Campers
“[Camp Savio] was a great experience. It gave us a chance to find God, and speaking for hopefully most of the camp, we found Him. We found Him through the activities we did outside during the day, through the Masses in the afternoon, and through our speaker Chris’ talks and parish pow wows at night. We came as a parish, but we all left as a family. I’m very excited to go back. I want to get an even better experience, dig even deeper in my faith, and have even more fun.” – Olivia, camper 2012 (Click here to read her full testimony.)
“This year will be my third and last year attending [Camp Savio] as a camper. [Camp Savio] has benefitted me so much! It is quite a unique experience to be with over 100 other people in the same vicinity as you that all share a common faith. You may be asking yourself, “well I go to Church every weekend isn’t that practically the same thing?” However, there is a drastic difference! At [Camp Savio] you don’t just go to Mass everyday; you experience the power of God through everything! Attending [Camp Savio] is probably one of the best things I have ever done. I think that this is an amazing camp everyone should have the opportunity to experience! There’s always room for more growth in your faith and this is where it really happens.” – Lawson, Camper 2011, 2012 (Click here to read his full testimony.)
“Camp Savio was a great experience that brought me closer to God in a number of ways. I had new experiences, made new friends, and made new memories. It seemed way too short, but gave me time to bond with the people in my group through fun activities which brought us closer to God and each other. From the first day of camp, I made new friends who made me feel at home. The week was filled with great experiences including group worship, Parish Pow Wows, Go Ape, outdoor Mass, outdoor Reconciliation, and Adoration-plus many more things that would take a long time to list! Attending Camp Savio was one of the highlights of my summer, and changed me and many other campers for the better. It was a great experience that brought me closer to God and my new friends. This camp is an event that will change campers for the better by deepening faith and forging new friendships!” – Nina, Camper 2018
I was a camper at Bosco last year (2018), and Savio for 2 years before that. Camp has been a constant for me through ups and downs. I met and became closer with some of my best friends through camp, definitely, but most importantly, I truly met God. I’ve been attending Catholic schools for my entire life, so I’ve always known my theology. Not to brag, but I knew my theology quite a bit better than other people my age and in my grade. I knew my theology, I knew of God, but I didn’t really know him. That was, at least, until camp. I had been scared for years of being judged. It’s safe to say that I wasn’t in a good place emotionally going into camp— adoration was the trigger that has helped change that. I found and became closer with my true friends (and Him), and since then, my life has improved. That’s not to say that it hasn’t had its ups and downs, because it certainly has, but Camp Savio and Camp Bosco have been my starting path on a journey to change my life and myself for the better. Without them, I wouldn’t be where I am today— a stronger, more independent Catholic who’s less afraid of who I have become, and who I am meant to be. – Arwen, Savio Camper 2016 & 2017, Bosco Camper 2018
This was my first year going to Camp Savio. I was so excited to come grow in my faith and my sister had told me many things about camp and one thing i remember sticking out to me was the “big adoration.” She told me how powerful it was and how God truly spoke to her then. I was excited when I heard it was my time for big adoration. I sat in the very front row and as soon as I could, I got up and kneeled as close to the alter as I could get. My friends who were at camp were sitting right beside me. It was a moving experience. I will never forget what happened at the end of adoration. I remember being so deep in prayer when I saw Father Koster walking in. I remember saying to who I thought was myself “No. Please don’t take him away!” I didn’t feel like I was done with this amazing conversation with Jesus. We had mass right after adoration and Father was quick to get to his homely. He said that he had heard a voice saying “No. Please don’t take him away!” The exact words I had said. I was kind of embarrassed knowing now that I had said it out loud. After mass I asked my friends sitting next to me if they had heard me say that and their answers blew me away. They were very confused and had said multiple times that they never heard me say those words. Then I knew right then that the Holy Spirit was there. He showed to me that God is always listening. I am never alone. When I feel that I am by myself, I never am. This is only one way that Camp Savio has changed my life. Thank you for taking the time to read this. – Claire, Camper 2016
Group Leaders
I have participated in Camp Savio for 4 years and am truly impressed and inspired by what they do each summer. The camp is a unique blend of fast paced, high energy physical fun carefully blended with authentic faith development and experiences. My youth ask year round about camp dates and are always willing to work fundraisers to secure their space at camp. This camp inspires kids to fall in love with Jesus and encourages them to learn more about their Catholic faith. -Jeni Doolittle, Group Leader, St. Peter – Stanberry
My daughter went to Camp Savio for two years, her 7th and 8th grade summers. I had the privilege to chaperone her second year. I was able to be a mommy to a lot of girls that week. 🙂 The experiences I had was none other than fantastic! I think the highlight of the week was adoration. The campers came face to face with Jesus Christ and to see them on their knees praising and worshipping God was such an incredible sight. The balance between showing the campers about their Catholic faith, team building exercises, and recreational time was perfect. The staff and the group leaders were so great and really loved the kids (the food wasn’t bad either) 🙂 If you want your middle schooler to experience Christ this summer in a unique and fun way send them to Camp Savio…I promise their lives will never be the same. See you there! – Penni Warner 2015, St. Bridget
I’ve been taking my youth to a camp for the past eight years. I’ve seen great things happen in this time period. Camp energizes my youth group, helps with conversion, opens their hearts to the love of Christ, helps them build a relationship with Jesus Christ, and helps them build relationships with our own parish as well as the bigger church. I highly recommend Camp Savio to help with personal growth for youth, spiritual growth for individuals be it youth, adult chaperones, or those running the camp, as well as the potential to take parishes and our diocese to a whole new level. – Diane Pickert, Group Leader – St. Gabriel, Camp Program Director (click here to read her full testimony)
Staff
“My experience at [Camp Savio] as a summer staffer has been amazing! My first summer as a summer staffer was unforgettable, I had 11 girls in my group and we became close really fast. The excitement they had for their faith even challenged me to continue to grow more in my faith. One week at camp can change a life forever, campers hear the message that God loves them, and that simple fact makes all the difference. The students also see that being Catholic is cool as they are surrounded by kids their age and adults who are also on fire for their faith and are walking and have walked the same journey the middle school student is on now. Just one week at Camp Savio can impact countless lives!” -Jen, Summer Staff 2011, 2012, 2013 (Click here to read her full testimony.)
“As a seminarian of KC-St. Joseph, my week serving the middle schoolers at [Camp Savio] filled me with hope for the future of our diocese. Seeing 6 to 8th graders gathered from different parishes across KC-St. Joe, seeking fellowship with other Catholic youth was an amazing witness to the work Christ is doing in hearts of my future parishioners.” -Trevor, Summer Staff 2012 (Click here to read his full testimony.)
“[Camp Savio] was 100 percent worth all the work, lack of sleep and time commitment! It was two of the best weeks of my life where I got the chance to serve others in their journey with Christ while I also grew stronger in my faith. I’ve never been surrounded by better people or been more filled with grace. I couldn’t have asked for better people to work with! I felt like a family with every member of the staff by only the second day. Everyone there made me want to strive to be a better example to the campers as well as a stronger woman in Christ. I will forever cherish my time working at camp. Where else do you get paid to play on a giant slip n slide, have a mud fight, spend time with incredible people while growing closer to God.” -Erin, Summer Staff 2012
My daughter went to Camp Savio for two years, her 7th and 8th grade summers. I had the privilege to chaperone her second year. I was able to be a mommy to a lot of girls that week. 🙂 The experiences I had was none other than fantastic! I think the highlight of the week was adoration. The campers came face to face with Jesus Christ and to see them on their knees praising and worshipping God was such an incredible sight. The balance between showing the campers about their Catholic faith, team building exercises, and recreational time was perfect. The staff and the group leaders were so great and really loved the kids (the food wasn’t bad either) 🙂 If you want your middle schooler to experience Christ this summer in a unique and fun way send them to Camp Savio…I promise their lives will never be the same. See you there!