The "Cupid Express" is the English translation for the writing on the heart-covered box that sits conspicuously in the middle of the room. The hole in the top is the place for any of the 39 campers and leaders to drop notes - signed or unsigned - to anyone else in the room.

The theme is love at the summer camp. But the word spoken here is "amor." This is camp for Hispanic youth in South Georgia.

The camp is conducted in Spanish, although most of the youth are bilingual. They come from churches and missions in South Georgia, paying $100 each for the three day event held at Georgia Baptist Conference Center in Norman Park.

"It's a separate camp, just for the Hispanic kids," explained Dennis Rivera, a GBC consultant with South Georgia Hispanics. "We have a lot of congregations in South Georgia that are migrant in nature. The parents of these kids might be farm workers or migrant workers so they don't always fit in to some of the other camps. This camp is geared just for them.

"There's more Spanish in it, but just the fact that they are kids of migrant workers makes it unique. It has to do with mindset and cultural issues."

The camp is set much like many youth camps with an emphasis on worship and Bible study. Campers are divided into teams and on the first night they choose names and compete to make the best team flag.

"It's a great way to come together for fun but also to glorify God," said Natalie Mai, a counselor from Quitman. Mai first came to the camp four years ago as a camper and now returns to help lead the small group sessions.

Having a separate camp in Spanish helps "keep some of the heritage of your parents. It passes from generation to generation," Mai said.

But it is also about evangelism.

"I encourage churches to use it as an evangelistic tool. We don't have many youth events in South Georgia geared to Hispanics, so the camp serves a dual purpose. Last year every camper who was lost when he came, left as a saved person. The same thing happened this year," Rivera said.

Most of the youth come from small churches with only one staff member. There are few that have an organized youth group in their churches.

"Sometimes I like to sit in the back and just hear them praising the Lord," Rivera said. "It's such a tremendous experience. They don't have that in their churches."

 

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A Hispanic youth camp has been held in North Georgia since the mid-1970s, while the South Georgia camp started in the late 1990s. The cost of the camp is subsidized by funds from the Cooperative Program and state missions offerings.

"Without that support we couldn't do this work to reach Hispanic young people for the Lord. We are so grateful for the support from our Georgia Baptist churches," explained Rivera.

The cost of the lodging and food is also subsidized by the Georgia Baptist Conference Center at Norman Park.

"They treat us first class when we go there. They usually even prepare a Mexican menu while we're there. They really want to make the kids feel at home," Rivera said.

 

For more information about the Hispanic youth camp, contact Dennis Rivera at drivera@gabaptist.org or at (229) 386-8853.

You and your church may send Cooperative Program gifts to:
Dr. J. Robert White, Executive Director, GBC
2930 Flowers Rd., S.
Atlanta, GA 30341-5562