The Final Banquet

Two memorable weeks had passed and the end of camp was near. The second Sabbath, followed by a final banquet, had arrived. This day was on everyone’s mind. A mixture of emotions was visible on the faces of all in anticipation of the final evening. As the campers prepared for services, they realized yet another year of AYC had passed and that they would soon all be back among the world. Although the mood at camp was a little more somber on the final Sabbath, the campers still looked forward to the event.

The banquet was held in a rustic hall at Raccoon Creek State Park. Here, campers took part in a now-traditional evening meal, a Tabletopics session, and a final slide show of the many memories made at camp. This year also included four speeches given by some of the older campers. Despite the evening marking the end of camp, excitement still filled the air in anticipation of the evening’s many activities.

At AYC, campers and staff were taught the fundamentals of public speaking. Throughout camp, they were required to deliver two speeches lasting between two and six minutes: an introductory speech and one about an interesting experience. Following the standard set by Mr. Armstrong, a Tabletopics session was also held to help the young men and women of AYC learn to think on their feet and respond to questions without any preparation.

One last Tabletopics session was the first activity after the meal at the final banquet. During this event, campers were asked questions such as “Why did you want to attend AYC?” and many others. The answers ranged from long to short, but in all, this session proved a great way to help campers in God’s Church grow, as well as recap the events of AYC 2010 to those in the audience.

After Tabletopics came four speeches from campers. Two young ladies and two young men were asked to deliver the interesting experience speech they gave during camp. But this time the speech was at the banquet in front of over 100 people! This part of the evening was quite enjoyable because it allowed more experienced campers an opportunity to grow.

On an individual level, the experience had a great impact on one of the campers who delivered a speech.

“I have a whole new respect for the ministry and delivering a sermon,” he said.

A relaxing slide show concluded the evening’s activities. The presentation, compiled by a staff photographer who culled 6,000 images down to 200, was a review of the previous two weeks spent at AYC.

It has been said, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” and the slide show certainly proved this point. Laughter and “oooohs” and “aaaahs” filled the room, as camp administrators explained each photo, which included action shots of sports, budding friendships, and some funny moments at camp.

Through all these activities, the growth of campers became obvious. By the end of the slide show, all in attendance could see that during the past two weeks, true friendships had been formed among campers.

As the night concluded, tears, hugs and laughter could be seen and heard throughout the room as campers exchanged contact information to ensure the new relationships they had formed would not end at the camp’s conclusion. These moments, memories, lessons and friendships are why the youth love camp so much.

As we all walked to the vans one last time, there was a bittersweet feeling that, even though AYC was drawing to a close, we had all gone from acquaintances—to friends—to family in just two short weeks.