For Kennice, a week of summer fun at an Angel Tree® camp was just the beginning.
A PLACE OF REFUGE
Kennice loves her dad fiercely. And she has faith that, one day, he will turn his life around. But she also carries burdens—a load of guilt, pain, and loneliness that no child should have to bear.
That's why the refuge provided by Angel Tree camping is so important.
Kennice has been to camp twice, and says, "I can't wait until next summer." She enjoys the lake, campfires, the archery range, and especially, horseback riding. She loves the silly things the staff say to make her laugh.
But what camp has done for Kennice goes much deeper than that, as her friend Jordan, the camp wrangler, explains.
WHAT ANGEL TREE IS ALL ABOUT
"I don't think I understood what Angel Tree was all about until a little girl ran up to me after Bible drama and wrapped her arms around my waist," Jordan recalls. "Kennice didn't let go—not while I was putting away the equipment, not until she took me down to the lake for a cabin cookout."
"Even then, she never left my side," Jordan says. "We gathered sticks for the campfire, ate our hot dogs, and roasted our s'mores. Pretty soon, Kennice and all the girls from her cabin had accepted me as one of them."
She says that the rest of the week—from riding horses with Kennice and the other girls, to having devotions together, to seeing several girls trust Christ—was "an experience that changed my heart and their hearts, because it came from the heart of God."
SHARING THE GOOD NEWS
Because generous donors made it possible to give every Angel Tree camper a Bible to take home with them, Kennice came home with a big, beautiful children's Bible. And the story doesn't end there because Kennice gave her Bible to a friend.
"She doesn't know Jesus," Kennice explains, "so I have been teaching her what I know."
Kennice is passing along the gift she received. Because of this, another young life may also never be the same.
Kennice knows that God doesn't love her any less because her dad is in prison. She also knows that the Lord has big plans for her and that her caring friends at Angel Tree camp will be there to encourage her through the hard times.
BIBLES ARE NEEDED NOW MORE THAN EVER
Prisons across the country are on lockdown due to COVID-19, and Bibles are one of the only ways to still get hope behind prison bars. And nothing provides hope like the living Word of God. The demand for Bibles is at an all-time high. Will you help us meet the need? Please give generously today and your gift will be doubled thanks to a matching grant!
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