Camp WaMaVa's Mission Statement

...where each camper is appreciated

We understand the trust involved with placing your child in the care of another. In such circumstances, many wonder if their child was valued. At Camp WaMaVa, let us tell you how your child is valued. Our counselors will "learn the story" of each child in their cabin; who they are, what they enjoy, their skills, and their understanding of God. These counselor/camper conversations will inform us of what your child needs in order to enjoy his/her week at camp and grow personally and spiritually. As we learn about each child, the children also learn about each other through confidence course activities, cabin time, and Bible classes. In our society, kids are often without positive mentor figures, particularly caring older brother/sister types who carry great influence beyond a parent’s purview. WaMaVa counselors are young Christian men and women who value the privilege and responsibility of mentoring your child.

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...where play is important

It seems increasingly challenging for kids to experience safe, open, imaginative play outside. Camp WaMaVa is a supervised, safe place in the outdoors with scores of friends. Creative exploration is not bound within electronic screens and play does not require a van ride to a scheduled activity. At camp, you can play your favorite games with friends that aren't called home early, swing on a tree swing, pick berries, make bracelets out of clover flowers, catch crayfish in the creek or fish from the lake...or organized play like camp-wide games, sports, crafts, or the pool! We realize our kids perhaps have enough (too many) things with which to play. What they need is a place to truly play...and with friends. It’s how they learn. At Camp WaMaVa, we honor our kids by honoring play, we honor God in how we play, and we hope the kids recognize Christ in our play.

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...where lifelong friendships are forged
"One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." 
-Proverbs 18:24

One of life's greatest blessings is friendship. It is responsible for so much growth and stability spiritually, emotionally, and developmentally, yet so often we treat friendship as a circumstantial byproduct of life's activities. Camp WaMaVa makes the pursuit of friendship very intentional. We spend a week of 24 hour days together. We share cabin space. Time is set aside during the morning activity and cabin time specifically to talk with each other. Meals are shared family style around a table. The camp epicenter is the mess hall porch; lined with benches facing each other. We want to give your child more than just fun memories, new experiences, and silly stories. Camp WaMaVa gives your child new, real friends. Ask any camp alum (young or old) about the gravity of their camp friendships...if you can spare a few hours.

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... where a relationship with God is strengthened

We acknowledge God in all that we do, and naturally grow closer to Him. We believe God is the culmination and creator of the good things we experience at Camp WaMaVa. He created each of us with special gifts (Psalm 139:13) and gave us a role in His Kingdom (I Cor 12). So we take time to learn and appreciate one another. Christ teaches us to be like children and humble ourselves (Matt 18:1-5). So we respect children, honoring their authenticity, their innocence, and forms of play. Christ not only teaches us friendship, he calls us HIS friend (John 15). So we seek to be friends of Christ and each other, fulfilling Christ's command and practicing God's love. 

Your child will know we care about him/her. And your child will know why we care. God's love is acknowledged and reflected in our joyful play, in our camp friendships, in the memories we make, in our devotionals, in our discussions, in our efforts, in the beauty of the outdoors, and in our Bible studies. We teach the love of God to kids, but more importantly, we show the love of God to kids.

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As we learn to acknowledge God more readily in more spaces, we grow closer to Him.