Each year, around 20 passionate men and women join Summit, CRU’s camps-based ministry training program. They grow in their skills and character, make lifelong friendships and are presented with countless opportunities to share Jesus with thousands of students on CRU Educational Camps.
Some move on from CRU at the end of their traineeship, equipped with valuable skills and experience to take into their future workplace, place of study, or back to their church. But many of them remain at CRU – growing and serving… two, six or twelve years later! Let’s meet some of the team.
A growing mission mindset
Scarlett Prowse, 1st Year Summit Trainee
Scarlett recalls going on CRU Educational Camps throughout school and fondly remembers the CRU leaders who led her camps. Even though they would spend only a few days together, it was enough for Scarlett to recognise that the leaders were committed to getting to know the students and remembers them as “fun, kind and cool Christians” who she would look up to.
Attending a Christian school, Scarlett recalls that her classmates were sometimes desensitised to the gospel message. But camp was often a time where the Word was presented in a refreshing way, and kids would often leave camp more excited about Jesus.
In her senior years of high school, she knew that she wanted to do a gap year when she graduated. What convinced Scarlett to pursue Summit over other options was that the program was not just about individual growth but being able to put your learnings into practice.
“Summit equips you in such a wide range of skills. You learn how to answer tough questions, how to write and lead a devotional and discussion group, lead outdoor activities, and you grow in your biblical knowledge. But what’s even better is that the program isn’t just for ‘you’. You’re learning new skills, but you also have a space to use them practically and you grow immensely. By going on camps, you’re actively serving, using those skills and putting your learning into practice every week.”
She continues, “I feel like I’ve grown to have more of a mission mindset – actually looking to serve people over myself and making the most of opportunities to share Jesus.”
After only five months at Summit, Scarlett has been amazed at the opportunities on camp for relationship building, conversation, and moments where campers can ask questions about God. On a recent camp, the campers were enjoying a fishing activity when a student asked her, “Who created God?” This particular question provided Scarlett with a wonderful opportunity for discussion with the camper. Afterwards, the camper was keen to receive a Bible and a devotional, and on a camper survey, she indicated that she wanted to follow Christ for the first time. Praise God!
Even when she doesn’t see immediate gospel fruit on camp, Scarlett still finds great joy in serving God in the ministry and shares: “The best part is that everything you do on camp isn’t in vain – every effort you put in, every relationship you build on camp and every moment is an opportunity to glorify God and build His kingdom. That’s why I love Summit!”
An eternal hope
Luke Richards, Outdoor Leader
Luke’s first involvement with CRU was serving as a Junior Leader on a CRU Holiday Camp when he was in Year 9. A couple of years later, while in Year 12, a friend doing the program suggested he should look into Summit – and he did.
After finishing high school, Luke successfully applied to join the Summit Program. He originally planned to complete a year of Summit as a year of working in paid ministry and then move on to pursue a uni degree. However, after joining the program in 2020 and getting a taste of CRU’s ministry, God changed his mind and Luke completed the full two years.
He remembers, “It happened within the first three or four weeks of being a part of the CRU Educational Camps team. It was so clear that there was something different about the team and the attitude and energy that they had towards ministry, that it made me want to continue.”
With the COVID pandemic evolving through 2020 and 2021, Luke’s trainee experience was a little unusual, with him needing to navigate lockdowns and pauses on school camps. However, despite a disrupted Summit experience, Luke still felt that camping ministry was where he was meant to be.
He shares, “One of the reasons I’m still working at CRU is because I truly believe in the ministry. CRU’s foundation in the gospel is solid, and I’ve seen firsthand on camp that the eternal hope of the gospel is something that changes the lives of kids and youth.”
“The camp environment is really valuable. It removes campers from their everyday life and allows them to consider the gospel and who Jesus is. It’s a precious time to hear what campers think and answer questions that they ask. So, during the lockdowns and disruptions, I had that hope of being able to do ministry in such a valuable way again – it was the reason why I stuck through it and continued on.”
Now working in the CRU Educational Camps team as an Outdoor Leader, Luke’s average week consists of “being on camp and sharing the gospel with school kids, as well as helping them shoot a bow and arrow and rock climbing, and the general camp kind of things”.
During his time with Summit and as part of the CRU Educational Camps team, Luke has found great joy and value in being mentored and surrounded by likeminded Christians who are all on board with sharing the good news of Jesus.
He explains, “It’s something that’s much deeper than just any surface-level shared hobby. Working alongside the people that I’m going to share eternity with is really encouraging. What you get on camp is a small taste of what eternity in heaven will be like with brothers and sisters.”
Because he genuinely believes in the work God is doing through CRU, Luke hopes to stick around for a while. He shares, “If I can help grow the ministry and help more campers share in the eternal hope we have in Christ, that would be something that’s really valuable.”
A journey of growth
Harry Roberts, Program Coordinator
Harry can’t remember a time of not being in the CRU community. He was the son of a CRU ski camp director in the late ’90s, a member of his school’s CRU Group from Year 3 to Year 12, and led a CRU Group for younger students when he was in Year 11 & 12. He was also a keen CRU Holiday Camper, attending north of a dozen holiday camps over his schooling years including three Study Camps in Year 12.
Initially enrolled in a university course after high school, Harry recalls feeling “lost and isolated and didn’t have any sort of satisfaction”. But after speaking to a friend who was a trainee in the Summit Program about what she did for work, Harry was convicted that “serving the Lord at Summit, sharing Jesus with kids alongside other believers, was a no-brainer”.
He shares, “The big picture of the job looked really appealing as well – getting skills, becoming qualified in different things, and it being a paying job rather than a traineeship where you’re paying someone else to train you.”
Harry joined Summit in July of 2016, six months after finishing high school and recalls his trainee experience, “For someone like me coming out of school where I didn’t have a massive support network of Christians my age, Summit was a no brainer. Being surrounded by like-minded believers in a similar stage of life was transforming for me.”
Once Harry completed his two years with Summit, he stepped up into the role of Outdoor Leader as a senior trainee, having more responsibility on camp and also in the office. He then stepped into his current role as Program Coordinator, where he spends his time “liaising with schools, building camp programs, and gathering information so that our camp teams can go and run gospel-centred camps”.
Working in CRU Educational Camps for over six years, Harry has been on a journey of continual growth – in his spiritual walk, in his understanding of the Bible and his skills.
“The training has deepened my understanding of Scripture, which has, in turn, strengthened my faith. My faith is now rich and deep, and I am confident it will last my lifetime.”
He continues, “The hard skills in the outdoors are taught well and are heaps of fun, and the soft skills you learn, like leadership, professionalism, liaising and facilitation, are transferable into any industry long term. It’s awesome to be skilled in that way because it’s not something that naturally comes out in other tertiary studies.”
After six years, Harry doesn’t shy away from the fact that leading on camps can be tiring. However, he feels the hard work is worth it. “The privilege of meeting campers where they’re at, seeing them step out of their comfort zones and enjoying camp activities, sharing the gospel with them, and seeing them make personal decisions for Christ is beyond rewarding. When you get to be a part of that, it makes the long days on camp and the hard discussion groups all worth it! Being able to play my part in God’s work is a privilege and something that keeps me coming back.”
Trusting in God’s plan
Kat Swaisland, Associate Camps Manager
Neither ministry training nor camping ministry was something that particularly interested Kat. She recalls, “It was never really in my plan, but God put multiple people in my life who steered me towards working at CRU. And through different doors closing and opening, it was very evident that God wanted me in this job. And so, I ended up saying ‘yes,’ and here I am, 286 camps and 12 years later!”
Kat joined the Summit Program in 2010 when it was still called the Ian Holt Memorial Fellowship Program. After her first four years spent in the Summit traineeship, she worked with CRU Holiday Camps, helping to establish Day Camps. And for the last six years, she has returned to the CRU Educational Camps division as a Camp Coordinator and Associate Camps Manager.
There’s no question that there have been challenges along the way, especially after 12 years of camps, but Kat finds such joy and hope knowing that God sustains and provides. She shares, “Waiting on God, and seeking Him for energy, and direction, and wisdom, and patience, in easy times and in hard times is just great. It is a challenge to always come before Him, but it’s the most rewarding because He does provide. I wouldn’t have been able to do such a high camp load job for so long without relying on Him.”
“When you take time to stop and reflect on challenges, you can always see how He’s grown and refined you. There’s so much more to be thankful for.”
A joy of being in her role for so long is that Kat gets to see teachers return, camp after camp. She shares, “Seeing and encouraging teachers, hearing how they grow and then becoming friends with them outside of camp is really cool. I’ve been able to pray with some teachers pretty regularly throughout the year, and it’s so encouraging to know that the impact of CRU’s ministry doesn’t finish on camp.”
Over so many years serving at CRU, Kat recalls that there are so many moments of encouragement. In particular, she still has friendships with people who have left CRU to go and do other things. She explains, “They’re lifelong friendships, they’re kingdom friendships, and they’re just such a joy.”
Another joy is seeing campers return year after year, seeing them grow in their faith and boldness to share Jesus with their peers, and then seeing them join the Summit program as a trainee. “Those moments make the challenges so worthwhile, and it gives so much light and weight to why our job is so important,” says Kat.
Whether a person stays for one year at CRU or 12, Kat believes they will be stretched and grown. She shares:
“Summit is such a unique experience that you won’t get elsewhere, and you’re only going to gain when you join. It’s a program where Christ is modelled and where you can grow. God has grown me the most in my time at CRU – I’ve been encouraged, shaped and moulded by God through so many different experiences. That is a huge joy to look back on.”
