Girls Camp 2025
Camp was wonderful and hard and beautiful and unexpected and great. I was so happy to go as a leader with Jenn, Lisa, McKenzie, Karen and a few others who came up here and there. The Stake did a great job with the theme of LOOK UP TO CHRIST. When we arrived at camp the Stake had put a welcome basket on our table and asked the girls to write anonymously on a star something hard they were dealing with. Those stars made it up on the Look up to Christ board at the amphitheater and they were pretty heartbreaking to read. The Stake President changed his remarks to the girls after he had read them, and gave a great final lesson and testimony. Jenn was an amazing camp leader and her dad did a great job organizing and cooking all the food. Our assigned color was pink and the girls voted on the design of the sweatshirt and everywhere we walked people told us they loved them.
Memorable camp moments were playing the letter game at camp, practicing and performing our ‘Dancing with the Stars’ dance, doing the FAITH WALK, hanging around camp and writing on the tables, eating good food and yummy peach cobler, solo time reading scriptures and writing in our journals, hanging out with Lisa, Stake devotionals, finding little Jesus figurines around camp, a crazy hail storm during lunch one day, getting to know the girls so much better, paper plate awards, bishop and Chelsea coming up for ‘Are you smarter than a young women’ slang game (so funny!) and an amazing devotional and testimony meeting. We had a rough Thursday for sure but Friday made up for it. Love Girls Camp.
On Sunday Chris taught gospel doctrine and we spent some time discussing the United Firm and the need to create a system to take care of the growing number of Saints who were joining the church. “…and lo, it must needs be that there be an organization of my people, in regulating and establishing the affairs of the storehouse for the poor of my people.” (D&C 78:3) That led us into a conversation about how to create Zion—a society where “there was no poor among them,” where unity abounds among individuals who have purified their hearts and lives through faith in Jesus Christ and obedience to His commandments.
After several comments I felt inspired to share some thoughts about camp.
I’ve just returned from girls camp so emotions are high… The whole point of girls camp is to have the Young Women grow closer to their Savior. It’s the entire purpose. But first we needed to make sure they got enough sleep, and then we needed to make sure they were warm enough, and then we had to take care of hurt feelings and SO much tent drama, and girls throwing up. And boy, it was a lot. By Thursday night those of us who were leaders were exhausted and felt like we had failed. After some heartfelt prayer, we came up with a new plan—one focused on unity and helping the girls see each other's strengths. We let them sleep in, we handed out extra blankets and sat with them while they were sick. And somehow, it all started to work. Before we could even begin to foster a spiritual connection, we had to make sure their physical and emotional needs were met. The Savior was in all of it—in the giving and receiving of blankets, in the apologies and forgiveness exchanged, and in the words of encouraging leaders. By Friday night, the young women were bearing testimonies of their growth, their love for one another, and their deepened connection to the Savior. It was amazing.
And really, the early Church wasn’t all that different. The incoming Saints had physical and emotional needs that had to be met so they could be in a place to feel the Spirit and draw closer to Christ.
I was reminded again that those who give of their time and talents, pass out blankets and sit with the sick are given a small glimpse of how much our Heavenly Father loves each of His children. Both giving and receiving draws us closer to each other and our Savior.