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To: Parents of
Eighters' ® Campers
From: "Keynote and Workshop Leaders
We want to thank you for enrolling your youth in a one-of-a-kind church camping experience. In 1988 the Central Area of the Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ) in the Southwest Region asked Linda Goddard,a Christian Sexuality Education Minister, to design a camp for
eighth grade youth who would be entering high school in the fall. Rev. Goddard designed
“Created To Be Me,®”
also known as “Eighter’s.®” with the keynote theme of “Spirituality and Sexuality – The Dynamic Duo” and this program is now
presented to youth in every Area of the Southwest Region, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Kansas City
Region and Maryland. Other Regions are being added annually.
Because of the subject matter, it was felt by the
keynoter and workshop leaders that parents should
be informed as to the context of the keynotes, the
purpose and objectives for this camp, and the
extent of sexuality information that will be
imparted to their youth.
Included in this letter you will find the Purpose
and Objectives for this sexuality camp, along with
an overview of the keynote and workshop
presentations.
The keynotes and workshops afford us an
opportunity to give in-depth presentations on the
subjects of God’s plan for sexual intimacy,
dating, and accountability, all from a spiritual
perspective.
A spiritual keynote dealing with the
humanity of Jesus and Jesus as a role model, will
be delivered every day, with workshops each
evening that will cover the reproductive anatomy,
menstruation, conception, masturbation, sexual
intercourse, sexually transmitted infections,
HIV-AIDS, contraception, dating, abstinence, love
and marriage.
We have found that the major concern most parents
initially have about the workshops is the
presentation about contraception.
This apprehension is understandable, as
most of us have been led to believe that a
contraceptive discussion sends a double message
when we are telling our youth that God intends
them to be abstinent until marriage. The problem that we encountered when we began teaching youth
was that youth already “knew” about
contraception, they just did not
“know the truth” about it.
It was heartbreaking to hear the
“methods” uneducated youth resorted to in
trying to prevent pregnancy.
We came to believe the issue of abortion
would never be resolved until unwanted pregnancies
were reduced and that will not occur until sexually
active youth properly use contraceptives when
they are having sexual intercourse.
Our presentation also imparts an
understanding of how contraceptives work within a
marriage to assist in family planning.
The workshops are built around the theme that
God has designed sexual intimacy to be a powerful
and wonderful gift to be opened and enjoyed in a committed
relationship.
Any use of the gift outside of this committed
relationship is filled with risks and consequences
and we endeavor to make youth very aware of all of
the risks and consequences.
Youth will participate in loving and moving
worship services each evening that will reinforce
the theme of the keynotes.
If, after having read this
letter and the enclosed material, you have any
questions, please feel free to e-mail Rev. Linda
Goddard at clermin@aol.com.
She would love to visit with you and,
hopefully, help you better understand what we are
trying to accomplish.
In closing, we want to tell you how fortunate
we believe your young person is to be able to come
together for a week to explore this subject from a
loving and Christian perspective.
Youth and staff leave this camp having
learned a great deal about themselves, others, and
most importantly, how our loving God wants this
wonderful gift of sexual intimacy to be enjoyed by
us in a committed, loving relationship. We ask that you hold all of us in your prayers the week
of camp.
P.S.
We will have the “Created To Be Me”®
t-shirt for sale at camp.
The cost is $12.00 so you may want to make
sure you include enough spending money for your
youth to purchase a t-shirt.
PURPOSE
To provide soon-to-be high school youth with factual and spiritual sexuality information that will help them view sexual intimacy as a gift from God intended for the marriage
relationship and to enlighten youth to the dangers, risks, and consequences that can occur when God’s gift of sexual intimacy is used outside of marriage.
OBJECTIVES
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To impart factual information about the human reproductive anatomies.
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To provide accurate information about puberty, menstruation, conception, contraceptives, and sexually transmitted infections-HIV/AIDS.
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To enable youth to recognize “dating pitfalls,” controlling and/or violent dating relationships, and peer pressure to be sexually active.
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To help youth learn to value the uniqueness of being male or female and to learn to appreciate the differences.
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To give youth the opportunity to think through and ask questions about sexuality issues, abstinence, dating and love relationships, in an atmosphere of love and acceptance.
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To present a loving and forgiving God that has a plan for each of their lives, and to help youth see Jesus as their “role model” for living full, healthy, and exciting lives.
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OVERVIEW
OF KEYNOTE ADDRESSES AND WORKSHOP PRESENTATIONS
SUNDAY EVENING
“RETURN TO EDEN”
Scriptural Focus: Genesis 1:26-31, 2:18-25,
Genesis 3
Keynoter
brings the Genesis scriptures to life by
“imagining” what it was like in the beginning
for these first two human creations of God. What
it really meant to be “naked and unashamed”
and “to be fruitful and multiply”. We look at
the equal dominion in the garden and then we move
to the fall and the consequences that were
suffered as a result of making the wrong decision
- choosing their way instead of God’s. Decisions
made by youth today “going their own way” are
shared and youth are encouraged to look to God for
guidance and to understand that God is in their
blessings and in their consequences - God always
has a plan!
MONDAY MORNING
“ADOLESCENCE - JESUS LEADS THE WAY"
Scriptural Focus: Luke 1:26-38, 2:8-14, 41-52
This
keynote sets the stage for looking at the humanity
of Jesus so youth can begin to understand that he
experienced some of the same things they will be
dealing with. We begin by looking at a teenage
Mary discovering she is pregnant with the Messiah.
How would a teenage girl react to such news?
Parents? Joseph? Why did God choose someone so
young? The birth of Jesus and God’s “birth
announcement.” What was it like for Mary and
Joseph to know they would be raising God’s very
own son. Those special and important scriptures of
Jesus as an adolescent are looked at with the
purpose of helping youth to begin to see Jesus as
their role model – one who experienced some of
the same changes and dilemmas they are
experiencing. The keynote stresses God has a
special purpose for each of our lives if we will
listen for God’s voice and look for guidance.
MONDAY EVENING
“THE MARVELOUS MALE”
This
workshop takes youth through the wonders of being
the “marvelous male” by studying the male
reproductive anatomy, puberty changes, and sexual
response.
TUESDAY MORNING
“WDJD - WHAT DID JESUS DO?”
Scriptural Focus: Mark 5:21-34; Luke 10:38-42;
Matthew 25:31-40
It
is impossible to be a disciple if one does not
know what Jesus actually did while he was here
with us. Stories of Jesus' relationship with
women, the Pharisees, the sick and oppressed, and
the disciples are explored. Jesus' love for
mankind and his acceptance of the outcasts of the
world are major themes in this keynote. The power
of youth to make a difference in the lives of
other youth is also part of this presentation.
TUESDAY EVENING
“THE FABULOUS FEMALE”
An
in-depth look at the “Fabulous Female,” the
reproductive anatomy, puberty changes, and female
pride issues. Presentation is made on how God's
gift of sexual intimacy is to be enjoyed and how
conception, multiple births, etc. occur.
WEDNESDAY MORNING
“THE DATING GAME -MAKING FRIENDS OR MAKING
OUT”
Scriptural
Focus: 1 Corinthians 3:16-20
This
keynote explores dating situations and looks at
dating pitfalls:
1) Dating too young
2) One-on-one dating before sixteen
3) High school youth dating junior high youth
4) Forsaking friendships for romantic
relationships
5) Spending too much time together alone
6) Drinking and dating - Dangerous combination
7) Date rape or abuse - Violent or controlling
relationships
WEDNESDAY EVENING
“THE COST OF BEING SEXUALLY ACTIVE"
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) the Facts
about Contraceptives
An
in-depth presentation of most common sexually
transmitted infections, including HIV. Symptoms,
cures, and methods of transmission will be
discussed, along with true-life stories of people
who have contracted these infections and how it
has impacted their lives.
“DEGREE OF AROUSAL - HOW FAR IS TOO FAR?”
Workshop presentation on Degree of Arousal helps youth understand the
power of arousal and the importance of “drawing
their line” before they are in a serious
relationship so that they do not compromise their
self-esteem or their relationship with God.
THURSDAY MORNING
“SEXUAL INTIMACY, THE GIFT WORTH WAITING FOR”
Scriptural
Focus: John 8:1-11
Through
personal sharing, Keynoter helps youth understand
the emotional pain and scarring that can sometimes
occur when the gift of sexual intimacy is used
outside of marriage. God’s forgiveness and
renewal are emphasized throughout this session.
THURSDAY
EVENING
“CONTRACEPTIVES”
This
workshop will give youth an understanding of the
concept of contraceptives and how they are
utilized in marriage to help couples plan when
they have children and how many. The complexity of
each method is looked at along with the
statistical information as to its effectiveness.
Side effects are discussed and youth are lead to
understand that there are no contraceptives on the
market that are free from risk of pregnancy or
infection.
FRIDAY MORNING
“THE DYNAMIC DUO - JESUS AND YOU!”
Scriptural
Focus: John 13:1-17, Matthew 26:26-29 and Matthew
27:32-46
We
will take an in-depth look at the last few days in
the life of Jesus. What were Jesus’ thoughts as
they entered Jerusalem and began preparations for
his last moments together? We will look at the
crucifixion and the total sacrifice that was lived
out before us. Not just the loss of life, but the
loss of pride and dignity, and the grief of a
mother. We will try and feel just a little bit of
what those disciples felt when they saw their
friend, Jesus, after the resurrection and what the
breaking of bread and the drinking from the cup
would mean to them after the crucifixion and
ascension.
This keynote will close with the promise that the
exciting and rich journey that the disciples
walked with Jesus is now ours to walk. That same
Jesus is still walking into our lives and calling
us to follow. As we take communion together we
will take it as a family of friends, just like the
disciples did, remembering our Savior in total,
his humanness and his Godliness.
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