My CYF experience began in the summer of 1975. I had heard some of the older kids from my church talk about this new church camp they had gone to and how much fun they had. My parents thought that it would be good for me to go since I was heading in to my Freshman year. I got as much information as I could from the other kids who had gone – I packed my bags and on an early Sunday July morning, my parents and I headed for Lakeside. When I got there, I couldn’t believe my eyes! There were over 300 kids – none of which I knew! I waited in line to register, got my room assignment and headed toward this big building with the nuttiest name I’d ever heard – WO-HO-MIS!!! What is that?????? My dad and I trekked up two flights of stairs and found my room. My parents helped me unpack and get settled in and then, the inevitable came – it was time for them to leave. Here I was, 4 hours away from Cambridge, with 300 kids that I didn’t know – all by myself! I could feel a lump in my throat start to form and tears start to well up in my eyes. I didn’t want to cry in front of my parents because I didn’t want to make them feel bad, but the truth was – I was scared to death!! They got in their car and left and I laid on the bed and cried. OK – so you are thinking, why did you stay and how did this turn out? I stayed because I didn’t want to miss out on that fun I had heard the older kids talking about and I didn’t want to make my parents feel bad. My sadness didn’t last long as one of the girls who was assigned to the same room as me, came over and started talking – asking me where I was from, how old I was – before I knew it, we were laughing and sharing stories about our families and about our church. All week, she took me under her wing and made sure that she sat with me at meals and at the services. We became fast friends and over the years, became best friends. We are still very close and she is now the Godmother to my son, DJ. Before the week was over, WO-HO-MIS became home and became the place I looked forward to living in for a week out of my summer! That was also the last year that I went by myself – I couldn’t wait to get home and tell everyone about CYF and how great it was. Every year now, our church sends anywhere from 15-25 kids to CYF to share in the fun.
It’s difficult for me to tell you just how important CYF is to me. CYF is the place where I invited Jesus Christ in to my heart and made Him my Lord. I was raised in the church, my parents took me to church and Sunday School every Sunday. I was involved in the Children’s Choir and then moved on to MYF (Youth Group). That very first year at CYF I heard our speaker talk about parents and grandparents and one of the things that I have always remembered is his comment that we can not get to heaven on our parents or grandparents coat tails, it has to be a personal, one-on-one relationship. That night when he invited people to the altar, I went up and prayed and invited Jesus to be MY Lord. I’ve had highs and lows just like you, but because of CYF, I learned how to deal with them and how to work through them.
Over the years, CYF helped me to grow and learn about Christ and to understand that Christianity is a continual growth process. I’ve been a part of CYF camp for 33 years – it has been the highlight of my summer since 1975. I have come to appreciate all that CYF does for teens across Ohio. I think that I actually love CYF now more than ever – my favorite thing about summer is going to CYF and watching God move on the hearts of teenagers. I have gotten to know some pretty incredible kids and it warms my heart to know that Jesus Christ still moves on CYF camp as powerfully as He did in July of 1975!
Come and join us and begin your CYF STORY.
