The Lazy River by Samantha

The Lazy River by Samantha - March 2026 Scholarship Essay

I stepped out of the van into the humid Missouri air and onto the grounds of Camp Barnabas (a camp for people with special needs). I felt excited for what the next week would bring. That night, I chose a camper to partner with.

Seeing my camper’s big smile the next day filled me with an immense amount of joy. She was so excited to be at camp for the first time. Joy continued to radiate from her throughout the week, as we participated in activities together, with one of the most memorable being going to the pool.

Her favorite part of the pool was the lazy river. She would do laps upon laps and not want to leave and would jump on my back and have me walk through the river. Her smile was huge, and it made me realize how lucky I was to be able to spend the week with her. At one point, I started singing along to the worship songs that were being played. When she started singing along with me, it was the most precious thing ever. I wanted to cry from happiness. My camper was nonverbal for the most part and barely spoke to me, so hearing her sing with me was my milestone of the week.

This trip taught me the importance of putting the needs of others above my own. Taking care of another person for a week was not easy, and there were times I felt overwhelmed and frustrated to the point I wished I could give up. I felt both physically and mentally exhausted. When feeling this way, I would take a small step back and take a moment to realize why I had gone on this trip in the first place. I went so that I could serve someone else and give them an unforgettable experience. My goal was to help my camper have fun, even if I didn’t always want to do what she did, so I pushed my own desires aside to accomplish this. I learned that I am capable of doing this when I really care about the people I am serving.

My time with my camper holds a special place in my heart because of what I was able to take away from her specifically. She had her hard times; she wouldn’t want to do anything and would refuse to move. However, she still had so many happy moments, such as our time at the pool. To me, this shows that we all will have our hard times, but we can’t let them stop us from enjoying the good ones. This is something that I always try to keep in mind wherever I am serving. Although there may be moments that are hard, I know that there will also be many positive ones. This mindset helps me to continue serving wherever and whenever I can. I look for these opportunities so that I can bring the same joy of my camper to even more people.