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With Jesus at the center, camp takes faith to the extreme

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Dave Hrbacek, The Catholic Spirit

The sights and sounds of summer camp usually include things like splashing, singing, shouting and running.

But, this camp is different. The most powerful noise is the sound of silence. The most powerful sight is the looks on the faces of teenagers gazing upon the central object of the five-day camp — the Eucharist.

On a summer evening on Big Sandy Lake near McGregor, when they could have been enjoying a bonfire at the end of a long day filled with typical camp activities, teens and young adults instead spent the last two hours of daylight in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

Against a background of praise and worship music, they fixed their eyes on Jesus, both figuratively and literally. A newly-ordained priest who once was a camper himself, Father Paul Shovelain, weaved his way through the crowd of campers, teen volunteers, young adults and staff members as he held the monstrance for several seconds in front of each person gathered for this, the pinnacle moment of camp.

Some cried, some touched the humoral veil below the monstrance, some locked their eyes on the host, and some simply bowed and prayed as Father Shovelain blessed them with the Eucharist and whispered prayers for every person while doing so.

It took nearly two hours for him to make more than 200 stops, but the crowd packed inside the chapel at Big Sandy Camp was slow to leave when he finally blessed the last camper. Kleenex tissues scattered across the floor told the story of how deeply the time of adoration touched the kids.

This is Extreme Faith Camp, which started in 2001 and now is held four times a summer in Minnesota and two times in Wisconsin. During this particular five-day camp session in late June, there were 11 parishes represented, including Father Shovelain’s new parish, St. Peter in Forest Lake. The youth minister there, Jason Becker, was the youth minister when Father Shovelain went to camp as a member of St. Michael in St. Michael.

Though he has ministered to thousands of kids over the span of his youth ministry career, Becker had no trouble remembering one very enthusiastic young boy he met just days after starting his new assignment at St. Michael 13 years ago.

“This little seventh-grader ran up to me saying, ‘Jason, Jason, we gotta have a reunion.’ And, I didn’t know what this little kid was talking about,” Becker said. “He had just went on this Extreme Faith Camp and was just so pumped and wanted to have a camp reunion.”

That “little kid” was none other than Father Shovelain, who went to camp that very first year, and continued going after that, first as a camper, then as a teen volunteer and later as a young adult.

And now, he is continuing to help pay it forward as a priest. Just weeks after his ordination, he was there at camp, both leading kids in prayer and taking part in the many outdoor activities. He even went down a giant waterslide with fellow priest, Father Nick VanDenBroeke.

Others are starting down that same path. Zach Sandquist once had Father Shovelain as his counselor at camp. Now, he is back helping out as an adult volunteer on the Extreme Team. These teens and young adults serve as counselors who spend the entire week with the kids and lead small groups and other activities.

Sandquist will be entering his junior year at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul and is a seminarian at St. John Vianney College Seminary on campus. He was quick to answer when asked what the highlight of camp was for him when he attended as a camper.

“It would definitely be the Thursday night adoration,” he said. “If I had to pick a turning point when I [first] took faith seriously, it would be night.”

This kind of response exactly what was envisioned by the camp’s founders — youth ministers John O’Sullivan (St. Raphael, Crystal), Jennifer Schaefer (Holy Name of Jesus,Wayzata), Jessica Goebel (St. Mary, Waverly) and Gina Barthel Michael, St. Michael).

Their parishes sent a total of 68 campers and volunteers to Big Sandy the first year. This year, more than 500 middle schoolers from more than 29 parishes in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis have gotten to experience the fun and the eucharistic encounter of Extreme Faith Camp.

“Almost all of the youth who attend ERC say their favorite part was adoration,” said O’Sullivan, who now works as a youth minister at St. Michael in St. Michael. "It makes the camp. I wouldn’t do camp without it. It makes Christ truly incarnate at camp.

“People have told me middle school teens could not sit in adoration for more than 10 minutes, and we were crazy for doing adoration at camp. [But] I have seen middle school teens in adoration for over three hours in prayer. They love it. Why? Because it is Jesus.”

One of this year’s campers, Eliza Walters of St. Peter in Forest Lake, gushed about camp, and about adoration specifically.

“It was awesome. It was very powerful,” said Walters, 13. “It was incredible. It was Jesus.

“It [camp] was the best week of my life. . . . I think everyone should go.”

It surely is tempting for adults to look at the campers of today and see the future of the Church. Four seminarians volunteering at camp this year indicate that Father Shovelain’s story of his time at camp and his eventual priestly vocation won’t be the last of its type.

More than likely, at least one of the boys he blessed during his two visits to camp this summer could end up wearing the Roman collar someday.

“I certainly tried to plant seeds and encourage the boys to consider a vocation to the priesthood and the girls to consider a vocation to the religious life,” Father Shovelain said. “I told the kids the [camp] was amazing as a seventh-grader, but it is even better as a priest.”

Of course, another great outcome is for campers to become faith-filled parents later in their lives. And, one need look no further than the ranks of this year’s volunteers to see evidence of that.

“The youth minister from St. Albert’s in Albertville, Cassandra Olson, came to the first Extreme Faith Camp as a high school leader,” O’Sullivan said. “Since then, she has been to EFC every year as a leader and then as a youth minister for the past nine years. Currently, she is married and has three wonderful children. Her and I are the only ones who have been to EFC every year since it started.”

And, what about the future of camp?

“The future of EFC looks very bright,” O’Sullivan said. “I honestly can’t wait to see what God has in store for Extreme Faith Camp.”

One thing is for sure about next year’s camp — Jesus will be there.

Two teens’ testimonies about adoration at camp

Kendra O’Brien, teen volunteer

St. Boniface, St. Bonifacius

“Throughout my life, I haven’t had many life changing experiences with God, and I had accepted the silence. Then, this year I was in prayer team.

Wednesday night, the prayer team and I were praying over all of the campers in adoration. I experienced a vision of Jesus. He was so pure and beautiful that I can’t even attempt to describe him. He was reaching out to me!

I saw Jesus on the cross, all torn up in his human form, and above him I could see something that was reaching down to him in pain, and Jesus was looking over to a group of people with joy on his face. It was the most beautiful, painful, and love-filled vision I have ever and probably will ever see.

I believe I then saw an image of heaven, where everyone appeared to be young and joyful. He told me that he loved me and that he had amazing plans for me. I felt a beautiful peace and joy inside of me.

I feel called to share this experience with as many people as I can, so everyone can realize how much he loves us and that he really wants to see us have an amazing future. So, I challenge everyone to talk to him every day, and show him that you are committed to loving him forever, as he is committed to us.”

Gabriel Leahy, camper

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Maplewood

“I have wanted to be in the military since third grade, and I’ve wanted to be a priest since before I can remember. During adoration, God revealed to me that I am supposed to be an Army chaplain and bring Communion to the soldiers, and bless and hear confessions of the wounded men and women.”

Photos, from top:

Father Paul Shovelain blesses Zach Borer of St. Boniface in St. Bonifacius during an evening of eucharistic adoration June 25 at Extreme Faith Camp on Big Sandy Lake near McGregor. At far left is Sydnee Rensch of Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Maplewood. Both were volunteer leaders at camp.

Maddy Devich of Divine Mercy in Faribault joins other campers as they prepare for dinner.

Elizabeth Glenna of St. Bridget of Sweden in Lindstrom (red sweatshirt) prays with other teens during adoration at camp.

12-year-olds Emily Wilder and Aubrey Beske of Divine Mercy in Faribault ride down a giant waterslide at Extreme Faith Camp on Big Sandy Lake near McGregor in June.

Photos by Dave Hrbacek, The Catholic Spirit