This January, Maranatha Volunteers International completed its eighth project at Camp Kulaqua in Florida, and 57 volunteers rallied to the cause from across the United States. The team renovated cabins and built an announcer’s booth for the camp’s rodeo arena, finishing these tasks with enough time for extra projects like building a 60-foot horse arena fence and painting 30 picnic tables. “Everybody has this buzz and energy going on because they’re making this camp beautiful,” remarked volunteer Celina Dawson. This year Dawson traveled with her husband and five children all the way from Washington State to serve at Kulaqua–just like they’ve done for the past seven years.
“They’ve been coming every year since 2019, so I’ve watched them grow up,” said the project’s coordinator, Betty Beattie-Chrispell. “The kids love it there, and it’s fun watching them work with mom and dad because they really work with their kids and teach them.”
Dawson and her husband have always had hearts for mission, and it’s something they want to pass onto their children. But serving on international projects can be expensive for an individual and challenging for a family of five. Maranatha’s North America projects appeal to the Dawsons because they only need to pay for transportation to and from the site. “We looked around and, wow! Maranatha had just started one at Kulaqua,” recalled Dawson. “We were like, ‘Whoa, we can do this!'”
Financial concerns may have pointed them in Kulaqua’s direction, but watching the camp evolve drew the Dawsons back each year. “We really love being able to participate on a continuing basis. It’s really fun,” said Dawson. “We love being able to continue being a part of something that was started.”
Working at the camp has also contributed to the development of the Dawson’s ten-year-old and 12-year-old quadruplets. “They’re becoming confident. They’ve learned skills over the years and learned to follow directions,” Dawson explained. “It’s so rewarding, just to see them stretch and grow and take on something.”
Daily worship is an integral part of Maranatha projects, and those held during Kulaqua projects have set a positive habit for the Dawsons year-round. “We hadn’t done too much personal worship with the kids,” recalled Dawson of the time before they began serving at the camp. “Well, we came back from that first year, and the kids were like, ‘We want to have worship, please. Let’s have worship like we did at Camp Kulaqua.'”
“They [children] are never too young to start learning about giving to other people. They’re never too young to start,” remarked Beattie-Chrispell.
“This is valuable to us and how we want to live,” said Dawson. “It opens their world to tangible acts of kindness and service and giving of ourselves.”
Each year, Maranatha works with organizations in the United States and Canada to provide volunteer labor for various construction or renovation projects at summer camps and retreat centers, schools, and churches. Work ranges from renovations of existing buildings to new construction, and saves thousands of dollars in labor costs.