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There’s something special about summer camp, and Southern students know it. More than 350 university students worked at many of the approximately 60 Seventh-day Adventist camps across the United States during the summer of 2024 alone. The overall appeal is not summer pay or even the resulting eligibility for scholarships but, rather, the chance to create connections with God, campers, and friends. Following these June and July experiences, Southern fosters a thriving, growth-focused atmosphere where students can extend the transformative moments of camp.

Glimpses of God

According to Southern alum Jonathan Montes, ’99, youth director for the Georgia-Cumberland Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and director of Cohutta Springs Youth Camp, more than half of his 109 staff members this past summer were Southern students. Among them were Sarah Moody, ’24, and Alli Davis, junior physical therapist assistant major.

For three years, Moody served as a girls counselor at the North Georgia camp, which was chartered 45 years ago and has served more than 1,400 youth to date. “I loved seeing my campers grow closer to Jesus,” she says. “When the kids are excited about Him, they have a joy that affects everyone around them, and they helped improve my spiritual life.”

Davis was tasked as Girls Village director for Cohutta Springs. “Camp is a fantastic opportunity to minister to children and help them understand why we live for God,” she explains. “For some campers, staff give them those first glimpses of what God can do.”

Crediting her time on staff at Cohutta with sparking her journey with God, Davis shares, “The staff modeled what a true relationship with Him looks like, and I wanted that for myself.” Back at Southern, she often stays late after vespers programs to catch up with those same camp alumni who impacted her so profoundly.

In addition to weekly Friday evening vespers, Southern organizes morning mediations, student-led small groups called LifeGroups, on-campus worship services, opportunities for community service, and other ways to foster fellowship with God.

Friendship Foundations

Brandon Westgate is the Rocky Mountain Conference youth director and director of Glacier View Ranch, which has been welcoming campers since 1951. He appreciates having Southern students as members of his staff, sharing, “We always love the positive spirit and enthusiasm for learning that our Southern students bring with them to camp.”

Several of his student staff members started a LifeGroup at Southern this school year to continue the spiritual atmosphere of camp with friends on campus. “After growing closer at Glacier View Ranch, we found a way to continue the focus of our friend group on things that really matter,” says Matthew Taylor, junior mass communications major and LifeGroup leader. “The small-group atmosphere makes our discussions feel more personal.”

Spiritual Surroundings

Nathan Jaquez, junior engineering major, spent his second summer at Glacier View Ranch serving as a senior counselor. “As camp staff, we get to participate in the biblical process of ‘training up a child’ and potentially changing the trajectory of a camper’s life,” he says. “My favorite thing about camp is watching kids make decisions for Christ.”

This semester, Jaquez transferred to Southern from a public university, and he’s found the spiritual environment a welcome change. “Camp is really conducive to growing spiritually, because it’s our primary focus over the summer,” he explains. “I’ve found Southern to be similar. I’m surrounded by students who have the same goal as me—to get to know Jesus.”

Peyton Meadows, junior business administration major, finds spiritual fulfillment in Southern’s focus on service. In high school, he began working at South Carolina’s Nosoca Pines Ranch, a camp and retreat center established 55 years ago. He shares, “I came to Southern my freshman year and really missed camp, but because Southern intentionally prioritizes service, I found it easy to get involved in the community to continue doing children’s ministry.”

Campus Community

The 2024 summer marked Meadows’ third year at camp, where he was a boat driver and a counselor. “A lot of campers come from rough home lives,” Meadows explains, “and they spend 51 weeks of the year looking forward to this one week at camp when they find compassion and patience in a safe environment.”

As camp staff and leaders of young people, Southern students often find that their time working at summer camp creates connections that help them grow as mentors, friends, and disciples of God—and Southern helps strengthen those connections back on campus by offering an atmosphere that values spiritual growth, service to others, and community.

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