“EFY on Steroids,” Zion’s Camp Takes Mission Prep to a New Level
By Tyler Murdock
“High adventure boot camp” may not be the first thing that comes to mind when one hears the words “missionary preparation,” but that is exactly what Bruce Olsen, Director of Public Affairs at Southern Virginia, created to meet the needs of the missionary surge in 2008.
The idea originated from Claudette Gerard, wife of then-member of the Quorum of the Seventy Duane B. Gerrard. From her initial suggestion to Olsen emerged Zion’s Camp, a six day summer camp where participants get a taste of both the spiritual and practical aspects of missionary service.
Simulating a week in the mission field, each participant is assigned a companion and practices common missionary tasks throughout the week such as teaching investigators, studying Preach My Gospel, and attending meetings.
Although the summer camp is designed to give youth hands-on experience with missionary work, participants also enjoy recreational activities like hikes and sports while striving to build their own testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Throughout the week, participants are mentored by returned missionary counselors. They work closely with youth by sharing stories and teaching skills learned from their own mission experience.
These returned missionaries are often able to observe the changes in participants that take place from start to finish of the camp. “It’s quite incredible to see the changes that can take place in someone in such a relatively short time,” remarked Brigham Doxey, former returned missionary counselor for Zion’s Camp. “Being a counselor was a great way for me to retain the missionary spirit that I felt on my mission.”
Bruce Olsen has since organized and planned the camp, of which he loves to refer to as “EFY on Steroids,” and has overseen nine sessions of Zion’s camp.
“Ultimately the take away from Zion’s Camp [is] to go home with confidence [that] they can teach, confidence that they can live the missionary lifestyle, and confidence that they will make friends and enjoy meeting people from across the country and across the world — which all makes it so that they can hit the mission field in a dead run and maximize their training in the MTC,” said Olsen.
For Aubrie Bouchard, an alumna of the camp who recently returned from her mission in Montana, Zion’s Camp was a pivotal moment in helping her prepare to serve.
“Before my mission, I struggled with feeling capable of serving a mission. I didn’t know if I would be spiritually strong enough to go out and teach the gospel,” she said. “My prayer was ‘Heavenly Father can I do this? Is this a thing that I am capable of doing?’ And I just felt the calmest assurance that I could do it. That experience, and the entire scope of Zion’s Camp, was really enabling.”
This year, Zion’s Camp will likely update its curriculum to reflect the Church’s introduction of iPads and social media to many missions. It will allow participants to bring cellphones and tablets with them and include special training in line with what is already being used in the mission field. This includes training on platforms such as Facebook Messenger and Whats App, which are used to reach investigators and contacts. Prospective missionaries attending the camp will apply the principles taught in the resource book Safe Guards for Using Technology.
Along with this change, Zion’s Camp will have a number of guest speakers and teachers that will give instruction from the Church’s Missionary Department.
