Written by SCBC Registrar, Greta Grief
I’ve shared my “Why Sugar Creek” camp story many times – how I returned to Sugar Creek Bible Camp as an adult to serve as the Registrar. But today, I want to share “Why Sugar Creek” from a different perspective: as a parent. This is the story of what Sugar Creek has meant to my daughter, Kate.
When my daughter Kate was entering high school, my mom asked if she might want to attend a horse program at Sugar Creek, the same camp I loved as a child. She offered to take care of everything—transportation, laundry, and making sure Kate came home sparkling clean so as not to trigger my horse allergies. And just like that, another generation of campers was formed in this sacred valley.
Kate started with a year of Junior Wranglers, then moved on to Riverboaters. When the pandemic hit, we returned to Sugar Creek in a new way—through family camp. The first summer after the pandemic, Kate was signed up to be a SIT-LIT (Staff in Training-Leaders in Training, now LEAD), but due to staff shortages, she asked to apply for a support staff position, working in the barn as a Wrangler. And so began her journey as a camp counselor.
Her years at camp didn’t just build a resume—they built her faith, inside herself and outward for her to share. Sugar Creek helped her grow spiritually in a way I couldn’t provide at home. It wasn’t me pushing her to attend church; it was her choosing to seek out Christ on her own. Kate began to explore new churches in our local communities to find a place where she felt she belonged. Her faith became her own.
I cried watching her transformation—her individuality, strength, and empathy blossoming through the encouragement, responsibility, and independence she found at camp. One of her fellow counselors once pulled me aside and said, “Kate is just the best human being.”
Now in college, Kate continues to live her faith fully. She attends Sunday worship on campus, participates in Bible studies and daily chapel services, and volunteers as a youth Bible study leader. I truly believe the foundation for all of this was laid—and strengthened—at Sugar Creek, through the love, support, and Christ-centered community she experienced both as a camper and as staff.
Sugar Creek means the world to her. It’s another home. A place where she embraces God, and where she is fully and freely her true self.
I hope you and your family find the same here in Sugar Creek Valley—a place to “be still, and know.”
To learn more about Family Camp CLICK HERE
