Her Daughter’s Church Camp Traumatized And Endangered The Kids By Taking Them To A Tent City Full Of Homeless People For Three Days
When you send your child to summer camp, you expect sunscreen, silly games, and maybe a few mosquito bites; not fear, not trauma, and certainly not danger.
But for this mom, what was supposed to be a lighthearted, church-run camp still makes her stomach twist whenever she thinks about it.
Because what happened wasn’t just poor planning. It wasn’t a little miscommunication. It was a total breakdown of trust. Parents handed over their kids, believing they’d be safe and cared for. Instead, their children were led into dangerous territory under the guise of faith; without proper supervision, without consent, and without a plan. And when questions were asked?
The response wasn’t concern. It was deletion, deflection, and a convenient fluff piece in the local paper. For this mom, staying quiet isn’t an option; not when she knows what could have happened. Not when it might happen again.
This mom has a 12-year-old daughter who excitedly spent her birthday money on a youth camp run by their church.
It was supposed to be a week full of fun, trips to the beach, games, and a bit of community service featuring their local food bank.
“Instead, they took her to a tent city in Houston, Texas. They went back three days in a row. All the fun activities were canceled,” she explained.
“Before they left, I specifically asked the youth pastor, “You aren’t going to have my daughter under a bridge handing out tracts to homeless people, right?” He reassured me that would not happen. That they would be working at a food bank for a few hours, and spending the rest of the time having fun.”
Yeah, he lied to her face. Apparently, the youth pastor confessed to the kids that he had no plan, so he went on Google to find homeless people and thought it would be a brilliant idea to pack 75 kids and drive right over there.
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The youth pastor said that he and the kids ‘invaded’ the tent city he located thanks to the internet. He split the kids up into groups of three or four to roam around the tent city.
There were just three adults to help monitor all those kids, as five adults waited back to serve food. The youth pastor confessed to waking up a girl who was clearly high on meth in front of the children.
Needless to say, what was supposed to be a nice and relaxed summer camp for the kids turned into a traumatizing adventure.
“He detailed how the kids were uncomfortable, scarred, and did not want to return. He spiritually guilted them into going back,” she said.
“When I confronted him after the sermon and told him he put my daughter in a dangerous situation, his response was: ‘Yes, yes I did.’ His justification was ‘God led me.'”
“When I told him that he owed her a refund, he looked at me like I was crazy, and said, ‘Why would I do that?’ It was only after the senior pastor intervened that she was refunded. No apology. No accountability. Just, ‘She came back in one piece.'”
Taking matters into her own hands, she sent a certified letter to the church’s higher-ups, hoping they would intervene.
The letter was received, but weeks went by without her receiving a response. From there, she reached out to a local reporter.
The reporter said that the youth camp was disgusting and horrific. The reporter called the youth pastor insane and insisted she wanted to cover the story.
The reporter then called the church to ask them questions, and the senior pastor warned her that she did not have all of the information.
“The very next day, a different local newspaper ran a fluff piece praising the trip. The reporter that I was speaking to acknowledged that they were trying to spin the story, and then, strangely, went silent. Not even a reply to my follow-up email,” she continued.
“Since then, the church deleted the youth pastor’s sermon on Facebook (I have it screen recorded), and now the youth pastor is planning/pushing another trip to Honduras this fall.”
“Here is what makes this more concerning: the youth pastor is also president of the county school board, a former police officer who served 12 years, a coach for softball & volleyball & very involved in cheer. His wife, who also went on this trip, is a principal of a public school. Yet with all of that, he still lied to parents and took minors into a dangerous environment with no preparation, no consent, and no plan.”
She doesn’t want to drop this; she wants people to pay attention. She’s afraid that if she remains quiet about what went down on the trip, it’s going to happen to other children.
What advice do you have for her?
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