Then they said to him, 'Tell us why this calamity has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?" In 1991, after several years of volunteering as a counselor at Hungry Mother Lutheran Camp in Marion VA, I decided I wanted to move up to a bigger camp. I learned of Caroline Furnace and applied. After a few telephone interviews and letters back and forth in the mail I was hired.
I reported for staff orientation and training. We had staff from all over the US and Overseas. As a Southwest VA boy I was soon overwhelmed with it all. I thought I had made a mistake and was thinking of leaving. But my tall, red headed boss convinced me I was needed and so I stayed. With our second week of kids, our staff was doing introductions. It became my turn and a small boy yelled out before I started to speak, "WHAT COUNTRY ARE YOU FROM?". I'm sure it was because of my accent. Everyone had a big laugh and still do to this day. You know, Caroline Furnace is a place that you can come to that no matter what evils you have in your life, what your occupation is, where you come from, what country or of what people you are - you are accepted. It's a wonderful place to do volunteer work and it's a great place to send a child to be nurtured in God's love and have a spark planted. A spark, that with God's love, will grow into something so great that it has to be shared with the world. One of my favorite camp songs addresses this. It goes: It only takes a spark to get a fire going. And soon all those around can warm up to its glowing. That's how it is with God's love, once you've experienced it. I want to sing, it's fresh like spring, I WANT TO PASS IT ON!