Students practice leadership through summer Camping Inquiry Program

By Patrick Webb ’21

This summer, four Goshen College students participated in the Camping Inquiry Program (CIP).

Every year, students have the opportunity to spend three months with a camp, congregation or service agency through Inquiry Programs. The goal of a placement is to develop leadership skills while exploring the intersection of faith and vocation.

This year, all four students served in the Camping Inquiry Program, which connects students to a church-related camping or retreat center where they are able to connect first-hand with nature and outdoor ministry. Since the Camping Inquiry Program began in 2002, more than 100 students have participated in CIP.

The participants included:

Katarina Amstutz, a junior nursing major from Indianapolis, Indiana, served at Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp in Divide, Colorado.

Simon Hertzler Gascho, a first year biology major from Goshen, served at Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp in Divide, Colorado.

Katie Landes, a junior nursing major from Kirkwood, Missouri, served at Camp Friedenswald in Michigan.

Emma Zuercher, a sophomore sign language interpreting major from Apple Creek, Ohio, served at Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp in Divide, Colorado.

Students are expected to be actively engaged both with the camping or retreat center community as well as with a local congregation.

“I’m always impressed at how much students learn in these various settings and how much they take away from getting to explore vocation and leadership,” said David Kendall, Director of Career Networks. “Whether students decide to work at summer camp, church or with a service organization, they always discover something new about themselves. Beyond the scholarship that’s attached to this experience, students come away with a more well defined sense of purpose for the road ahead.”