This year’s Northwest preteen camp was outstanding! We had 73 preteen campers and 61 staff (adults and teens) who members enjoyed a wonderful summer camp experience Sunday, Aug. 3–Wednesday, Aug. 6. Campers and staff came from Oregon, Washington, California, Idaho, Colorado and British Columbia. The camp is ensconced in a beautiful millennial-like setting located near Mt. Hood, southeast of Portland. Camp provided many opportunities to build closer relationships and have fun together. Our theme was F.R.O.G., which is an acronym for “Faithfully Relying on God.” The boys dorm names reflected our theme with names such as the Tad Poles, the Dart Frogs, the Barnabas Bull Frogs, the Trustworthy Toads, and the TOADally Awesome Frogs. The girls dorms were the Loving Leapers, the Lily Pads, the Joyful Jumpers, the Ambitious Amphibians, and the Trusting Tree Frogs.

This year’s camp activities included Christian living classes, archery, arts and crafts, campfire, dance class, a river float on the pristine Salmon River, swimming in a heated pool and sports. The 24 teen staff members added excellent support and contagious enthusiasm to this year’s camp. The teens served in many ways including as lifeguards, as assistant counselors, and as assistant leaders at campfire, sports, archery, river float, mini-camper care, and at dance class. We are already anticipating next year’s Northwest preteen camp, tentatively scheduled for Aug. 2-5, 2015!