LEHI, Utah — Laughter and cheers filled the parking lot outside the Lehi Utah Pheasant Pointe Stake Center as groups of Primary children aimed bean bags, tossed water balloons, blew straws to push small boats, hopped in gunny sacks and more.
“It has been fun,” said Lucas Gifford, age 8. “We are playing fun games. My favorite is either the water balloon toss or the boats.”
Stockton Miller, 9, liked competing against other teams. And Zachary Perry, 8, said the day was “Amazing — because there’s a lot of stuff to do, and I haven’t been getting bored.”
The field games were part of different events for a Primary Day Camp — modeled after For the Strength of Youth and incorporating the Children and Youth program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The large stake has nearly 300 children who are in Activity Days — those turning 8 this year through 11 years old — so leaders held a day camp for half the children on June 10 and the other half on June 17.
The morning began with children meeting their groups, socializing and getting to know other children and decorating posters together. Then they learned cheers with their counselors — two young single adults for each group — and by mid-morning they moved outside for the field games.
After a sack lunch, the children heard a spiritual message from a member of the stake presidency. Then, they had an intellectual presentation about the mechanics of flight and worked on making paper airplanes fly in the cultural hall.
Then came prizes and treats in the afternoon, followed by a closing prayer before parents came to pick up the children.
Whitney Laycock, the Lehi Utah Pheasant Pointe Stake Primary president, said her presidency wanted the children to learn about and have an experience with each of the areas of the personal development part of the Children and Youth program.
But she was concerned that their Primary was missing out on large group activities, especially since the Church moved away from Cub Scouts — and since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The children still have Activity Days in their small groups, but they are not doing things together. We wanted to remind them that they still can,” Laycock said.
She felt that the stake Primary Day Camp could be a model for the wards to plan activities and day camps without feeling like things were getting too complicated or without needing a large budget.
Modeled after FSY
Young Men General President Steven J. Lund has said, “Something special happens at FSY. The event is bringing youth to Christ and helping them feel enthusiasm about the gospel. The question to ask ourselves is why isn’t that happening in more of our stake and ward activities, camps and conferences?”
This is the Pheasant Pointe stake’s year for the youth to attend For the Strength of Youth conferences, said Laycock.
“The children’s older brothers and sisters have been excited to go to FSY,” she said. “We wanted the children to have something to look forward to as well. We wanted them to get a taste of FSY.”
She said their Primary presidency had been working since January to get everything coordinated for the June day camps — picking activities, finding supplies, communicating with ward Primary leaders, etc.
The preparation included recruiting young single adults in the stake and members of the single adult ward (Lehi SA 40th Ward) as counselors, training them not just on the games and activities but also training them according to the Church’s safety guidelines.
Emily Silva is in the single adult ward and serves as the stake Primary secretary. She was grateful to see the single adults invited to participate. “We love feeling like we are a part of the stake,” she said.
JaNae Gifford, the first counselor in the stake Primary presidency, said as other wards and stakes look to do similar day camps or large group activities with the Primary, they should look to the single adults for help.
“They want to feel like they are participating on a stake level as well,” Gifford said. “This was a great way to integrate them in our stake and help them feel needed and wanted.”
Cabe Jensen, 18, from the Pheasant Pointe 5th Ward, was one of the counselors with Porter Graham, 21, who attends Brigham Young University. The two led their team of children in cheers and encouraged them through the different activities during the day.
“It has been fun, I enjoy this,” Jensen said. “It’s fun to play games.”
Graham said when the children first arrived in the morning, they were a little reluctant and shy. “But once you start playing with them, they warm up to you and get excited and have a lot of fun,” he said.
Graham will be an FSY counselor next month, and he remarked how the day camp was similar to that pattern.
Areas of growth and development
In between activities on June 17, Zachary told the Church News what he likes most about Primary, and it is “that you get to sing.” He said he feels good when he sings. His mom, Michelle Perry, the second counselor in the stake Primary presidency, said Zachary has been working on a spiritual goal as well of reading the scriptures.
As Perry looked around at all the simultaneous games, she expressed gratitude for the volunteers who came to help. “We said ‘We have this need; who wants to do it?’ Some of these counselors helped last week as well, that’s how much they have loved it,” she said.
Young men and young women were also involved. Gifford’s 14-year-old daughter Brookely was a volunteer at one of the outdoor activities.
“It’s a ski run, it’s pretty cool,” she said, as the children used wooden beams and ropes to try to move as one. “We are helping the children understand leadership and how to work together as a group. It is hard at first, but when they get it, it’s super fun and easier to do.”
Brookely enjoyed meeting some of the 11-year-old girls in the stake who would be joining the Young Women program next year. She said during the day camp’s events, she was learning new skills herself that worked to fill goals in Children and Youth.
Silva said that was exactly what they hoped to accomplish — the social, physical, spiritual and intellectual areas of growth and development that are a part of the program were a part of the day camp.
“We wanted the kids to see it’s easy, it’s not hard to find things to do to be able to accomplish the children and youth goals. It’s integrated into your life,” she said.
Spanish-speaking missionaries from the Orem Utah Mission were invited as well, as the June 17 day camp included children from the Lehi 38th Ward (Spanish).
Feeling joy and the Spirit
The stake Primary presidency attended a training with members of the Primary general presidency last year and learned that they needed to create opportunities to help children feel the Spirit and put a name to that feeling.
Laycock said her presidency has taken that to heart.
“This day camp is a chance to help the children see that the gospel can be fun and joyful, but it will also give us a chance to help the children identify the Spirit that has made them feel comfortable and happy,” she said.
She said the development of testimonies with Primary children cannot be an afterthought.
“If we invest in helping them grow their testimonies, it will pay off later in stronger youth,” she said.
When he learned about the plans in Lehi, Brother Bradley R. Wilcox, first counselor in the Young Men general presidency, said, “This is a wonderful example of a stake successfully patterning after the FSY model — especially as they have engaged YSA in the role of mentoring the children.”
Young Women General President Bonnie H. Cordon said, “We speak often about the secret sauce of FSY. Part of that recipe is that it is a multiday event.”
But she said there are other elements that can be patterned after and used as leaders plan effective activities in the Children and Youth program.
“This Primary day camp included a variety of activities that engaged the children,” President Cordon said. “They did not just come to sit and listen. They came to participate. That’s how we learn at FSY conferences as well.”
