Claim OwnershipSacred Playgrounds Podcast
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© 2025 Sacred Playgrounds Podcast
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We're turning insights to impact as we talk camp and why it matters based on the latest research. Each episode we'll focus on one thing that's making a difference right now in outdoor ministry.
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As we release this episode, it's almost Christmas 2025! We're wishing you a very Merry Christmas from our sacred playground to yours. We're ever-grateful to share this space with you. On this (shorter) episode, we're taking a few moments to answer a handful of curious questions from camp leaders. We'll quickly explore things like staff kindness, phrases like "no margin, no mission", staying cool, and the future of tech. Yeah, quite the array. We'll leave you with a quick Christmas and end-of-...
It's true. Adults are a deeply important audience for your camp in one way or another - or more likely, in many ways. Not just as a donor, parent, or partner, but as one who can have personal, meaningful experiences at your camp. On this episode, we're talking about adult engagement at camp, especially in retreat and other year-round opportunities. We've got four reasons why adults belong at camp and, more frankly, need what your camp has to offer. Then, we'll talk through four ways how many ...
Camp is perfect, right? Right? At least, my camp is... You've thought it. So have we, and so has every camp enthusiast since the beginning of camp-time. And yet, we know that sometimes people have an experience that is less positive than we planned and prepared for. This likely doesn't mean everything at your beloved site is doomed, but it may mean something had or has broken down. On this episode, we're breaking down what happens when, for one reason or another (likely more than one), ther...
Our team spent the week at the Outdoor Ministries Connection Great Gathering! It's been an incredible week connecting in person with 500+ of our closest friends. From insightful keynotes to leading and joining engaging workshops to creative worship and making new friends - we're feeling full, blessed, and inspired for the work ahead. On this episode of the #sacredplaygroundspodcast, we got the chance to bring in some voices of camp leaders at the gathering to ask them some big questions about...
This is a cutting edge for outdoor ministry right now, and camps, when we understand our role as a catalyst, is poised to have an outsized impact on faith lives of countless campers and families. The connectivity in three sacred spaces - camp, church, and home - through program and practice, mission and method makes a profound difference in the faith-forming impact across this ecosystem. Through our work in four key projects (links below), we're learning a lot about how these critical spaces ...
On this episode, we're excited to sit down with Cara Meredith, a lifelong camp enthusiast, experienced camp speaker, and author of the book Church Camp. This book has been stirring in many ways for Christian camp and camp-connected leaders, and we are grateful for the opportunity to sit down with Cara to hear the heart and story behind this book and the impact it is having. We'll ask some big questions and peel back what we can learn that can help us connect with our campers in ways that crea...
Each fall, early in our podcast season, we try to spend time talking through some of our, really your, learnings from the summer. We aggregate data from Effective Camp and Power of Camp projects - those that focus on campers and families - and run it through a variety of statistical and strategic lenses, including comparing this year to previous year's data. This allows us to uncover something deeply valuable in data and in decision-making - a trend. On this episode, we're looking at a few ke...
If you've ever planned an event, fundraiser, conference, or other significant gathering, you know that there is so, so much that goes on behind the scenes to make that happen. On this episode, Jake and Jared are joined by the Co-Directors of the Outdoor Ministries Connection Great Gathering, Cat Holbert and Joanne Kovac-Roberts. These dynamic leaders guide the OMC Great Gathering planning team and the dozens of volunteers it takes to make this gathering happen. We'll ask some questions about ...
We're back! Welcome to season 5 of the Sacred Playgrounds Podcast! On this episode, we've got some words of welcome, a quick summer in review from our Sacred Playgrounds team, and what to expect from this season. Then, we dive right into some impactful insights from our Post-Summer Camp Leader Pulse Check survey, where we asked camp leaders some simple but critical questions about how things went this summer. We got a great response from more than 100 camps and the findings can help us unders...
Bonus episode of the Sacred Playgrounds podcast! Summer camp staff, this one's specifically for you! It's mid-summer for many camps, or will be soon, so we're taking a few minutes to offer 3 things specifically for summer camp staff to encourage, equip, and embolden them for the rest of their summer of ministry. Camp leaders, be encouraged to carve out some time soon to listen to this episode with your staff, or send to them with a call to listen and then facilitate a quick conversation about...
It's the season 4 finale! So, we decided it's a good episode to play a classic camp game, with a sacred playgrounds twist. On this episode we're playing 2 Truths and An Untruth, often used as a get-to-know-you game at camp, in four rounds from the perspective of key camp audiences: campers, parents, directors, and summer staff. In each round, we'll share 3 statements, and your job as a listener is to identify which one is not true, and which two are true. Keep score! If you listen as a group,...
Some things are up, some things are down, some are holding steady, and it all has meaning and impact for how we can make informed decisions and tell impactful stories for this summer and in the months ahead. We've pulled out seven key insights from the 2024-2025 OMC Director Survey findings, and sharing the up, down, and steady movement we've seen when comparing to the last decade of findings from this survey. It's an exercise in identifying trends and discerning how to apply in your own mini...
The more things change, the more they stay the same? The only constant is change? If you’re not riding the wave of change, you’ll find yourself underneath it? Whatever your cliché du jour, the truth is, things aren't the same as they were a quarter century ago, and outdoor ministry is not immune to the shifts. On this episode, Jake and Jared welcome Chad Hershberger from Camp Mount Luther on to talk about trends in camp over the past quarter-century, and if those trends will continue (trendin...
Where will they find spiritual grounding, these summer staff members of ours? These emerging adults that truly make ministry happen at our camps; what does it take to equip and encourage practicing faithfulness in their lives while they are at camp, and foundational habits that last beyond our time with them? On this episode we'll talk about the key to fostering the kind of faithfulness in summer staff that not only affects their lives in lasting ways, but also brings the deepest impact to yo...
Good news! Camps are, in general, keeping parents satisfied with the level of communication and preparation prior to camp. We learn that much in this week's #StatOfTheWeek. And, there's an opportunity to go beyond satisfactory amounts of information, to a noticeable shift into mission and faith formation, even during this often-underutilized phase of pre-camp prep, when families have signed up, but camp isn't here yet. On this episode, we're sharing 10 quick tips we can apply now during...
2025 summer camp staffing is top of mind, heart, and task list for many camp leaders right now. We're in the heart of recruiting season, pre-camp prep time is on the horizon, our staff training schedules are maybe beginning to materialize, and our plans for the summer staff experiences have their foundation laid. The data tells us emerging adult staff are after 3 things when they are considering choosing camp for their summer. We'll unpack what these motivators are, where they come from, and ...
The most impactful ministry just might happen in the under-programmed times, the times sitting by the well (or the campfire) hearing someone's story. When we give our staff members, and even campers themselves, the "how" - meaning the skills and the practice in listening, welcoming, and connecting-building - we give them a gift they can and will take into the rest of life. On this episode, we chat with Lyle Griner, from Peer Ministry Leadership, who has been equipping people, especially youth...
Self-confidence. Leadership. Resilience. Faith in daily life. These are all character traits we measure. There is real data that says camp in exceptional at building character through the highly experiential, highly relational programs you offer. And that's a good thing, because the research says parents and caregivers care as much about the character being built in their kids as anything else. On this episode we'll break down what character is from a lens of faith and why it matters at camp....
Answer: because kids need a safe place to __________________. Question: Why Camp? This question matters to you, camp or church leaders, because it's a question the parents in your world are asking. They have to, for one reason or another. It's because they have a lot of options, and they are assessing the quality of any experience they sign their kids up for. It's because they are committed to making sure the time and dollar investments they make are worth it, and lead to things they want th...
Campy New Year! Our 4th annual New Year's resolutions for camp episode is here! We have a blast with this each year, and we've got 5 fresh data-backed resolutions for camps and their leaders in the year ahead. Here is your keyword teaser: ScriptureEnthusiastsCabin ConversationsNoticeablySocietyOur #QuickQampQuestion is a fun, personal one, and our #StatOfTheWeek shares the #1 factor for faith retention. Join us for a fun kickoff to the new year and the rest of season 4 of podcast! Links Refe...
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