Hello, there!
I am YoungJae Lee, one of the Peace Interns this summer of 2026. My country of origin is South Korea, and I am currently staying and studying in my second year of the M.Div. program at Montreal Diocesan College and McGill University in Montreal, Canada. This is my very first time visiting the Midwest of the United States! And it is even more special because now I am working as a Peace Intern.
This is me - I took it at Allisonville Christian Church.
During our first week, we met many amazing and thoughtful people. The guest house in Allisonville was a place to be our home for a week, to get to know each other better, to learn deeply about DoC's mission, and to meet people working in their fields with their very special and different ministry talents. And now, I am at Camp Walter Scott, writing this introduction and first-week summary.
The Camp Walter Scott is an iconic place where God’s kingdom comes to life and welcomes campers as they are. This friendly camp, located in Effingham, Illinois, invites campers to the experience of beautiful nature. With campers, counsellors, and my good friend Deveraux (he is another Peace Intern!), we are having time sharing our thoughts, having workshops, organizing our own worship vesper service, sharing sermons, kayaking, and seeing... goats!
Yes. They have goats and goats trading cards. Camp Walter Scott is known for pursuing sustainable practices in running a camp. And these goats are living in this forest. Not only are they cute and provide emotional support to campers, but they also help with eco-friendly weed removal. Also, they still aim to reduce fossil fuel use for a more sustainable camp; they have changed all their facilities to be electric-centred, except for the kitchen, and have had solar panels since 2023 for geothermal heating and cooling.
Eco-friendliness is not only their strength, but also their food! They always offer many green choices, along with a variety of options of sauces or dressings, which makes some campers not want to have vegetables but also want to try them. I think this shows just how good camp food can be when it's done right. To me, it was 9 to 10! I always enjoyed and was grateful for all who generously participated and put effort into making food with healthy ingredients and good options.
Of course, camp life is also fun and offers campers a great opportunity to learn. I am very glad to be a witness to how their minds are slowly opening, learning to rely on their friend, learning leadership, and also talking to people they never knew before. I like that Camp Walter Scott gives campers choices and lets them decide what they want to do in a healthy environment. The moment I felt moved was definitely last night's vesper service, when one of the campers' groups led its own. They prepare a Minecraft song for people and offer strawberries and let people dip them in the Nutella. Another group on another night offered nachos and salsas. The first group that prepared the worship service also prepared Oreos and milk, and the milk was inside a gold chalice. I can’t believe the idea looks like unserious however, it was actually effective.
This fluctuating world of uncertainty, I believe, all people who came have all their own worries and anxiety. As we share very normal things in our lives, in our own ways, we find we unite. I heard from several campers that, even while they are here at camp, they often can't help thinking about the things that worry them. Through this powerful moment of communion and services, I hope they feel a sense of hope and relief that they are okay being themselves. And during the talk and the workshops with them, every time during this camp, I think I can slowly feel hope coming from them.
Thank you for reading this! My Peace Intern summer is just getting started. And if I have something fun to update, I would like to let you know again.
With Blessings, YoungJae
