A Meaningful Summer

BY BRIANNA STEPHENS

The final mile of the drive to Christian Appalachian Project’s (CAP) Camp AJ is suspenseful. The narrow road curves left and right, making it hard to see what lies ahead through the thick brush. After what seems like ages, the trees start to thin out and you hear playful screams, songs, and laughter echoing off the hills. You know you’re almost there. As you take the last bend in the road, you look up a long driveway to see the Camp AJ sign, and behind it, the camp’s iconic brick red A-frame structures.

“I still get goosebumps when I come around the corner and see camp up on the hill,” Lauri Eiselt said. A volunteer from 1990–1992, she served as a teacher for CAP’s former Eagle Child Development Center preschool during the school year and spent her summers as a counselor at CAP’s summer camps. In 1993, she transitioned from a volunteer to an employee and spent the next eight summers working as a coordinator then manager of Camp AJ.

After her time at CAP, Eiselt stayed local and focused on her teaching career while also taking classes to be a foster parent. She fostered and eventually adopted two girls. While she was no longer a CAP employee, Eiselt still stayed connected with Camp AJ over the years. Both of her daughters attended camp, and her stepchildren served as counselors.

CAP’s Youth Empowerment Services (YES) encompasses summer camp, in-school services, and a Teen Leadership initiative. As YES was making plans for summer camp 2024, employees reached out to Eiselt to see if she would be interested in coming back to Camp AJ for the summer to help train incoming volunteers and manage operations.

“I knew I would have the same love and energy for it,” she said. “I knew when I said yes that it was the right decision. When I came back to camp, it felt like I had never left.”

Addressing the physical, spiritual, and emotional needs of Appalachian youth is a critical component of CAP’s youth programming. During the summer, CAP employees and volunteers strive to create a safe and loving space for campers to be themselves for a week and forget about the challenges they may face at home. At camp, they know they are loved and cared for by the people around them.

An important part of creating that trust is through listening and making personal connections with each camper. This past summer, Eiselt made an unforgettable connection with one teen attending camp.

When the teen arrived, Eiselt could tell she was nervous as she watched her take a seat alone away from the other campers. She approached her, and after learning her name, she asked about her hobbies, her family, and if she had any concerns for the week she wanted to talk about. The girl told Eiselt she was hungry but was afraid to ask for food. Eiselt didn’t hesitate as she escorted the teen to the kitchen for a snack and introduced her to other campers. After that, the teen came out of her shell and proved to be a leader among the group during the week. She expressed the hope of coming back to camp to be a junior counselor in the future.

“For the new staff coming in, it was hard to explain to them that what was about to happen to them would change their life,” Eiselt said. “They would create a bond with not only each other, but with the campers they were about to meet. This place is their life, and it is sometimes the best week of their summer, maybe even their year. We want to make this a place kids want to come back to. There are teens who were campers for 10 years and are now serving as junior counselors to recreate the magical experience they had for the new campers. That shows something special is happening here.”

Since before CAP’s official incorporation in 1964, summer camp has been a fundamental component of our youth programming. As Eiselt reflects on her experiences at Camp AJ from the past and present with a warm smile, she looks forward to the future of YES and its continued impact, made possible by the generosity of CAP’s supporters.

“The reason we can have camp for our children is because of the donors who help keep it going,” Eiselt said. “This place means so much to them. Whether you donate funds or volunteer your time to serve during the summer, everything helps this mission continue. Camp is a special place that is changing the lives of Appalachian children in a big way.”