If you’ve never heard of Camp Young at Heart (CYAH), you’re not alone.  Even though this program has been going on for fifteen years and information has been sent to churches of every denomination around Charlottesville, many people who register for the first time tell us they’d never heard of it before.  For three days in August adults, primarily of retirement age, gather at Aldersgate United Methodist Church to worship, learn, and get to know each other.  Classes are offered on a variety of topics, some biblical and others offering the chance to learn a new skill or expand understanding of a particular topic.  Some years we’ve had attendance in the mid-60s and other years it’s gotten closer to 90.  What is always the case is that 16-19 churches are represented and that they’re not all Baptist.  Our theological differences aren’t important.  All of us are God’s children and glad to be together, raising our voices in song, bowing our heads in prayer, and engaging our minds in learning.



When we look at Acts and read the various letters that Paul wrote to those first churches in what are now the countries of Greece and Turkey, we hear him plead over and over again for unity.  In Ephesians 4:3-6, we read, ^“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”  At Camp Young at Heart, we put that lofty goal into place and celebrate our oneness as children of God.  In a time when division and rancor seem to be running rampant, it is good to be part of something where that is not present.

Another aspect of CYAH worth celebrating is that it offers participants a chance to learn something new.  Every year one of the classes that returns by popular request is Virginia Thompson’s art class.  Some years it’s oil painting, other years it’s watercolor or printmaking, but always art. What surprises me every year when I talk to the participants, and admire their artwork, is that for at least one person this is the first time that they’ve ever taken an art class.  Many of them have said it was something they always wanted to try, but, for a variety of reasons, they had never done so. Often that reason was a fear of failure, and they had allowed their fear to stop them from pursuing a dream.  It is exciting to see someone liberated from fear.





At Broadus, we take seriously our charge to be part of ushering in God’s “kingdom on Earth as it is in heaven.”  That means finding unity in the midst of differences, being a faith community where all are welcome, acknowledging that none of us have a lock on the truth and that we’re all in the process of becoming, and always having as our goal to be the presence of Christ in our world.  Our support of Camp Young at Heart is just one aspect of putting that charge into action. 



If CYAH sounds like something you would like to be part of, you haven’t missed it for 2019! It will be held next week, August 26-28, 9:00 AM-2:00 PM at Aldersgate United Methodist Church.  The cost is $25.00 for individuals and $40.00 for couples. You can call the Broadus church office at 434-977-7381 to register.