Summer camp enriches children’s lives spiritually and physically
Face painting is always popular with kids at summer camp.
Summer camp is usually a place for kids to let loose during the summer and expel some energy during the day. G.R.O.W.T.H. at Galilee (GAG) is a place where a kid can have fun, but also get closer to the Lord.
G.R.O.W.T.H. stands for Gradually Rebuilding Ownership Within Teen Hearts. This idea came to Evan Dixon, GAG founder, when he was in college. The faith-based camp is for children from kindergarten to eighth grade.
This is the third year of the camp. Dixon and his wife Kelly went from having less than 10 kids last year, to now having over 60. The growth was due in part to their outreach on social media and the partnership with Galilee Missionary Baptist Church.
“Each year of the camp we have a different theme and this year the theme is ‘I Am,’” said Mrs. Dixon. “We blend affirmation with academics, but the affirmations come from Bible-based teachings.
“We start every day off with devotion, it’s where they get their motivation and their theme of the week. This week our theme is ‘I am Athletic,’ which is why we are doing our summer Olympics.”
The Dixons are members of Galilee and once senior pastor, Dr. Nathan Scovens, got wind of what they were doing, they decided to collaborate with the Dixons and the camp the church was already holding.
The children are exposed to more than your typical summer camp. They have taekwondo, dance and even Spanish classes every week. The campers are also provided breakfast, lunch and snack every day.
The biggest fulfillment for Mr. Dixon has been the opportunity to positively impact children, while keeping them safe. “Our babies have to go through so much, having to be adults and looked at like adults by society, but here they are babies,” he said.
“I love the fact that we give them the opportunity to accept Christ in their life every day,” said Mrs. Dixon. “Even if they don’t know what it means when I say ‘you can accept Jesus in your heart,’ when we talk about scripture or do our devotion, they are sponges wanting to soak up all of the knowledge I am providing.
“It’s almost like God has blessed me with the opportunity to change lives from the ages of four all the way until high school.”
The feedback from the parents has been very positive, the Dixons said. “For the parents to come up to us and say what we have is an amazing ministry and what we are doing is going to be bigger than just a summer camp,” they said.
The future plans for the Dixons are to extend their reach into the school system as an extension of the classroom. They currently have a learning enrichment and suspension program with several schools around the county.
