Few plants in nature can grow underneath a pine tree. Primarily, this is because the acidic level of the soil creates an environment that is not conducive to growth. However, when we move away from plants to that which holds a higher value, there is growth shooting up spiritually and emotionally every summer. Where flowers and weeds fail, children thrive.

Under the red pine treetops of Camp Wakonda, the next generation of Christ-seekers is generated and cultivated each summer. The beauty of it comes in knowing how simple the needed variables for reaching a child are: One God, one dedicated staff, one random location in the Wisconsin wilderness, and any given child.

At Camp Wakonda, the objective is more than having children come to camp. The power is not in their coming to camp but in our going into their world. I can imagine that God whispered to the pine trees at Camp Wakonda when they were yet saplings. I can picture Him instructing them to grow for the shade of the children they would one day serve. I can see Him positioning the waterfront lake, so that it was in the perfect spot to catch the sunset. I can imagine God scattering, all throughout the forest, a billion hidden devotional illustrations for children to learn from.

And in thinking about all this, I must conclude that long before Camp Wakonda was Camp Wakonda, God was preparing this special spot—this sacred place—to be a world children will never forget. Camp Wakonda gives children, young adults, and adults one week of high adventure and high-spirit memories that resound like the echo of songs off of Sandow Lake.

The good news is that it does not take a week to fall in love with Jesus. It takes a moment. Camp Wakonda is an endless collection of such moments. Those moments, when capitalized on, will have resounding results.

Years after camp, campers may not remember names such as Oxford, Wisconsin, or Marquette County, but there are two names that I believe can forever become a part of who they are. Those names are Camp Wakonda and God. And somehow, those two names seem very much related.

The children and young people who play underneath Camp Wakonda's pine trees are the children we want playing under the pine trees in Heaven.

For information, call Aileen at 608-241-5235 or visit www.wakonda.org

André Weston is a boys' counselor and nature instructor at Camp Wakonda. He attends Andrews University where he is majoring in English and minoring in journalism.

Camp Wakonda Dates

Blind Camp: July 1–8 (Ages 9–65)

Junior Camp: July 8–15 (Ages 8–10)

Tween Camp: July 15–22 (Ages 10–12)

Teen Camp: July 22–29 (Ages 13–16)

Family Camp: July 29–August 5 (All Ages)