We Pulled Into Camp, I Had Tears in My Eyes
"Thank you for an amazing week for our son Ryan and his little brother, Rory.
Ever since last summer when Ryan’s big sister attended Kanakuk’s K-7 camp, Ryan has also been wanting to go to camp. Knowing how physically involved K-7 is, we knew that wouldn’t be an option for him. Fortunately a friend told us about Barnabas. It just so happened that you still had one male spot left the last week of camp which was the same week our daughter was headed back to Kanakuk. With this in mind, we gave our youngest the option of attending Kanakuk or Barnabas’ Sibling Camp so all three kids could attend camp at the same time. Rory chose Barnabas so he could make sure his brother was OK, but hesitantly because he was nervous about leaving home.
We “gave” Camp Barnabas to Ryan as a gift for 5th grade graduation. He talked about it all summer and couldn’t wait. We were lined outside the Barnabas on the Lake gates 30 minutes before they opened. While Ryan got more and more excited, his little brother got more and more nervous. When we pulled into camp I had tears in my eyes seeing and hearing all the counselors cheering for their campers. Ryan beamed as he ran through the line of counselors. Rory ran as fast as he could to show them his speed. Ryan was quickly whisked away by his darling counselor, Kendall, to get settled. Rory hung close to our sides as we checked in medicine and chatted with his counselor, Marcus. Rory warmed up quickly realizing Marcus also liked basketball. Well done, Marcus! All fears left Rory once he saw his cabin and we organized his party wear! We left that afternoon with smiles on both boys’ faces. It was an amazing feeling!
Of course, we may be a little biased because we had a week to ourselves! It was a stress-free, wonderful break knowing all our chickens were being well taken care of and loved.
At pick up, Ryan was very quiet trying to process his emotions. While he liked seeing us, he had such a wonderful week that he didn’t want to leave. Kendall was so excited to tell me that Ryan had made a best buddy during the week and that they had a blast together. And the little brother? Rory insisted that we sign him up for next year!
I can’t thank you enough for the work that you do! Barnabas is such a special place for these very awesome kids. Keep up the good work."
