I stood in the black light of the gym, barely able to keep a smile off of my face. All around me were two hundred kids, each fluent in Spanish. We were surrounded by banners and objects that glowed neon. Excitement pulsed through the gym walls like a bass at a rock concert. Everyone was watching, waiting for the games to begin.
Remember that blog I wrote called “Spanish Bible camp”? Well now I’ve actually worked at a Spanish Bible camp and it was freakin awesome.
It was my third time at La Montaña Christian Camp. First I was there for Awakening (when multiple world race squads meet up and hang out and celebrate Jesus) and then for a mini Debrief (in which my squad took a couple days to process Nicaragua before moving to Costa Rica). Located somewhere in the Costa Rican countryside, La Montaña is just that- a camp on a mountain. Everywhere you walk is a hike- up stairs, down hills, and sometimes across bridges. The terrain is breathtakingly beautiful- cloudy mountains and gorgeous sunsets and intoxicating green as far as the eye can see. There’s a lake and a water slide and a mud run (and coffee all the time!!). Not to mention the staff- young Ticos with broken English and a heart for Jesus. They always took care of my squad and poured into us as their brothers and sisters in Christ.
In short, I loved this camp since day one, and now we were coming back as staff members. Now we were going to see what happened behind the scenes.
The nine of us were dropped off at the bus station where we met our new friend Alfredo. At seventeen years old, Alfredo is one of the youngest staff. He likes Star Wars, wearing Superman gear, hates Superman, and has a heart of gold, so he and I instantly became best friends. Since we had to take two buses to La Montaña, Alfredo came along to guide us through the bus system. We almost missed one of the buses because Alfredo was showing the team around a city, but he can run fast so it was okay.
Then we arrived at camp and I was so excited!! Another week at La Montaña? YES PLEASE!!! My team was greeted by Allan, one of the camp leaders. He and I first met when I locked my only room key in my room and he had to unlock the door. Allan has always walked in a spirit of kindness and instantly made us all feel welcome. Since my team speaks doesn’t understand Spanish (and we were working at a Spanish Bible camp) we were placed on support staff- the people in the background. We worked in hospitality (cleaning), kitchen, and recreation.
Hospitality
Working on hospitality was our first job as a team, and throughout the week I got to work with three people. First I worked with Sandra, a woman who cleaned with an eye for detail. She has worked at La Montaña for ten years and is always ready to give compliments and a warm smile. There was never a moment where I didn’t feel her love and affirmation, and she expected nothing but the best work.
Then I got to work with Ronald, a man from Honduras who cleaned for nothing less than perfection. He has worked at La Montaña for five months, simply because God told him to. As of right now, Ronald will be working at La Montaña for a year away from his family, and he couldn’t be a better addition. He had us mop every cabin all the way through four times, he had us reclean every window if it had anything remotely close to a streak, and he never stopped encouraging us to do every job with complete excellence. I can’t remember the last time I was so proud to clean a room properly, because when Ronald said it was a good job, then I knew was a GOOD job.
Finally, my team worked with Uri, or rather he cleaned the bathrooms while we cleaned the rooms. Uri has worked at La Montaña for six years. He and I didn’t get to talk very much, but every day I saw him working somewhere behind the scenes. Even when everyone else took a rest, Uri always seemed to be getting something done. He is for sure a secret servant of the Lord.
Kitchen
One of my favorite jobs at camp was working in the kitchen. On my first day in the kitchen I got to work with three people: Tony, Alejo, and Chewy. While we chopped up carrots and pulled apart lettuce, I got to learn more about these people’s stories.
Tony is the head chef. He went to culinary school for two years and he loves his job. Every time I went in the kitchen I got to see him singing at the top of his lungs or goofing off, all while making some of the best food I’ve eaten on the race. His love for Jesus is so evident in everything he does, and I’ll miss seeing that crazed smile.
Then there was Alejo (aka Alejandro), a nineteen year old guy going to school for Graphic Design. He is super talented in photography and videography, and even produces media with Christian bands across Costa Rica. In addition to working in the kitchen, Alejo also runs the sound booth during chapel.
On my first day in the kitchen I got to work with Chewy. Her real name is Jennifer, but everyone calls her Chewy because when she prays she sounds like Chewbacca from Star Wars. Anyways, Chewy is almost twenty years old. Like most people at camp, she works everywhere- hospitality, kitchen, recreation, and even in leadership. While she doesn’t speak a lot of English, I always loved hanging out with her because she is one of the kindest and sassiest people I met at La Montaña. In addition to serving camp and looking after lost gringas, Chewy was always the life of the party. No matter what we were doing, she and Alejo were always cracking jokes and messing around.
Finally, throughout the week I also got to spend a fair amount of time working with Oscar. At twenty-eight years old, Oscar has the humor of a child. You can usually find him watching cartoon or taking selfies of himself. However, he loves Jesus in a beautiful way and sings to the Lord every time he can. Oscar didn’t speak any English, but somehow he became one of my team’s closest friends.
Recreation
Finally, the most exciting job at camp is recreation. During my time there I worked archery, the ropes course, and in the gym.
While working at archery I got to meet Osvaldo. When all the staff is hanging out, Osvaldo is usually the person cracking jokes and making everybody laugh. However, when he and I were at archery I learned that he is currently going to law school and hopes to make a difference in the world. I can’t wait to see where the Lord takes him in the years to come.
Now, I got to work the ropes course twice- first as the person sending kids onto the ropes course, and then as the person clipping them from stage to stage IN THE COURSE!! That day I got to work with some of my teammates, Chewy, and Coco. Coco (aka Carolai) is woman who loves to laugh and build other up. As one of the best English speakers at camp, she was very easy to talk to and always made me feel welcome. When you’re down, Coco is the person who will lift you up again (literally).
We all sat up in the ropes course for an hour waiting for the kids, sometimes playing games, sometimes taking pictures, and some of us even took a nap (looking at you Chewy). I loved encouraging the campers as they went through the course and hanging out with my fellow staff members.
Finally, I spent a lot of time working in the gym. The games in the gym could be anything- rollerblading, hula hoop wars, racing people on small wheels carts, Gaga ball, all the things happened in the gym. While preparing the gym for campers, I got to meet another staff members named Bryan. Bryan is eighteen years old and is possibly one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. He asked me so many questions about myself and America, and he had the ability to make any person feel instantly at rest. As he finishes up his last few months of school, Bryan is going to be working for a company to provide for his family. You really can’t find many people with a bigger heart.
Another person I met in the gym was Jordan. He is twenty-four years old, doesn’t speak a word of English and is probably cooler than I’ll ever be. We met while shooting hoops- as in he shot into the hoop and I chucked the ball in that general area. He also took me outside and showed me his motorcycle (not gonna lie, it was pretty awesome). Since I know a little Spanish, I got to learn about his family and that he’s currently working to take care of them. In short, Jordan is a really cool guy that shows the love of Jesus in all he does.
For hours the staff worked in the gym, setting up black lights and neon decorations. None of my team knew what we were setting up for (mostly because we don’t speak Spanish and nobody translated), but as time went on we all got more and more excited. Suddenly, our leader Boti appeared, his face covered in bright neon paint. As the man who calls the shots, Boti is the one who explains every game and gets the campers hyped up in chapel. He walked my team around the gym, giving each of us a different role. I was one of the gladiator, in which I used a giant cylinder to block campers from throwing balls into a tray. Then, Boti gave us all face paint. Paige drew a design on my face and I drew orange lines up my arms. People said I looked like a warrior queen or a Viking. Not gonna lie, I felt pretty cool.
Then the lights dropped and the games began. Honestly I’m not really quite sure how it worked or what the goal was, but in the end that didn’t matter. As the game went on, I kept looking around the gym at all the staff members- My amigas Coco and Chewy, my brothers Bryan and Jordan, my best friend Alfredo, my lost gringa team- and I was filled with so much joy. La Montaña is a camp unlike anything I’ve ever encountered before, and I hope to return again one day.
~CLS
