music 0:00
[Andy strumming guitar & Baylee's voice singing: "Let's build, let's build a place we can go"]
Narrator 0:09
Thank you for tuning in to kin*dom campfire chats, a podcast of kin•dom community. This podcast features the voices of LGBTQIA+ persons, both youth participants and adult staff, who attended kin•dom camp in Texas in the summer of 2023. We asked the camp participants to think of a question that they wish someone would ask them about their life journey. With a friend and in their own words, the campers tell their stories of struggle, love, support, and a community found. We invite you to listen with an open mind and an open heart.
music 0:50
[Andy strumming guitar & Baylee's voice singing: "This is the place"]
Tom 0:55
Hi, there. This is Thomas Riggs. I am the producer of this podcast. And with me is Baylee Davis. Baylee is the creative director of kin•dom community. And we wanted to start this podcast series with an introduction, a little explanation of why we're doing this. So that's kind of what you're hearing in this intro, and then after this, as you're listening to the podcast, you're just going to hear the voices of the participants of this podcast.
Baylee 1:31
Yeah! So, Tom, I'm really grateful for you for doing this, and I wanted us to talk about why we decided to do a podcast. So Tom, tell us, why did we decide to do a podcast with the voices of our kingdom camp participants from 2023?
Tom 1:56
Well, having attended the first kin•dom camp in 2022, those of us who were counselors and helpers, and coordinators, we heard a lot of stories from the campers and the adult participants, and the stories were often beautiful, they were tragic, and they were frustrating, both for the person who was saying the stories, and for those of us who were receiving them. We heard stories of coming out, we heard stories of rejection and acceptance that followed. And I personally was blown away by the maturity of these middle and high school aged youth, certainly way more mature at their age than I was at that time. And I thought, well when you grow up queer in this state, in the state of Texas, you're going to find a lot of obstacles, and you're going to have to learn quickly how to handle them. So very simply, I wanted to do a podcast because these stories need to be told. And the idea of doing a community storytelling project, like a podcast, you know, is really intended to create a space where the stories of the marginalized can be heard.
So you and I and and others met for lunch last spring, and I proposed this idea and what was your thought when when it was proposed?
Baylee 3:21
I was so excited. You know, kin•dom camp is a very bold thing to do in the state of Texas, and in order to keep it safe for our campers and our staff, we have to fly under the radar in a lot of ways. We can't post pictures of our campers faces, we can't, you know, get– it's hard to get direct, you know, from our campers, why this camp is so important. And so, your idea to capture their stories and their voices without capturing their faces, their names, or giving any like identifiers away was like the perfect antidote to that problem. This is gonna allow us to tell the story of our campers and therefore tell the story of kin•dom camp and why this spacious space is so important and so special to all of us, especially our campers. So I just can't wait for these episodes to be released. I can't wait for people to hear them. I can't wait for people to hear direct from our campers who they are and their stories, where they come from, and how they got to kin•dom camp, and why kin•dom camp has made such an impact on them. So all around I was excited and still am.
And then that's really– that format of having the campers tell the stories in their own terms in their own voice, how did you– how did you create that space so that they weren't giving away who they are in a way that would make it unsafe? How did you create that space for them to open up?
Tom 5:14
Well, I, I have found that each one of us has a story. And we often want to tell those stories. And frequently, we're just waiting for permission to tell it and we're waiting for a trusted friend with whom we can tell it. It's very simply, sometimes if you if you're honest enough, and if you're, and if you're trusted enough, if you can say, hey, Baylee, how are you doing? You're going to tell me. A trusted mentor years ago said to me, you cannot not tell your own story. We're all kind of in a space where where we really do want to say, what we're feeling in our hearts what we've experienced in our lives. I took an idea from StoryCorps. If anybody listening to this podcast listens to NPR, you're familiar with the format. It's that it's two people, sometimes more, just having a simple conversation. And one person asks the other a question. So what I did was asked the participants to create a question that they wanted to answer. Like, create a question that you wish somebody would ask you so that you could tell your story, you could tell what it's like to be you. And I also asked them to invite a friend or a cabin mate to ask that question. So this creates A, the permission to tell the story and B, trust that the story will be heard. And it also creates a space for dialogue, as the trusted friend who asked the question, could follow up with another question or could just tell their own story, or just see kind of where it goes. So that was kind of the format. That was the idea. As we.. as we release these, you'll find out a little bit more about what's going on in the episode in the show notes. We didn't want to put our own spin on what they were about to say. The participants say it just fine the way that they do.
And so that leads me to ask you another question. What's, and you kind of answered a little bit, but what is your hope for this podcast? What do you hope happens?
Baylee 7:39
I hope a lot of things. I hope that when people hear these episodes, it is educational. I hope it opens their eyes, their hearts, their minds. I hope that they hear these campers as human beings, I hope they hear their stories and take them to heart and understand that no matter what age you are, you have a profound story, a profound wisdom, and your experiences are valid. I hope that for our campers that they feel empowered that their stories are being told, that someone's listening, that they have a platform where they can share these experiences. I hope that these stories travel far and spread the word about kin•dom camp. I hope that it shows the best of what this camp has to offer, which is giving these campers a space to be exactly who they are, and to be told that they're loved and affirmed and celebrated. I hope that it just, I hope that it continues the story of kin•dom camp; that we each have a place we each belong, we can each express ourselves and say who we are proudly. By the time this podcast released, it will be known that our theme for this summer is "Say it Proud," and so that's kind of the perfect avenue for these stories to be released. These are our campers saying it proud, saying who they are proudly, saying their stories proudly, and taking up the space that they deserve to take up. So I have high hopes for this podcast and I know it won't disappoint. I am very excited and grateful.
Tom 9:37
Well thank you for offering little me an opportunity to do this. It is– has been frustrating to hear the stories in what they go through. It's been beautiful. It's been– it's raised a lot of anger. It's raised a lot of frustration at at certain people and dare I say certain governments? They're going to tell– they're going to tell this story in a beautiful and insightful and wonderful way. And I'm excited for it too. So, episode two, go ahead and download that and get started. Thank you, Baylee for everything that you do this.
Baylee 10:24
Thank you, Tom.
Tom 10:25
You're welcome.
music 10:27
[Andy strumming guitar & Baylee's voice singing: "Oh let's build, let's build a place we can go"]
Narrator 10:36
Thank you for listening to kin•dom campfire chats. This podcast is a production of kin•dom community. You can find out more about kin•dom community by going to kindomcommunity.org or by searching kin•dom community on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
Baylee 11:01
Hi y'all, it's Baylee. I'm the Creative Director of kin•dom community.
Andy 11:06
And I'm Andy, the Program Director of kin•dom community.
John 11:10
And I'm John, the executive director of kin•dom community.
Baylee 11:13
We wanted to talk a little bit more about kin•dom camp and how you can get involved.
Andy 11:18
kin•dom camp is an opportunity for LGBTQIA+ youth ages 12 to 17 to feel safe and free to show up as their full selves. Campers will have the chance to experience all the fun that camp has to offer in a week filled with affirmation, community, and celebration. This camp is intentionally created to be affirming space. It affirms all genders, sexualities, identities and varieties of belief. The only thing we expect is a commitment to welcoming and celebrating everyone where they are as they are.
Baylee 11:47
And this isn't just any summer camp - we're talking rainbows and glitter everywhere. kin•dom camp will include plenty of traditional camp activities and recreation, plus some specialized programming to incorporate activities and conversations around mental health, yoga, embodiment, and LGBTQIA+ history and culture. Now more than ever, LGBTQ youth are in need of unconditional love and acceptance. kin•dom camp is a space for just that.
John 12:17
We're always looking for fully affirming, welcoming, and loving adults to help us make kin•dom camp a success. This will be a wonderful opportunity to connect with, mentor, and learn from our youth. But most importantly, we ask that you are ready to celebrate everyone where they are as they are.
Andy 12:36
Both registration for campers and applications to be on camp staff are now open. You can find these links on our website kindomcommunity.org/camp. If you have any questions you can't find the answers to you can email me at Andy@kindomcommunity.org.
Baylee 12:51
Also, be sure to check this out on socials @kindomcommunity on Instagram and Facebook. We post all of our important announcements and fun camp moments so you'll want to follow along.
John 13:02
Thanks for listening to kin•dom campfire chats. We are proud to be a safe space for these campers, and we are even more proud of them for sharing their stories. We hope you'll keep gathering around the campfire with us as we celebrate all of the stories that make us this kin•dom community.
music 13:21
[Andy strumming guitar & Baylee's voice singing: "Oh let's build..."]
