On Quality of Life Retreats at Manidokan

Today begins one of our favorite retreats/weeks at camp: the Quality of Life retreat. Yes, we do have favorites. The Quality of Life Retreat and the week of Deaf Camp are right up at the top.

For those who don’t know, the Quality of Life program is affiliated with our Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church. It is a program that seeks to provide a space where those with HIV and AIDS can be themselves and be loved—and reminded of God’s love for them. According to their information, they have several key purposes…

Quality of Life Retreats provide:

·         crucial health and disease management information;

·         insightful small-group dialogues and exercises;

·         community-building and morale-lifting activities;

·         optional gatherings for worship and spiritual nurture; and

·         ideal settings where participants can meet and mentor, engage and encourage one another through personal sharing.

Quality of Life hosts several retreats throughout the year, and for the past several years, one of those retreats this week has been held at Manidokan.

I was young when this nation first became aware of the AIDS/HIV epidemic. I remember a bit of the confusion about how the disease is transmitted. I remember Ryan White. I remember Pedro on Real World. I watched “And the Band Played On,” a seminal film about how the disease first came to be understood in this country and indeed, around the world. We are still learning a lot about the disease, and still struggling with misconceptions about it. We still have a difficult time, in many cases, talking about the disease, and I suspect many people would still rather see themselves as isolated from it (and would like to keep it that way).

I’ll tell you what though—I have rarely seen more joy than I do during the Quality of Life retreats. Now, granted, I only see the participants and leaders at meal times, and I am sure everyone’s life is different, and each day if different. And all are complex. That is true for all people, and I can only imagine that a diagnosis of HIV adds a myriad of additional complexities. The Quality of Life retreats have offered, though, some of the most memorable, joy-filled moments I’ve seen at Manidokan. Manidokan is blessed to be able to be a part of this ministry.

Beyond that, we are so fortunate that our daughter Anna has the opportunity to interact with all the varieties of people who come to Manidokan, especially those like the participants in the Quality of Life Retreats. Someday, when Anna learns that HIV and AIDS are, and when she finds out that these awesome, nice people (who are oh-so-sweet and kind to her each time they are at camp) were living with this disease, I hope she thinks to herself, “Huh. There isn’t anything different about these people than others. I can’t imagine why anyone would ever have isolated them, or looked down on them.” I hope this teaches her to take the same approach with all people—to see them for the child of God they have been created to be, and not as a category or statistic. I hope that Anna—and our daughter who is on the way—grows to live a life defined by love rather than fear.

So I’m looking forward, indeed, to the coming days at camp. And if you would like to learn more about this ministry, and how you can support it, check out the Quality of Life page. We have come a long way from the 80s and early 90s, but there is much more to do—and much more of God’s love to share.