Camp Agape 5K offers ‘sleepwalk’ option
Runners cross the finish line of the 2023 Camp Agape 5K Run/Walk/Sleepwalk at Johnson Park in Marble Falls. The 2024 event is Aug. 24. Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography
Camp Agape’s 11th annual 5K kicks off at 8 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, in Johnson Park, 230 Avenue J in Marble Falls. Registration begins at 7 a.m. For those who want to donate but not run or walk, the nonprofit is offering an “sleepwalk” option for staying in bed: a $30 registration fee with a T-shirt mailed to your bed’s location.
Camp Agape offers free camps, retreats, counseling, and after-school programs for kids and families dealing with grief. The program has been serving the Highland Lakes—and growing its offerings—since 2000.
“We celebrate 25 years next year,” fundraiser Director Adrianna Miller said during a KBEY 103.9 FM Radio Picayune on-air interview. “We started serving kids ages 7 to 12, but we’ve expanded now to include families, too.”
Children grieve differently than adults, said Alaina Sivells-Wood, who is the summer camp director.
“The camp allows them to grieve as children,” she said. “They are processing deep emotions but playing and laughing in between. They can be so matter-of-fact, just changing subjects in an instant. It’s just how kids process.”
One of two new additions to Camp Agape is an after-school program that begins this fall in Burnet. Like the camps and retreats, children dealing with grief will meet other kids who have had the same experiences.
Another new program, “Camp in a Box,” is a licensed how-to sold to churches and other organizations that want to hold their own camps. The first camp in a box will be held next year in Michigan.
“Our takeaway for anyone that’s grieving is that you are not alone,” Sivells-Wood said. “That’s the message we share with kids. Let them know God loves them and that other kids have gone through it.”
Entry fees for the 5K are $25 for ages 13 and older and $10 for ages 12 and younger in advance. Same-day registration is $5 more for each age group. Shirts are $10 each. Sleepwalkers can sign up for $30, which includes a shirt mailed later.
After the 5K, everyone will gather for a memorial service that incorporates what Camp Agape is all about.
“We will gather to remember the people that we’ve lost,” Sivells-Wood said.