Children’s Homes residents enjoy camp

Ninth grader Jackson (not his real name) often became discouraged as he heard Sunday School teachers and other adults say he would be successful in life if he “persevered.”
   
“How could I ever be a winner in life with all of the problems I’ve had?” Jackson would ask himself. “People make it sound so easy to live life, but life has been far from easy for me.”
   
Then Jackson attended Alabama Baptist Children’s Homes’ summer camp, Camp of Champions, at Shocco Springs Conference Center, Talladega, the first week of June.
   
There, with several other residents and foster children of the Children’s Homes, he learned not only how to persevere but how to enjoy life in the process.
   
“I discovered that a lot of other kids have the same trouble with their families and school that I have with mine,” Jackson said. “That makes me feel like there is hope and that my life doesn’t always have to be as difficult as it is now.”
   
Carrie, another Children’s Homes resident, said that, like Jackson, she appreciates the way campers were taught practical life skills. “Our Bible studies were really good,” she said. “They were in depth, and it was nice to get to learn with other kids from throughout the state.”
   
This year’s Camp of Champions attracted 257 children and adults. The camp was funded by The Baptist Foundation of Alabama.
   
Many of the participants were treated to a visit at nearby Talladega Superspeedway, where they got to follow in the footsteps of NASCAR greats by being photographed in the Winner’s Circle area.
   
During devotionals at the Winner’s Circle, state discipleship training consultant Chip Groves and Children’s Homes social worker Debbie Keyes reminded the campers that they are all eternal winners in God’s eyes when they accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
   
Groves encouraged the children and adults to keep their focus on God through good and bad times.
  
“Race car drivers don’t look behind as they drive, but instead they keep their eyes looking ahead,” he said.
   
“God will maintain your focus and give you strength as you go through your daily Bible studies and prayer, and as you respect and interact with other Christians,” Groves said.
   
Keyes said, “We all have things that trouble us at one time or another, but knowing that there’s nothing you can do to change God’s love for you should give you a sense of victory.”
   
Louise Green, director of special programs at the Children’s Homes, said one of the most valuable parts of Camp of Champions is the opportunities it gives students to bond with each other, their houseparents and their foster parents.
   
“One Bible study leader said she was touched when she saw one of the boys in her group put his arms across the shoulders of the boys to his immediate left and right,” Green said.
   
“The boys had met just a day or two days ago, and it was great to see them bond so well.
   
“Kids look forward to coming to camp because of the friends they met the year before. Though these children often lose in their relationships with their parents and other members of their birth families, it’s wonderful to see that they’re still willing to risk making new relationships at camp.”
   
While the children were in Bible studies during the two-day Camp of Champions, houseparents and foster parents attended training workshops.
   
Besides learning new ways to help the children through grief and loss, the adults were instructed in how to take care of themselves when children leave their homes.
   
Other workshop topics included working with multicultural situations in the homes and building healthy relationships.
   
Foster parent Gwen May described Camp of Champions as “a great form of networking for the children and adults.”
   
“My foster child is three years old and is the only child in our home, so I wanted her to have this opportunity to share with other children and learn about people from different ethnic backgrounds,” May said.
   
“At an early age, she’s learning there are many other ways to have fun rather than to abuse her body with drugs and other harmful things,” May said.