Families invited to join Summer Camp 2010
Laura V. Sausedo
Intermountain Catholic
SALT LAKE CITY - Families now are welcome to join the youth who participate in Catholic Summer Camp 2010.
"The new addition this year is the family camp," said Matthew Boerke, director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry of the Diocese of Salt Lake City.
We felt that it would be a good thing that our diocese offers activities for families to participate in together."
The family camp aims to build the Catholic family and community. Most activities are geared toward families with children ages 5 to 13 years old.
"I would encourage people to come to celebrate time as a family; to take time from their busy lives to have fun; to celebrate their faith with other families that are also raising their kids in their families in a Catholic way," said Boerke.
The camps are held at Camp Tuttle located in Big Cottonwood Canyon, and this year the invitation to the Hispanic community is wide open.
"Anything that we do as a diocese is always open to all the population," said Boerke. "I have volunteers and staff who are bilingual who can lead activities for anyone who prefers to communicate in Spanish. However, the majority of our campers speak English so the majority of our activities are conducted in English. As more Spanish speakers participate in these events, we will include more and more instruction in Spanish."
The camp has three parts: The family camp, the junior high camp and the elementary camp.
Some of the highlights of each camp are "the ability for the people around the diocese to make friends. For the children at the youth camps, they come and make great friends and they remember them and they come back year to year and see the friends that they made at the camp," said Boerke.
Among the activities for campers are hiking, team building activities, prayer services, liturgy, arts and crafts, games and group singing. "Our Catholic faith is involved in all our activities," said Boerke.
The camps offer scholarships, "because we never want the price of our events to preclude anyone from our events or activities," said Boerke.
"The people have to ask me and I supply them with the form so they can contact their pastor and we will make it happen," said Boerke.
Campers stay in wood cabins, and the Camp Tuttle staff chef prepares three well-rounded meals a day for everyone at the camp. Some drinks and snacks are provided as well. Campers are asked not to bring outside food or beverage to the camps.
All staff members of the camp are screened and trained volunteers. Most counselors are young adults and high school students (16 years or older). A registered nurse will also be present during the camps. All staff members are compliant with the diocesan Safe Environment program.
"It's simply a great way to meet others in their faith knowing that the faith can be fun and living out your faith is nothing to be ashamed of," said Boerke to the young adults.
The overnight Family Camp is July 30 to noon Aug. 1. The cost is $30 per person.
The Junior High Camp is Aug. 1-6 and it is for 7th-,8th- and 9th-graders in fall of 2010; cost is $230.
The Elementary Camp is Aug. 8-11 for 4th-,5th-,and 6th-graders in fall 2010. Cost is $175.
For registration or information contact Matt Boerke at 801-328-8641 x. 313 or Matthew.boerke@dioslc.org.
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