Video Transcript: Interview with Teens after Summer Day Camp
Ted - I did not realize how unique this all was until I left Denver. I gave the guts of my ministry over to other leadership in part of that time, I have tape and videotape of the emerging leaders that we had developed, and, and, and it was, it was very exciting, but I did not realize how unique it was until I left after five years and began to work in other ministries. And that's when I realized that many of my colleagues were talking about leadership and leadership development and adolescent High School Leadership, they would talk about it. But when it came actually, when it came down to actually doing it, it wasn't leadership at all. And there are five areas, five exhortations for you, and I think you'll find them familiar. One of them is the exhortation that you're the leader. It's your class. If you need something, instruct the adult sitting in the corner. We will get it for you. If a child is disruptive, ask, and your adult partner will remove the child from your class. We will follow your instructions and assist and support you, but you are the leader, and we will not undermine that leadership by rescuing you. Do not worry, win or lose, succeed or fail. We will be there afterwards to advise and prepare you for greater success tomorrow. To what extent has that happened in your experience, terms of leading, support for being a leader? What's been your experience? I'm sorry, yeah, Learning Center class, but I would say it's also pushed me a lot. It's pushed you a lot, in what way,
Speaker 2 I think, especially with me being alone, I am, yeah, I've had to do a lot of it just by myself, yeah, which has been a really good stretch for me, and especially having Ann there to help. She's been picked up too. But I would say, just like stepping up beginning it was like a little rough. It was like, kind of like expecting to get a lot of help.
Ted - Any of the rest of you feel stretched where you ended up having to give a little bit more than what you were planning to give? Okay, tell us about it.
Speaker 3 I was scared like me, yeah, so scared, yeah. So when I started, I got closer. Some of them came closer and like some kids look up to me. Now, fish is a good thing.
Ted - That's great. That is great. In fact, I understand you. You kind of opened the heart of one kid that kind of been closed here for a while. Is that right? How is that going now?
Speaker 3 She's more open. She talks more on a kid. She talked to a lot of staff. That's great.
Ted - Okay, how about the next one classroom focus where there's no vision or direction, the people perish or unrestrained. Proverbs 29:18, your job is to give
directional leadership to your class. People are less likely to look sideways if they are focused on what's in front of them. Own your classroom. Give it directional leadership, and you will remove 75% of potential discipline problems before they start. How did that go for you? Did you all feel like you get Yes.
Speaker 4 So when I first started, I was like, oh man. Like, you know, these kids are not going to listen to me and everything. But then, like, quick, like, moving on so quickly, like, I learned how to, like, voice what I'm trying to say, yes, and be like, you know, like. Is not Yeah, but like, I don't know what word to say. I own it great.
Ted - Yeah, yeah. You all feel like you responded positively. Do you have? Have are responding positively to your to your classroom leadership, the more planned out it is, the more planned out it is. And what else the funner is, the funner it is, okay, okay, okay. So do you have a new appreciation for preparation? Being prepared. Good. That's so good, yeah. How about knowing your role? I understand the first week, and there were some struggles with this one. Know your role at any given moment. You're either leading or supporting the leader. You're modeling one of these two roles at all times. Always identify the leader. If you are the leader, lead, we will support you. How did it go with roles were you able to play? Do you feel like you played different roles here in the camp? If so, what are they?
Speaker 3 I think it's just a matter of the behavioral issues that we're having. Yeah, like, knowing that we couldn't, like, give the kids a decision to stay or to go home, like we had to turn it over to one of the knowing, like, we have to be in opposition to make sure that we get an adult and let them know this is what's happening, because I can't do because you can't do that.
Ted - Yeah, yeah, that is a that really is a protection for you. I mean, every youth camp, every youth camp, struggles with discipline. Every one. In fact, usually when you actually get to the moment of doing a prolonged youth activity, kids activity, half the time you deal with discipline. All right, with the
Speaker 5 with the exception of champ, as far as like roles, because most of you guys work in groups, so like, what was it like to be the leader in the classroom, and then what was it like to be the support person? And as far as knowing the difference between the two, so did you guys find yourself in a situation where, where it looked like both were leading when one was supposed to be supporting, or vice versa, and then in other areas, like during chapels and other group sessions and things of that nature, where we kind of color coded and saying, Well, here's the part we're leading, here's the part we're supporting,
and so on and so forth. Were you guys aware of like, the distinction between the times we were leading and the times when we weren't? Here's what Ted was given that
Speaker 6 question during the group session, if, like, somebody else is leading it, and it's like, hard I like step up and actually help them, because they don't like taking over their leadership. I have to know my prior life to sit down and with the learning centers, there's been times we might be the leader for the day, but like she's trying to get this part quiet so that I step up and end up talking, and then it seems like we're both leading. Oh, this one, I think you
Ted - talked a little bit about this, but you may not understand it as courageous love. How does love seeking? Which is seeking the other person's highest good? Love is a verb. It's an action. How does love impact our response to the problem child? Can we convince them to change their behavior for their own good, as well as the good of the group, if we cannot, or if they are unable to change, do we love them enough to make the tough decision? If our context is not working, then let's courageously and lovingly direct them to something better. I mean, in my in my experience, I remember one summer, we had two kids that were giving us a hard time, and so with both of them, we applied love and logic. One of them actually turned their thinking around, and they came back and became a wonderful part of the camp. The other one just couldn't do it. They just could not do it. Did you have that experience? Did you have experience where you had a kid that you had to lovingly say, you need to change or you won't be able to stay here? And that's on you, not on us. It's your choice, not our choice. Do you have an experience? Yeah, okay, well, what happened?
Speaker 4 Well, sometimes, like, you know, like, it's different for every kid, because the kids that I would talk to and then be like, oh, you should change and stuff like, they would change my next day
Speaker 6 with one of the kids. When she first came here, she was, like, struggling really bad because, like, she, like, she's different from the rest of the kids, yeah, yeah. But when I talked to her and explain. Yeah,
Ted - okay, let's look at the last one. I call this principle leadership, curriculum planning, discipline problems, games, leading. Where is God? In all of this must the name of Jesus be spoken for him to be present. His presence should run deep. God is in the principles and motivations that determine your actions. Jesus is in the details, because he is behind the details. Be principled in carrying out your responsibilities. Then when you speak God's name, you give the
children you serve something tangible, they will see him in you, your actions and the program you lead. Now, the overarching question that is should be asked, and I think, has been asked, although for you, it's been a shorter time, just because you came together, you've only had four months to work with elementary kids. You establish yourselves as emerging leaders at the beginning, at the beginning of the year. But the overarching question is, Where is God in all of this? Where is God in all of this?
Speaker 3 I feel like just being able to be there for the kids, and like, in a way where like, they don't like, they don't have people to be there where they're like, at home, or something like, the way the kids attached to us is like, in the sense of Support for the kids, like, I mean, God gave us Our God gave them us for comfort, yes or support, or being able to be here and see themselves, or Yes,
Speaker 2 whatnot, she has some mental problems. But one time she was crying on the bleachers, and I was like, what's wrong? Because she had only been here for two days at this point, and she was getting bullied consistently by the kids, and I had seen it, and she was like, my mom told me I was a disappointment. And she was like, super your major shift, and kicked out of Cancer Day. And so she was like, nobody loves me. I have nothing. Everybody hates me. I don't want to say I was sitting on the beaches like, Wow. I was like, Well, I can tell you consistently that God loves you and that will always be there for you, and that I'll always be here for you, universal staff always be here for you. And since then, I feel like she's opened up a little bit more, and she hugged us consistently, and she doesn't pay as much attention to what the kids think, and we stuck her in a lot of younger groups, and she's playing a lot smoother with her. So
Speaker 7 I feel like that's okay when I came in,
Speaker 6 doesn't feel like we're just like working in, doing it, like it. Some teachers were just doing it for payers. After a while, this neighborhood actually
Speaker 7 took over. It.
Ted - One more question apart from this, has this? This? This is a unique because you've been working in partnership with another word. Organization, okay? With switch up. Switch up has worked in partnership with red shield, and so that creates a little bit more challenges. Okay, usually in a ministry like this, you want the leadership wants to control all the moving parts, okay, this ensures that what we set up for you to do, you can do little bit more challenging, having, having to work with red shield now, thankfully they, I mean, they really did allow
you and Johnell to oversee the camp. Okay, that was, that was great. But even with that, there were a few there were a few glitches, because everybody has assumptions about how life works, how ministry works, how this program works. Their staff have been trained to think a certain way. We're coming in with an entirely new way of thinking. You bring those together, they're going to be some clashes, and I think a lot of those took place in the first week. And so what was it like? What has it been like working with with red shield and with their staff and in their building? Any comments on that one?
Speaker 8 It's kind of like up and down, up and down, okay? Because sometimes, like, I'm not explaining, like, you bump heads with them, sometimes, because, like, you know, they try to take over your leadership roles. And, yeah, you know, you go back and forth. It's just, like an up and down situation. You just, you have to get through it interesting.
Ted - And you've had that experience throughout,
Speaker 8 yeah, like, only one time, one time, okay, okay.
Ted - What's amazing is that you stood toe the toe. You're not, you're not taking this away from me. That's great. That is great. Okay? Other.