It’s the last full day at Camp Koinonia and we don’t want to leave! It has been an amazing week, full of learning, building community, and love; and we all feel so thankful to have had this opportunity to take care and show compassion to these kids.
On the second to last night of camp there was a campfire, smores and live music. One of the campers requested the camp song to be played. The guy who wrote the song told the camper that he would play the song especially for them. Once he started playing the song, everyone got silent and then the tears began to flow. It was a beautiful moment watching this camper sing every word of the song and realizing that this is the place where she feels the most comfortable to be exactly who she is.
To bring in the last night at camp, there was a huge DANCE PARTY, and everyone was invited! This is the event that the campers look forward to the whole week: guys with bow ties and tuxedo shirts, girls with their best dresses, and many of the campers had a date… or two. The med clinic took shifts, so we all got to go, and it was one of the best parts of camp. All the campers were dancing so freely and with a whole lot of energy. After spending every moment together for a week, you could see that the counselor and campers had become very close. It was obvious that everyone was dreading saying good bye the next day. It felt like the whole week spent building an environment of acceptance and love was really paying off.
Although we are sad to leave this amazing place, the Camp Koinonia song really captures the essence of what this camp is and leaves us with something that we can use every day.
“On a plateau, there’s a place I can show you
Where you can be free to be who you are
Everyone cherished for being themselves
I once heard it said that we all shine on
Koinonia, home away from home
When I gave my love, I found my own”