RICHMOND, Va.—Summer isn’t just hanging around the neighborhood for more than 200 children from the Richmond area each summer. It’s a chance to sleep in a tent overnight and look at the starry sky. It’s wading in the creek looking for critters, like crayfish. It’s a week of hiking, rock climbing, swimming, crafts, Bible study and worship.
These experiences, not common for many low-income and at-risk children and youth in Central Virginia, are made possible through the ministry of Richmond Baptist Association’s Camp Alkulana, located in Millboro Springs, Va.
Camp Alkulana camper preparing to fish by putting bait on his fishing pole.
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“Camp is important because it allows children to leave the wired and noisy world of the city and experience nature,” says Beth Reddish Wright, Alkulana’s director. While the camp is only two hours from Richmond, many of the children have never seen mountains before, she says. “Camp opens their eyes to a whole new world.”
Upon arrival counselors talk with the children about the normal sounds they’ll hear at night, she says. Frogs croaking and the creek running are very different from the sirens and street noise that many hear at home, according to Wright. “By the end of the week they realize it’s a much more relaxing way to go to sleep.”
The Richmond Baptist Association partners with agencies and churches that recommend children for summer camp. If a child is eligible for a free school lunch, the cost of camp is only $10.00. Most children spending a week at Camp Alkulana would not be able to afford another camp experience.
“A lot of children come to the camp feeling neglected or rejected,” says Wright. “Our goal is to let them know that they are loved for exactly who they are.” Staff is trained in building relationships with campers and through the stories of God’s love in the Bible counselors are able to communicate and model God’s love, she says.
The camp has been in continuous operation since 1915. It receives its support from churches of the Richmond Baptist Association, including a Camp Alkulana offering and an annual benefit golf tournament. The RBA provides transportation for campers to and from camp. And Wright says RBA’s WMU is highly supportive as ladies collect items from toiletries to crafts that campers will need each year.
“When the economy goes down, our waiting list goes up,” reports Wright. “There is a clear demand for what Camp Alkulana has to offer and we try to communicate this to the churches,” she says. The camp is a year-round ministry offering ongoing support to its campers through mentoring programs and activities.
The Fresh Air Fund, an independent, non-profit agency, has provided free summer vacations to more than 1.7 million New York City children from low-income communities since 1877. In 2011 close to 5,000 children visited volunteer host families in suburbs and small town communities across 13 states from Virginia to Maine and Canada.
Amy Witcover-Sanford, a member of Hampton (Va.) Baptist Church, went to seminary in New York City. “It was clear to me that the children, especially those without wealth, were getting a skewed view of the world,” she says.
After learning of the Fresh Air Fund, she became one of its donors. Later after moving to Virginia, marrying and having two children, she realized that she could do more than give money.
“I have green grass and fresh air,” she says she thought. “I could have a child come say with us.”
Witcover-Sandford’s daughter was nearly eight and her son was 11 years old when they were paired with Stephanie, a 10-year-old girl from Brooklyn, New York. “She became one of the family and visited through FAF every summer until she was 17 years old,” she says. Stephanie is now working and attending college.
“I thought we could help a child in need, but instead we were the recipients of a great blessing by having Stephanie in our lives,” she confides. She now serves as volunteer chairperson for the Hampton-Williamsburg Friendly Town, finding families that would like to host a FAF child for a week of vacation during the summer.
Barbara Francis ([email protected]) is a staff writer for the Religious Herald.