I grew up going to Camp Thomah Shinga from 1st – 6th grade, or as my dad liked to call it “Camp Dirty Toes.” At the time, 4 of the 5 Regier kids were of the right age to attend a week of camp. But how could we ever afford it? With the help from one church going friend in particular, Mr. Kane, our summer dreams became possible.
It was at Thomah Shinga that I became my own person. Separate from my siblings, my neighborhood, my school, my church and any expectation of who I was. There I learned to love rock climbing – even if it wasn’t real rock. I lead groups to waterfalls and little chapels our counselors didn’t know about. I enjoyed proving I could do hard things and found out I was maybe a bit of a know-it-all.
I learned how to successfully take a bug outside without killing it and how to make my first friendship bracelets. Without the watchful eye of my parents, I learned to socialize and turned strangers into friends. It was at camp, once a year, for a week that I felt closest to God, made promises I could never keep and learned to share my faith in small compassionate ways.
There is a lot of pressure that comes with raising little ones. Are they making friends? Will they have memories to look back on? Will they live life to the fullest? By sending me to camp, my parents knew the answer to all of those questions.
As an LVR staff member (something I never would be without Mr. Kane’s generosity) I get to see how camp ministry continues to change lives, growing scared, shy kids into confident, excited people.
If you would like to be like Mr. Kane and have a life long impact on someone this Christmas, we’ve made it a little easier for you! By clicking “Gift Card” at the top of the page you can pay for a loved ones camp experience. If you do this before December 17th, we will send you a past years t-shirt, personalized gift card, LVR sticker and the directions to register for summer 2026! This will come in Christmas packaging and be ready to be put under the tree. If you do this after December 17th, this can make a great birthday gift or 5th grade graduation gift!
If you don’t have a nephew, neighbor or church youth but you would like to help make it possible for kids to go to camp, click our donate button and donate to “Camperships”.
My life was forever changed by the gift of camp and it has been one of the greatest joys of my life to see those changes in others.