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BY DAVID E. BOHNERT

Camp Hope, a Christian Appalachian work camp for youth and adults, celebrated 30 years of discipleship

during services at Frost-burg UMC this summer.

Each year, more than 400 youth and adults attend one of four week-long sessions, and together repair about 55 homes.

The teams are responsible for raising funds for registrations and the materials they use for home repairs. Work teams from nine states and six denominations have participated.

Meghan Humbert preached at the 30th anniversary service on June 24. Her earliest memory of Camp Hope stems from when she was a four-year-old and her father was pastor at Frostburg UMC. Today, as youth director of Nichols-Bethel UMC, she takes youth groups to the camp.

'Camp Hope provides an opportunity to make disciples for Jesus Christ,' Humbert said. 'It transforms the campers. They come back year after year, testimony that it does have an impact on lives.'

Julius Jones from Hyde Park, NY, has been coming to Camp Hope for 23 years. 'The work camp is where kids can put into practice the values they learn. As kids encounter people who are different from them economically and culturally, it affects the heart. ... This is discipleship, what Christ wants us to do.'