Young Women Camps Grow Discipleship of Jesus Christ

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By Mary Richards, Church News

At their annual Young Women camp this past June, young women in the Piedmont Ward of the Marietta Georgia Stake had a chance to combine two of their favorite things: kayaking and service.

Using kayaks and stand up paddle boards, the young women went out on Unicoi Lake and cleaned up trash on the water and shoreline.

Ashton Dance loved that they were able to have so much fun while doing a service project.

When asked about the importance of service, Caylee Garcia said giving to others with total love is key: “A life of purpose is a life of service,” she said.

Meanwhile, in August, young women in the Panamericano Ward in the Delicias Mexico Stake had their Young Women camp on a farm in the state of Chihuahua. Their theme was “Disciples of Christ.”

They prepared their meals, heard from their bishop around the campfire, did a treasure hunt and participated in first aid workshops. They also woke up at dawn and studied the attributes of Jesus Christ.

Carolina Fuentes, who was a youth camp leader, said, “My favorite part was seeing the sunrise and feeling the Spirit and sharing our study and hearing what each young woman felt.”

Camila Villa said, “I felt that I was able to make friends, I felt happy and calm with a desire to be more like Christ.”

Leaders shared how the young women — surrounded by the beauty of nature — were able to strengthen their testimonies.

“They are extraordinary young women,” said the ward Young Women president, Karina Garcia. “They know their Heavenly Father and are trying to improve day by day. We as leaders love them for who they are: beautiful daughters of a Father who is in Heaven.”

The Purpose of Young Women Camp

Young women need a place where they can gather together, separate from worldly influences, feel the Spirit of the Lord, grow in unity and love, and strengthen their faith and testimonies of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, explains the “Young Women Camp Guide” of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Church encourages camping for young women. A multiday camp can be held each year — even the same year as a For the Strength of Youth conference and stake youth conference. Other day or overnight camps can also be held to meet local needs and interests.

Sister Tamara W. Runia, First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency, said she has been to Young Women camp 20 times.

“It can be done at the ward level, which will make it feel really close and intimate and kind of be a foundation for that closeness throughout the rest of the year, or you can do it at the stake level, which is a wonderful opportunity to gather and feel the strength of a stake,” Sister Runia said.

Priesthood leaders, Young Women leaders and youth leaders should counsel together about what is best for them, the guide says.

Sister Scharman Grimmer, a member of the Young Women general advisory council, estimated she has been to camp 15 times.

“I absolutely love camp. It’s probably one of my favorite activities with the young women because I feel like that is a time that we get away from the world and get to be together and really bond,” she said.

Another member of the Young Women general advisory council, Sister Bobbie Sandberg, said she has been camping in tents, cabins, in the mountains, in public campsites and even in a Church building.

“I love camp because no matter where you go, you can build friendships, feel the Spirit, strengthen your testimonies and have so much fun,” she said.

She shared about a camp she heard about this year in Hong Kong. The young women planned to camp in tents. But the weather turned colder.

As they wondered what to do, their first step was to form a circle and pray. They talked about their purpose for the camp. They counseled with each other and their leaders. Then they checked all their equipment to make sure it would keep them warm.

“After going through these steps, they chose to go ahead with their camp, and they had a great time. They even stayed warm enough to be able to sleep through the night,” Sister Sandberg said. “These young women had faith and wisdom when something unexpected happened at their camp.”

Other Examples of Young Women Camps This Summer

In June, for the second year in a row, a panel of sister missionaries from the Michigan Lansing Mission spoke to young women at camp. The Lansing Michigan Stake and Holland Michigan Stake were both at the same facility and combined for the evening with the missionaries.

Molly Stump, the Lansing stake Young Women president, said having the sister missionaries join them for an evening is a highlight of the whole camp.

“Many of our wards or units often don’t have sister missionaries so getting to interact, ask questions and socialize with them is a unique experience for many of them. As the mother of a young woman who went last year, I can tell you they walk away so inspired,” Stump said.

The Columbus Ohio East Stake had the theme “Jesus Christ is my Safe Haven” for their Young Women camp in June.

Kim Birch explained that the youth camp leaders, who are 16-18 years old, planned the camp and did “a fantastic job.” Before the camp, the young women read the April 2024 general conference talk “Words Matter” by Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

“We had a faith walk, hiked in the woods, threw axes, discussed why words matter, discussed our true identity and the plan of salvation, brought non-member friends, went to a lake and did a water challenge course, went canoeing, invited our bishops to participate in an obstacle course, played games, laughed together, cried together, created lasting friendships, strengthened our testimonies and relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ,” Birch said.

To prepare for their camp in May, the young women of the Cartagena Colombia Stake were encouraged to actively participate in seminary, attend the temple and take part in service activities.

Then, during the camp, they had several activities such as sports, painting, a talent show, studying the “For the Strength of Youth” guide and more. These all fit into the four areas of personal development in the Children and Youth program: social, spiritual, physical and intellectual.

One of the young women, Christine Gonzales, spoke about that: “We were able to work on other aspects: both the social aspect, by being able to socialize with all the young women and play games and do activities; the spiritual aspect, because no matter what we did, we were always connected to our Heavenly Father; the physical aspect, because there were many activities where we were able to work on our bodies; and the intellectual aspect, because there were many activities where we were able to learn and develop other skills.”

The camp was rewarding for everyone, said stake Young Women leader Eliana Villa. “I know that these spaces prepared for young people are unique experiences for them and help them improve their relationship with God.”

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