Welcome to Heroes Camp - Case Study Example

Final Paper Table of Contents Introduction 3 Heroes Camp 4 Thesis 6 Arguments 7 Conclusion 12 References 13 Bibliography 14 Introduction The importance of cultures and sub – cultures has tremendous influence in to our day – to - day lives. The culture is the broad head that defines the factors associated with a particular type of methodology and is comprised of various sub – cultures. Sub – cultures are the narrow understandings of the process, aim and ambience. It is rightly observed that the word ‘change’ is the only constant word of the present world of today. The massive developments in the segments of information technology and communication process have not only changed the terms and the tricks of trade as well as business and profession but also have influenced the societal values. With the boom of the information technology, the reach of the citizens had widened by great extent and the people are exposed to various upcoming trends. The increasing impact of globalization has further made the world, a small place to live in and opened up huge window for the common mass. Therefore, it can be said without much hesitation that the world is changing at a very fast speed. And there lies the importance of cultures and sub – cultures. The analysis of sub – cultures helps one to understand the behavior that is not in line with the majority of the population (Prus, “Symbolic interaction and ethnographic research: intersubjectivity and the study of human lived experience”). While a large portion of the populace is busy in spending materialistic and selfish lives, few of the good and noble - hearted citizens are spending day in and day out for the greater good of the society. It is all the more impressive when the work is being done with the ‘at risk’ children who are deprived from many of the facilities of the developed world. Heroes Camp has been a tremendous example of such sub – culture that has been in to work for more than 20 years now at South Bend of Indiana. Heroes Camp Heroes Camp is a ministry based upon the thoughts of Christianity that works vigorously for the good of the society. The camp is located at the South Bend of Indiana and had been founded by Pat Magley and B. J. Magley in the year of 1989. With more than 21 years of experience, the ministry has at least seven full – time personalities in the service of the God that are crucial in running of the ministry. Heroes Camp has been working among the ‘at risk’ children of the region and those children are grouped into two groups on the basis of their ages. The first group comprises of those aged in between 6 years to 13 years while the other group is over and above 14 years of age. The camp has a definite strategy in attracting the deprived children towards it through the means of the popular game of basket ball. The camp provides opportunities to play basket ball if one enrolls with it and then the other facilities are also provided to him in the way of God. The target group of children or the prospective members is basically the ‘at risk’ children that include those from the gangs, substance and drug abuse and drug overdose. The ministry also looks in to those who suffer from the fatherlessness and hunger. Heroes Camp provides all the modern facilities and amenities to the inculcated members and the list includes “food, clothing, shelter, counseling, tutoring, court appearances, haircuts and the Word of God to the Michiana community; all free of charge” (Heroes Camp, “Reach for the Heavens”). The group strives hard to inculcate various positive qualities among the youths like that of hope, love and various skills of love. The present facility of the camp comprises of the area of 20,000 square meters that includes three basket ball courts, locker room, food bank and a laundry area along with offices. There is almost no doubt that the sub – culture is tremendously flourishing and has extensive reach in the locality. The group provides for development of spirit, soul and body of those overlooked and disadvantages youths of the South Bend of Indiana. The target groups of prospective members basically involve those who are challenged by circumstances of life. The sub – culture believes in the wholistic growth of the individual and provides every facility to the individuals so that they can achieve all round development. Heroes Camp, in the name of God, facilitates the destinies of the young men. It also provides every opportunity so that the life of the incumbent turns out to be productive and they become the leaders of the next generation (Heroes Camp, “History”). The highly experienced as well as dedicated management and the office – bearers have been instrumental in the success of the sub – culture of Heroes Camp. The camp was founded by Pat Magley in the year of 1989 along with his wife, B. J. Magley. They both had left their respective positions and have been serving the ministry fulltime. Their only daughter, Kelly Perri also has much experienced to work among the deprived children in the region of Central and South America. After she had completed her course of her childhood interest i.e. dancing, she returned to the ministry founded by her parents and joined it. She, along with her able husband oversees the functions of management and also looks over the fund development functions and expansion related matters. Patrick Perri, the husband of Kelly Perri, has been a tennis enthusiast and had been ordained with Heroes Camp. He had been involved in the ministerial activities since his high school days. Pastor Tyron Harris, ordained in the year of 2007, has been involved with Heroes Camp since 1989. He has been an avid basket ball player and is in charge of the health related activities of the children in the ministry. Associate Pastor Shawn Henderson was also ordained in the year of 2007. He was a teacher of great influence in his early career and also after he joined the ministry, he has been involved in his passion of teaching to the children residing there. Shawn Henderson was also a champion of basket ball and is involved with the strategy of attracting the ‘at risk’ children to the ministry with the game of basket ball (Heroes Camp. “About Us”). Thesis The sub – culture of Heroes Camp has been playing a very constructive role in managing the lives of the ‘at risk’ youths of the South Bend region of Indiana. The ministry has been contributing positively towards the all round growth and development of the youth and that involves the mind, body and soul of the members. The ministry also aims to take the young minds toward their destiny through the way of God. Arguments The relationship between sub – culture and Christianity is age old. It can be experienced from literature of all across the globe that the advocates of Christianity and the church always tried to help and assist the needy and the poor. In order to do so, the church always tried to inculcate a sense of sub – culture among the residents so that there can be collective effort in the way of the attainment the Lord’s grace and blessings. In order to do so, the highly dedicated individuals as well as the church tried to be part of all the good work for the society like that of education, medical benefits and professional training. It invariably contributed towards the formation of sub – culture (Bakvis, “Catholic Power in the Netherlands”). The ethnographic interview that was conducted with two of the top officials of Heroes Camp also revealed that Heroes Camp is playing active role in providing the facilities of the ‘at risk’ children and youth of the locality of South Bend. The group attracts the children with the help of the game of basket ball. It can be achieved because of the likes of Shawn Henderson and Tyron Harris, both involved with the game actively in their college days. Picture 1- Children at full fledged practice at Heroes Camp The in charge of administration, funds and expansion, Kelly Perri was of the view that today the ministry has considerable importance over the lives of the region, thanks to the good work of the ministry all these years. Ms. Perri also informed that though there were certain issues of funds in the early years but at present there are no such problems and there is ample number of donors and sponsors all across the globe. The group is also looking forward to expansion in many of the other states so that it can bring in more number of deprived children with in the periphery of the ministry for their development. Picture 2 - Typical look of Heroes Camp The founder of the sub – culture of Heroes Camp is a firm believer of God. During a conversation with Pat Magley his belief is revealed. He says, “Imagination is a God characteristic. The enemy tries to pervert our thought life by creating a fantasy realm in our minds. He will use drugs, sex, religion, poverty and pride to pervert our imagination. For instance, alcohol brings you into an alter state of mind, but prayer and groaning also bring you into a alter state of mind. Both realms are supernatural, but only one is a sanctified gateway into reality where what’s not seen are more real than what is seen. Fantasy is an illegitimate realm that lends itself to wrong ideas and wrong thought. So now we are walking around with all this great revelation that came through prayer, but our imagination must be sanctified so we don’t mishandle, mishear, misinterpret and miss GOD. God doesn’t care if we are strong in revelation and can walk around articulating what we see. He cares that we are strong in our pursuit to maintain a pure birth canal for that revelation. Everything generates a thought, not always a response. Thoughts without a frame run rampid. Prayer provides that frameworks. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but testing knocks it in.” (Heroes Camp, “On the Court with Pat”). The case of Heroes Camp has been tremendous successful. The ministry has launched its dedicated website and is having its presence felt all across the globe. The group also has the provisions of accepting donations from ant corner of the world, thanks to the development of e-commerce service providers like Pay Pal and other credit card payment options. The donations are crucial because it helps the ‘at – risk’ children to have the basic amenities of life. Picture 3 – Time for food Conclusion Heroes Camp has been the sub – culture in the truest sense of the term. It has been continuously contributing towards the greater good of society and life. The children who could fall prey to the un – social and anti – social activities like that of drug abuse, criminal activities and immoral trafficking, has been recovered and rehabilitated by the ministry. Heroes Camp could develop a sense of Lord among those young minds. The ministry uses the attraction towards the game of basket ball to bring in the children in to the purview of ministry. There is no doubt that Heroes Camp has been a great success in the domain it works and has been a strong force in to the management of the lives of those deprived and orphans of South Bend. The analysis of Heroes Camp also validates the fact that the sub – culture truly works for the mankind in the way of the Lord. References Bakvis, Herman. Catholic power in the Netherlands McGill-Queens Press - MQUP, 1981. Heroes Camp, “On the Court with Pat”. February 23, 2010. No Date. Heroes Camp, “Reach for the Heavens”. February 23, 2010. Home. No Date. Heroes Camp, “About Us”. February 23, 2010. Welcome to Heroes Camp. No Date. Heroes Camp, “About Us”. February 23, 2010. Welcome to Heroes Camp. No Date. Prus, Robert C. Symbolic interaction and ethnographic research: intersubjectivity and the study of human lived experience. SUNY Press, 1996. Bibliography Gelder, K. & Thornton, S. The Sub – Culture Reader Routledge, 1997. LeCompte, Margaret Diane & Schensul, Jean J. Designing and conducting ethnographic research Rowman Altamira, 1999. Read More