How Camp Became A Home

After graduation, J was living at the Samaritan Inn, a local homeless shelter in McKinney, Texas. Clint Scribner, the Conference Center Retreat Director at CCAC, had been volunteering at Samaritan with his wife and saw an opportunity for the Y to impact the lives of the kids at the shelter.  

"Part of the Samaritan Inn Program is that the adults have to work, so during the summer the kids are just stuck at the homeless shelter all day since their parents are at work. We worked out a partnership to get all the kids to come to camp and in the last three summers we have had close to 75 kids participate. Some of the kids are through our C.I.T. (Counselor in Training) program and some of them are just regular campers. I was in the middle of hiring and asked if she had anyone who was too old to come to camp, but young enough to have not gotten a job yet. About two weeks later Chriss Schell, the child advocate, called me and goes, I think I got the perfect kid for you. He just graduated from high school, and she told me his story. I was expecting to see this kid who was sad looking and pretty hopeless but when he walked through those doors and had that big smile on his face even though he was living in a room with three grown men that are homeless I just thought, man what a bleak situation. But he was just so full of life! I knew I was going to hire him. I offered him a job and he didn’t have a driver's license or a car. We got him some Chacos and a water bottle for his first day and somebody would pick him up and drop him off at work. It wasn’t the best situation, but we were doing what we could for him, and that's what the Y does. We go the extra mile to help people and give people a place." 

J's first summer at CCAC was full of new experiences. Even though he was a counselor, J admits that a lot of times he felt like a camper himself. He had never been to a summer camp before, let alone even knew what the YMCA was, so he had no idea what he was getting himself into. However, Clint remembers how natural J was at camp. His connection with the kids was so strong, that many of them now come back each summer because of their familiarity and comfort with J.  

"When starting this partnership with the homeless shelter, some people had the mind framed [sic] that these were going to be troubled kids." Clint explains. "They aren't troubled kids, they are just kids! Mom and dad just had a bad stroke of luck. They have really found a place out here and I think there's a huge platform out here that we can move forward with. The YMCA can really do a lot for these kids. These kids are getting a chance to start fresh out here. When they walk in, they can leave their baggage at the gate, they can leave whatever is going on with their parents or at the shelter at the gate, because when they are here they are just a kid. Every kid is equal, every kid is the same and it's an even playing field."  

Camp has given J a new perspective on life. It is his third year at CCAC and he is the Jamboree Lead Staff, which is CCAC's resident camp. J has taken on new responsibilities for camp, and he sees that this position will help him in his future aspirations.  

"In 5 years, my goal is to become a pharmacist. My ultimate goal is to build a hospital, or a pharmacy, or a small clinic in an area in Kenya that doesn't have those resources. It's something I know I can do and a goal for myself that I know I can achieve. The skills that camp has taught me will help me with my dream. Camp has taught me how to be a better communicator. I used to be an introvert before I came here, and now I am better at speaking to people. I go talk to people, I know how to read kids [sic], I have been around people so much that it's my first instinct to go talk to a kid sitting by him/herself. It's small things like that. I have also learned so many valuable skills from my bosses and people I have worked with. Ever since I became lead staff they are teaching me how to make schedules. I NEVER saw myself making schedules, and it's just all the pieces of the part coming together and I just feel them, it's a feeling that you know you will make it." 

Clint and J's relationship has continued to strengthen ever since the day they met at the Samaritan for the interview. J says that Clint saw the passion in him, even without knowing anything about him or his past. Without Clint, J admits that his motivation to conquer his dreams would not be possible. J sees Clint as one of his biggest role models at camp, but Clint can't help to see J as his. 

"To see J grow and kind of transform from this selfish person, because he had no choice but to put himself first, and into this selfless person who gives to others and put others first. And now to see him be so willing to step out here even though at first, he had no idea what the Y was or what CCAC was. Being the only kid from Kenya, he didn’t look or talk like everybody else and to just jump in with both feet and now he represents camp and what we stand for. He represents what the Y stands for, for all. We had 28,000 guests come through here last year and all of them feel comfortable here, and J's a big part of that. When he walks into a room with a big smile on his face and he starts dancing, he can make anything into a good time. I am so proud of him, I really am. I am proud that he is brave enough to share his story and use it as a platform for making every kid in every homeless shelter has [sic] a chance to go to summer camp." 

During the off-camp months, J is still working hard at CCAC with their Outdoor Education Program. Living at CCAC has been an unexpected dream for J, and he couldn’t be more thankful for the relationships he has gained through it. Because of the Y and CCAC, J has a home to dream big and impact everyone who walks through the doors. 

"I don't know where I would be without the Y. The Y is family to me, it's not like a family, it is family to me." J says. "They have done everything that a family would do for me, they have done everything that my real family hasn’t been able to do for me. They have given me a job, a place to stay, food on the table, work and schedule for me to be able to go back to school and pursue other things. That feeling of family, that's just amazing." 

Authored: Colleen McCauley, 2018 YMCA Dallas Storyteller Intern