Camp
Noah Cares
by Rhonda Rothenberger
- Roseau Times-Region
Each
day over 33 youth attended Camp Noah, a week-long non-denominational
day camp, which was held at the Messiah Lutheran
Church from Aug. 18-22.
Coordinator Beth Johnson was
quite pleased with attendance and commended everyone for their
participation in helping bring closure to kids experiencing flood disaster
recovery through Bible stories, crafts and games.
"It
probably isn't as highly emotional as other camps but the kids were able
to identify with Noah's family and make sense of their own flood
experience," Beth said. "It
was a real healing experience."
The counselors included local
youth volunteers Mitch Anderson, Ryan Anderson, Kaia Slevin, and Anna
Gaukerud along with adult leaders Phyllis Davis from Indiana and Julie
Sword from Illinois, both volunteers through Church of the Brethren
Disaster Response team.
Following the camp, Davis and
Sword traveled to Arkansas as a part of the Red Cross critical response
team to receive more training about responding to major disasters.
They commented that the kids
had generally processed their own flood experiences very well according to
the stages they were at and commended the community for their involvement
in how they've handled the flood.
"It's
great to see a close-knit community and witness their strong fortitude in
rebuilding their surroundings following a disaster,"
Davis said.
All of the youth counselors
expressed their participation as a fun, rewarding experience.
For instance, Mitch, a summer
employee for the city, ended his employment
there one week prior to returning to college at UND.
"I
didn't have any plans for this week; it just
fell into place," he said, adding that it was a
good introductory experience for him since he's planning to be a counselor
at Bluewater Bible Camp next summer.
Messiah Lutheran Church youth
director Jay Ostgaard commended Johnson for directing the program.
"It
was a great community event for the kids especially when everything was
flooded away last year," he said.
As the children heard the
story of Noah and compared themselves to it they also learned about
trusting God in every situation, both big and small, and were reassured of
a brighter future.
Camp Noah was offered through
Lutheran Disaster Response in partnership with the North Border Interfaith
Coalition.
