Over the course of two weeks, 5 College interns were assigned to organize and run the 2019 Youth Camp. Here are some of their reflections from their post-leader experience.
What were my thoughts and expectations coming into Youth Camp?
At first, I was nervous and unsure how youth camp would turn out. I haven’t attended church in over a year and felt disconnected from the community. My expectations for youth camp was hoping that the experience would be similar to volunteering at VBS when I was younger. Coming later than other interns and hearing that this year’s youth camp would be its first full two week program was stressing. Anything could’ve happened, and I knew my actions would reflect the program as a counsellor. I just prayed my services would be adequate and I wouldn’t screw up anything major during the program. One the first day, Pastor Dave told me the first day is always the hardest, and that it’s difficult setting an atmosphere and dispelling the awkward environment. However, I believed small interactions such as simple greetings would eventually turn into conversations with enough effort/patience.
– Joie Kim 
How does my interaction with the Youth shape/affect my view of God’s love?
I think spending time with the Youths, I have come to realize how much love God has for us. Despite all the challenges I faced, and the many problems we, the counsellors have faced, the campers were so forgiving and accepting of us, and were always ready for anything and so positive to whatever we were doing. Like how we learned that God’s love for us is abundant, I saw, in these youths, such bright and positive hearts, that were so accepting under all circumstances. I feel like through them, I really came to realize that God’s love for us will never burn out, even if mistakes are made, just like how the kids were so ready to accept us as a whole for who we are.
– Hannah Lee
How do your experiences at Youth Camp, and the content on Leadership help yourself as a “leader”?
I think I resonated a lot with Pastor Dave’s messages over the past two weeks.
One of the characteristics he focused on was compassion and empathy, and leaders that have these qualities. This message resonated with me because I’ve been told that I’m someone who’s very warm, trustworthy, and respectful. Hearing this from my group discussion members, like Hannah and Jaiden really made me think a lot about myself and the person that I am. I appreciated hearing what they were saying so much, despite feeling kind of embarrassed to be called out in the group. It was so heartwarming to hear Hannah talk about how much of a strength I was to her during her first year of university, and how Jaiden continued on and agreed with her, telling me how he felt I was respecting whatever he said in our group discussions.
It made me think of why I continuously choose to step up when I can. Being someone like that for other people, I think, is one of the greatest reasons why I continue to do it despite feeling stressed or mentally tired sometimes. I’ve felt that from others in our church community, like Jonathan Chung, Pastor Simon, and our Intern Leadership Team (Josh and Joel), and it has honestly been such a big source of support for me in my life.
I guess I may have my strengths and weaknesses as a leader, like all leaders do, but I think I was able to learn that compassion is a big part of who I am. I felt the deepest and most personal relationships with those that I could be vulnerable with, those that would suffer through my suffering with me, those that I could trust. And, I hope that the youth camp kids know that they have amazing people around them to lean on, whether it’s the leaders or other campers themselves. I hope that they can become people who serve others in the future with the hearts they have now.
– Lauren Lee
What are some things you learned about yourself from the two weeks of youth camp?
During my time spent with the youths this summer, I learned a lot about them and also a lot about myself. The 2 weeks of Youth Camp really gave me some insights into the youths of this community. The youths spent a lot of time learning about what it means to be a leader and learned a lot about themselves along the way. They also discussed and reflected on taking steps to becoming a leader by thinking of future opportunities, like being a Hi-C Exec.
As I interacted with the youths, I found that their passion and enthusiasm is very contagious. The group was not what I had expected and I found myself pleasantly surprised. I found myself interacting with them more frequently as the days went on. I encouraged their enthusiasm and their passion for the things they were doing. I found myself acting as a parent, encouraging them to have fun and to do their best. I found myself learning a lot about them and also a lot about myself. I had always thought I wouldn’t be great with youths but I found myself having a fun time learning about the things they go through, the struggles they have and their experiences. I really enjoyed my time with the youths and I hope that they will stand up and start taking steps towards being a leader in this community.
– John Chia
What is one moment that really stood out to you, and how might God be present in that moment?
One moment that stood out to me was the day we had our water fight. I loved seeing everyone getting together and having fun. It felt like everyone was bonding, and it seemed like Youth Camp and VBS had become one. Most of the time, it feels like we’re two separate groups, but that day it felt like it didn’t matter who you were, because you were still going to be sprayed with water! I got to play with a couple of kids who I didn’t really know that well, and it was a lot of fun. I think God was there looking over all of us. Although the weather didn’t let us go swimming, God had other plans for us.
– April Chia
What have I learned about myself through this experience?
As of now, I know that I learned a lot of things about myself, but a lot of this knowledge about myself is really just a blob of muddled information in my brain. I guess I can say I really came to learn that I am capable of many things, and that I also have so many things to learn about. I also realized that there are so many areas where I can improve myself as an individual. A really big thing I learned how to do was reflecting about myself after sermons, and through this, I came to learn that I am capable of reflecting deep down, almost to the very base of my existence. These kind of reflections, I had nearly everyday, so everything is a jumble, but one thing I remember that I learned about myself/came to realize was that maybe I really am a “courageous” leader! This pushed me further to question, “Am I really like this or do I just portray this image of a courageous leader when I am with people, because it is what I actually desire to become?” These were some of the things I came to realize and question about myself, and I plan to reflect more about myself to find the answers to those questions!
– Hannah Lee
What am I thankful for about this experience?
I am thankful that I was given the opportunity to work at church and also get paid at the same time. I am also thankful for the lessons that I am learning. I have learned a little more about myself and those around me. Not everyone gets the opportunity to work at their church, an accepting community where mistakes can be forgiven. I am grateful that youth camp was a success and that the youth campers seemed to enjoy it.
– Joie Kim
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