The Life of David Stanford: A Summer To Remember

David Stanford started out his life just like the rest of us — He was born 20 years ago in Concord, North Carolina, where he grew up to the man he is today. After a year of public school and three of homeschooling, David moved on to Liberty University, where he is currently a junior.

Two summers ago, David made the decision not to waste his summer. He became a counselor at Precept Ministries summer camps in Tennessee. It was such a time of growth and excitement that he joined their team once again this past summer.

He worked mainly with 16–19 year-olds. Though the age gap between him and his campers was small, he felt as though he connected well with the older crowd. The awkwardness between a counselor and a camper only a year or so younger than his superior was not an issue for David.

The worst part came when a camper was disrespectful. Some kids came in with a complete disregard for any type of authority. Those campers, David said, were the hardest to connect with.

However, David did get to see a lot of life change happen throughout his time at camp. The best part was watching his campers grow in their faith after only a week of being in scripture.

Though he was only there for a total of three weeks, camp was most definitely the best part of David’s summer. The fondest memories he made were at local coffee shops in and around the city of Chattanooga, hanging with the other counselors. He said he loves the city for how different it is than Charlotte. It’s more spread out than his very centralized hometown, and gives him something new to explore.

David saw a lot of growth the past two summers as a counselor. Will he return? The question still stands, unanswered, but David know wherever he ends up, he will be ready and willing to share the gospel with those around him.