Walking Together
Wade with a group of Rocket Campers
Because he has a twin brother, Wade Crevier has seldom been alone. However, like many campers and staff at Fortune Lake, Wade learned what it meant to truly walk with someone else through the challenges of life through his work at camp.
When Wade and his brother Lance had just graduated from high school, Pr. David Murphy of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Peshtigo, WI encouraged them to apply for summer staff at Fortune Lake. It took them a full year to come around to the idea, eventually deciding on a whim to commit to work somewhere that they had only visited once before. Wade recalls driving to camp that summer thinking, “Oh no. What did we do?”
But it didn’t take long for Wade to feel at home in this new place. He quickly realized that the summer was going to be a lot of fun, and that he could truly be himself at camp. Although he didn’t yet know how, he found himself thinking that the summer was going to be a game changer.
A couple weeks later, with staff training under his belt, Wade was making his way from the duplexes to the pavilion with some Victory Campers. The campers were tired from a busy day of activities, and one camper, Rodney, preferred to ride in a wheelchair rather than walk. His friend was pushing him along through the rugged terrain, and Wade watched in admiration. Suddenly, the camper pushing the wheelchair looked at Wade and said, “Do you know why I’m pushing Rodney? Because I love him like I love Jesus. I’m happy to be pushing him, and I’m happy to be here learning about Jesus.”
In that moment, Wade was caught off guard by the selfless love of a friend. He felt as if he’d witnessed a glimpse of the kingdom of God in the here and now.
In the years since that impactful moment, Rodney has passed away. When Wade recalls that trek across the field, he is hopeful that in his final hours, Rodney remembered the love of Jesus and that he had a family at Fortune Lake who loved him dearly.
Wade leans on that moment – and others like it – as he prepares for his future as a pastor. He is currently an M. Div. student at Wartburg Seminary. Wade anticipates many more moments walking with people through the rugged terrain of life. He hopes that he can walk with them exactly where they are, just as he witnessed two friends walking together across the Fortune Lake field.
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