An Interview with James Williams

James Williams & Canon Sarah Louise Woodford

Last Friday, I was able to spend some time up at Camp Washington with our new Summer Camp Programs Director, James Williams. Below is part of our conversation: 

Sarah Woodford: “Tell me a little bit about your journey to camp ministry. What called you to this trail?” 

James Williams: “It started when I was a wee child and camp came in at a really interesting and important place in my life. I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, and lived there with my family—I was one of five. I have a twin. We’re all boys and were always getting into some trouble. Tragically, when I was 11, my father passed and long story short, it meant that I had to go live with my aunt and uncle in Virginia. My surroundings changed from city to country life and I was completely out of my depth and culture. That was the first summer I went to camp, because my aunt and uncle were like, ‘What do we do with these kids who don’t know anything about Virginia and haven’t made many friends?’ So, I went to camp. It’s called Shrine Mont Camps and is located in Orkney, Virginia. There was a lot I didn’t like, but even that first summer, when everything was new, there were enough beautiful little pieces to keep me coming, so I came back the next summer when I was 12, and I’ve just been hooked for life. 

I made really, really, good friends that first and second summer. I had at least one counselor, Nate Graham, and a bunch of others who I absolutely loved and looked up to. They helped me do a lot of healing and helped me have a lot of fun. 

I went to camp until I was 15 and then I aged out. I then got looped into planning retreats for other kids throughout the school year, which I did for three years. When I was 19, I got to work at camp for the first time as cabin staff—and then I kept coming back. Each year, I thought it would be my last as a counselor, but each year, even through college and past it, I came back. There was something at Shrine Mont for me. 

My great mentor, Paris Ball, also saw that there was wiggle room in my life plan and connected me with a week-long exchange program to a camp in Ohio. I went there, loved it, and figured out that summer camp, universally, is a really important thing. This exchange got me involved in ECCC, which is short for Episcopal Camp & Conference Centers, and people there started wondering why I didn’t work year-round in camp. It was then I got to work at Camp Mokulēʻia in Hawaii for eight months. I just kept saying yes. 

I returned to the Shrine Mont Camps in the summer of 2022 to serve on leadership. At the end of 2022 the bishop asked me if I would direct my childhood camp and you don’t usually say no to a bishop, anyways—but you definitely don’t say ‘no’ if what they’re asking is a lifelong dream of yours. And it was an amazing experience. 

In every moment, I’m not sure that camp will keep happening for me, because people tell you you’re supposed to age out of it, but I don’t, and I’ve kept coming back. And now I’m at Camp Washington, which is really, really, exciting!”   

SW: “Bishop Jeff often speaks about how church camp was formative and transformative for him as a young Christian. Why do you think camp is so formative and transformative to children and young adults?” 

JW: “I once wrote a college essay on this! To begin with, I think at camp, there’s a deep sense of safety for campers, spiritually and emotionally, and with that, you have the ability to try new things and the ability to fail (and try again). And once a kid or adult or anybody is safe and knows it’s okay to make mistakes, what they can get up to is endless! So, I think safety is a huge piece. I think trust is kind of in the same vein and specifically when it is cultivated with a trusted adult. I think a lot about camp counselors and their role, there’s a lot of skills and behind the scenes work that goes into becoming a rock for a kid. Counselors give kids a third space and a third person, especially someone who’s closer to their age, to model what life can look like. I think when you’re young, adults are just saying stuff, and it doesn’t make much sense. But if it’s someone who’s like, ‘Oh, you’re older than me, but not that much, and you still believe in God, and you still go to church. It’s not boring, right?’ It makes a difference. 

I also think that camp is a version of pilgrimage.  I think leaving home opens up so much more autonomy and the ability to question and find yourself for kids. Camp is one of the first places people aren’t being told fully who they are, but they’re figuring out who they are. I think some other pieces about the Christian portion of what makes camp so transformative is whenever two or three are gathered, it’s the best way to find God. I think that’s been true for millennia, and the love and the light you see through human interaction is what makes people smile. Love and community is something every human is searching for in spades. And so, when kids go home from camp, what they know about God is: ‘I’m safe and I laugh a lot and I am known by God’s love.’ 

And then the last thing I always make sure to say is at camp, we are practicing living the world that we want, and we don’t get the chance to do that often.” 

SW: “What are your initial impressions of Camp Washington?” 

JW: “Camp Washington reminds me of my home camp. It’s not a place about things, it’s a place about people. There’s a sense of radical compassion and inclusion that is here and I think that’s really important. I fell in love with Camp Washington because they have intention in their programming and they’re trying to always grow. The leadership, especially Bart, is really looking forward with intention about what camp should be.  

I also appreciate that Camp Washington does little but deeply intentional things that make a wider impact on our community and Church. Ben uses good, locally sourced ingredients to make our Dining Hall meals; we sell and stock our retreat rooms with products from Thistle Farms, which is a churchwide (and nationwide) respected brand; we have a forge where Swords and Plowshares Northeast comes and runs classes.  

And lastly, when I was interviewing, I felt like this diocese really claims its camp, and that’s unbelievably important. ECCT understands both the huge fun part of it, but also the deep mission part of it. I’m excited to work with folks who think like that.” 

SW: “Do you have a favorite camp activity?” 

JW: “From a leadership position, definitely Low Ropes, which are essentially a bunch of obstacles a team must solve and move through. It’s used to build team cohesion and build confidence in yourself and others. I love, love, love, the community and team aspect of low ropes, one of my favorites is one that’s called The Spider Web. It’s a bunch of different ropes that stretch between two trees and you have to pass humans through the holes the ropes make and get them to the other side. It’s so fun to watch people make a plan…or not. Some people don’t make a plan and then try and try again and fail, and then they try again. Experiences like this allow us to ask questions like: What would it look like to fail? How are we kind to each other when we fail? What was working but needs to be refined? All of this is happening while the team is having so much fun. And from a higher level, you get to learn so much about each person. 

But if I was really going to get into my camp mode, there’s something called King Ball, which we played all the time at my last camp. It is essentially four-way Capture the Flag. There’s a flag or a kickball, and it’s a different color in each of the four quadrants. The goal of each team is to get all four balls into their quadrant. You can kick the ball; you can run with it. If you’re tagged, you’re frozen and you have to stay put for a while. So, people are just shrieking and running this direction and that. It’s just the right amount of competitive with silly.” 

Learn more about Camp Washington at https://www.campwashington.org/, including a free Open House on May 18 from 3-6 PM! This interview has been condensed and edited.