Hi there! I’m Chandra Styles.
During the summer I serve as the Leadership and Discipleship Director here at Camp Kadesh. During the school year I am one of the Pastors at Lakeview Church in Saskatoon. I became a pastor because I love camp ministry so much that I want to continue building the relationships I make at camp all year long.
I decided to believe in and follow Jesus when I was a camper at Camp Kadesh at the age of 11. I wasn’t raised in a home where we went to church or talked about faith often, so when I was introduced to the idea that there was a God who created me and loved me and knew me, it took me a while to open myself up to what believing that could mean for my life. Summer after summer I returned to camp, experiencing unconditional love from staff and hearing about Jesus who had changed their life. Finally I realized that I, too, wanted to follow Jesus and learn to love myself and others in this way. I came back to Saskatoon and went to the nearest church, Forest Grove Community Church, where I got connected to a community that helped me learn more about what it meant to know, experience, and follow Jesus.
I didn’t ever plan to work in a ministry setting, let alone two! But as I grew to know more about who Jesus is and what He is about, I couldn’t help but feel drawn to places where I could help young people discover the same things. Because there are so many negative influences in our world today, I so desire for young people to have a place to be loved, encouraged, believed in, and valued. I think that camp is one of the best places for that! I believe strongly that campers should be given opportunities to explore what they believe, why they believe it, and how it effects their life in a safe and supported environment. I am also passionate about helping our staff realize their gifts and abilities and seeing them use those things to impact the lives of our campers, not just at camp, but through relationships that are continued all year through. One of the ways we encourage those relationships to continue is through our summer program called The Connection which happens every Tuesday night in Saskatoon in the months of July and August. (Find out more here)
I consider myself to be strong leader and love that my job at camp can also include helping speak into our mission and vision, the strategies we use to get there, and how we build our staff as strong leaders. I am passionate about helping Camp Kadesh continue to be a relevant place for young people to encounter Jesus.
I currently live in Saskatoon for 42 weeks a year with my husband, Kirk, our two sons, Lorne and Dylan, our two room mates (who happen to be camp staff), and our dog Audrey. I live the other 10 weeks at camp! I like to be involved in encouraging other people who work with youth and do so by being a part of the leadership team for the Canadian Youth Worker Conferences. I also love to head to California with busloads of teenagers for Easter Break every year on a trip called California Breakaway. In any downtime I have I love to cook, walk by the river (when it’s not -50 bajillion), drink coffee, sing, and write. And make lists. And make lists for my lists. I LOVE lists.
