

8) Laying under the shade tree with Jacob and campers in the ball field after a little hike up to that area or laying in the hammocks.

7) Playing beach ball beside the pool with the Junior Highers.

6) Daily practicing early morning Lectio Divina with my team members by the river.

5) Coming back from a peace walk in the orchard with Amanda and two campers, and getting drenched in Godkisses as cold
fat rain drops fall from the sky in an almost summer rain.

4) The skits that the campers performed when we asked them to enact peacemaking during our Biblical Peacemaking
session.

3) Hearing campers explain to each other who Jesus is.

2) Painting a mural and explaining to campers that with all of their paint strokes together – they could only paint one thing on the mural. “We could make a beautiful thing” (a peace analogy).

1) Weeping by the campfire as we gave our old things to God and also gave God the permission to do new things in our lives. This reminded me why I wish to go into Outdoor Ministry.

Bonus: A camper had a birthday on Friday and the camp cook made her a cake (each table had a cake that day). What a display of love.

Making like Ghandi and peacin’ out,
Heather

Youth Peace Travel Team

Camp Shepherd’s Spring

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This week we were at Shepherd’s Spring in Maryland. It was a busy time for us because we led three peace sessions per day everyday, but the campers enjoyed learning about peace and made goals for how they will be peacemakers when they return home. The campers were little kids (8-11 years old), and our patience was tried at times, but we loved teaching and spending time with them. Besides leading peace, we had fun swimming, worshiping, hiking, eating, canoeing, and playing four square with the campers and counselors. Shepherd’s Spring is a gorgeous camp, and we saw God do great things here in the staff’s loving care and the campers’ growth.

Youth Peace Travel Team

YPTT 2013 at Camp Mack!

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Camp Mack was such an accommodating and hospitable place to begin our summer’s travel. The camp focuses on reconnecting with various parts of nature from it’s lakefront activities, to rock walls and ropes courses, to a labyrinth, archery range, and trails all-the-while keeping up with modern commodities. We’re all trying vegetarianism, so we loved the cooks who provided a vegetarian option to all the meals! Mack had four camps of different age groups here at the same time throughout the week and it was lovely meeting everyone, participating in activities together, and experiencing God in a beautiful place. During some of the Morning News times (a Mack tradition), Curt Rowland enthusiastically presented a “Top 10 Reasons Why _____ Should Come Back to Camp Mack” list for the camp that would leave later that day so here is our “Top 10 Reasons Why the Youth Peace Travel Team Should Come Back to Camp Mack”

10. Experience yurt life.

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9. Re-join the Straw Hat Band at opening campfire.

8. Get splashed in the face at Water Carnival.

7. See a swan and a great blue heron fly over the lake

6. Play toilet tag

5. Row to rock island

4. Play in the Arky Parky

3. Get egg and hot sauce smeared in your beard

2. Dance to “Be Our Guest” dressed as giant silverware, Lumiere, Cogsworth, Belle, and the Beast.

1. Seek God in all things new with amazing campers, counselors, and staff!

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Youth Peace Travel Team

Orientation 2013

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Heather Gentry, Jacob Crouse, Amanda McLearn-Montz. Photo by Marie Benner-Rhoades.

Heather Gentry, Jacob Crouse, Amanda McLearn-Montz. Photo by Marie Benner-Rhoades.

All was quite tranquil at the Brethren offices in Elgin
until early that first of June
when arrived a white van filled with Mss’ers from afar
who’d come to town the previous afternoon.

Lectio Divina – a divine reading –
not the fictional incantation you might think
prepared our minds and hearts each day
for thought, reflection, and key theological links.

Then, around a big table we would attend
sessions packed to the gills
with hermeneutical triangles, 16 pf’s,
Brethren living peacefully, together, without frills,
ethics, logistics, tradition, vocation,
liturgy, worship, and praise,
teaching, leading, and jamming to some scripture
preparing us to go on our ways.

After long days, the food would taste great
at the homes of our gracious hosts.
We’d fellowship cheerily before our daily examen
to discover where God has touched us the most.

From swimming in the hotel pool and playing contact
to singing about rain on a TARDIS,
of all the things we did in just a few days,
saying ‘good-bye’ was the hardest.

This thought inspires hope as we spread across the country
to do the Lord’s will as we may
because it shows the great love in our hearts
that we will share with all we meet
through peace, joy, and grace.

Youth Peace Travel Team

Camp Blue Diamond through the eyes of the Youth Peace Travel Team

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Camp Blue Diamond: Home of giant swings, wooly-mammoth-snail trail fossils, 24/7 Gaga Ball, and the most awesome 3rd through 5th graders ever! Our week at Blue Diamond could have easily been a real struggle; we had never worked with a group this age, and we weren’t sure how we were going to alter our sessions to be meaningful for a group that was so young.

Even with these concerns, I think that Peace Team achieved having a great week. We talked with each family group about small things that they can do in their own lives to make a big, positive impact on other people and even the world. It was so awesome to see these kids coming up with such great examples of selfless acts that they can do, like donating their time and money to a wide range of causes. It was certainly inspiring and incredible to get to spend so much time with this group of kids and to be able to introduce peace to them at such a young age!

Peace, Katie

Youth Peace Travel Team

YPTT at Camp Pine Lake

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Many of the discussions at Camp Pine Lake focused on how we can use love as a tool for peacemaking. A popular phrase at camp is “breathe in love, breathe out peace.” We repeated this often during times of mediation and allowed it to inspire our actions throughout each activity.

It even permeated the discussion we had about the film, Gracecard, which we watched as a large group. In the move one of the characters tells another that “Jesus works on the streets.” It became apparent that if we breathe in love and breathe out peace, we too may be opening ourselves to see God’s workings everywhere around us, just as Sam did in the movie.

Any week that inspires both love and peace is a good week in my book. Thanks Pine Lake for such an awesome week!

–Molly

Youth Peace Travel Team

Annual Conference 2012 – Youth Peace Travel Team style!

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Annual Conference is something that I always look forward to. Meeting up with friends from around the country, being in fellowship with thousands of my brothers and sisters, and seeing the Spirit move in new and mysterious ways. This year was different for me, however. I was approached several times by people who knew me for my ministry this summer, rather than from them knowing my parents. It was nice to be in a role of leadership within the youth activities that were so important to me as I grew up. I remember the Peace Team coming in, and it was always one of my favorite parts of the week. Being able to go into the youth time and see faces excited to learn what we had to say lightened my heart and reminded me of the reasons I’m here this summer.
Until next time, Kyle

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Arch visits with friends
Luncheons & dinners galore! Yumm!
New friends made throughout the denomination
Business sessions
Annual Conference 2012—Continuing the Work of Jesus: Peacefully, Simply, Together
Learning experience
Congregational vitality was a daily theme
Openness & sharing
Junior high campfire led by Kyle & me
TGIFriday’s with my home congregation
Reconnecting with many old friends
Round tables increased good communication
Excitement
Insight session with Corey Grey
Checking in with mentors Dan & Becky
Met Kyle’s parents for the first time

The previous words and phrases are the ones that come to my mind as I look back on my experience at Annual Conference Last week. –Molly

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Being at Annual Conference was so much fun! It was nice to be in a different setting. I enjoyed it so much! I loved connecting with old friends and making new ones! All the dinners to hear about what is happening in our denomination were awesome! I got the chance to lead a time with the Senior High youth with Katie where we had a guest speaker named Corey Grey. He spoke about his choice to become a conscientious objector while he was in the military. His story was so powerful to me because of the way he was saved. I really like what he had to say.

Blessings till next time, Hunter

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Nervous. That’s the emotion I was feeling as I learned that we would be travelling to Annual Conference this summer. Knowing what had happened at last year’s conference, I was nervous for how interactions would take place. I was nervous for what would take place on the business floor. I was nervous about whether or not everyone’s opinions would be heard. I was nervous for the future of our church.

But as I spent time in business and Insight sessions, as I moved about the exhibit hall, and as I just spent free time in the conference center, my spirit was renewed. People from all walks of life and different faith journeys were sitting down together in open discussions. I saw as both young and older adults felt safe enough to take the floor and share their feelings on a wider range of subjects with their receptive sisters & brothers.

I’m not saying we’ve got it all together yet, and I’m sure that the reconciliation will take time, but I think our denomination is getting there. As I left St. Louis, I had a new feeling toward my Annual Conference experience, and the future of the Church of the Brethren: hope.

Peace, Katie