KANAKUK KAMPS
Looking for an ideal way to spend your summer vacation? You might join the over 12,000 other teenagers from around the globe who take part in one of the Kanakuk-Kanakomo Kamps. But if you do, be prepared for intensive physical activity and daily Christian devotionals. These are two of the things that define the Kanakuk experience.
World-renown, the Kanakuk Kamps draw young people from over forty states and six international countries. These campers, ranging from seven to eighteen-years-old, take part in one of eight summer camps in Stone, Taney, and Barry counties. Some choose to stay for a complete four-week session; others stay two weeks or one week, depending upon the camp they've chosen.
Over 1,850 Kanakuk staffers work with the campers to help them mature athletically and spiritually. Regularly scheduled activities include canoeing, rappelling, rock climbing, scuba, fishing, windsurfing, gymnastics, rollerblading, soccer, baseball, basketball, archery, sailing, skiing and a dozen other team and individual activities that help young people develop skills and self-confidence. Integrated into every camp are also Christian 
ministry and activities to develop spiritual awareness (www.kanakuk.com/kamps).
The Kanakuk experience has seen phenomenal growth since its inception. The camp was the brainchild of C.L. Ford, who set up a camp for girls, Kickapoo, on Lake Taneycomo in 1926. Ford was a Dallas school teacher who wanted to help city kids share the wholesome renewal that he found in the Ozark Mountains. A few years later, he was able to open a second camp, Kuggaho, across the lake. This second camp was for boys and focused on sports and athletic development (Van Buskirk 187).
In 1932, W.M. Lantz, who had served as director, took over the camps and furthered Ford's vision over the next sixteen years. During this time, Kuggaho consisted of an eight-week term for eighty boys (www.kanakuk.com/history). It was also in 1932 that Spike White came to Kanakuk as a counselor. Originally from Amarillo, TX, White was also inspired by the potential of the camps.
White bought the boys' camp in 1953, renaming it Kanakuk in honor of a Kickapoo Indian chief (Van Buskirk 187). A young man with a growing family, White could not afford to give up his teaching job at Texas A & M University; instead, he, his wife Darnell, and their three sons came to Lake Taneycomo every summer and returned to Texas each fall. In 1961, the Whites built Kanakomo, a sister camp for girls just next to the original Kanakuk (188).
In 1971, the Whites' son Joe moved to Missouri to assume a stronger role in directing the camps. He and his wife Debbie Jo have worked with tens of thousands of young people over the years. Under their leadership the original camp on Lake Taneycomo has mushroomed into eight separate camps in four different locations in southwest Missouri. Kanakuk has even expanded into Colorado, opening a camp for Kanakuk staff and more rugged-minded (and bodied!) teens.
The camps offered in the tri-county, southwest Missouri area have a lot to offer any teenager interested in really growing. Boys' and girls' camps run concurrently at each of the four locations: Branson, Shell Knob, Lampe, and Golden.
K-One
The traditional camp is K-One, open to both boys and girls. This camp location is just off Lakeshore Drive east of Branson. Three 26-day terms are scheduled during the summer for ages 8-13. Six two-week terms are opened to ages 11-12. Activities include ziplining, swinging in the Party Barn, over two dozen sports, and Christian fellowship and worship.
K-Two
Opened in 1978, K-2 is known as the "Adventure/Sports Paradise." Located near Lampe, MO, the three 26-week terms are open to ages 13-16. Six two-week terms are also held for ages 15-18. In addition to the rigorous physical activity and spiritual training, this camp ministers to the special needs of teenagers who are faced with looming questions about drugs, alcohol, sex, ethics, and so forth. Special counselors assist campers in forming healthy pre-adult identities and values.
K-West
K-West offers six two-week terms for boys and girls aged 12-14. Like K-2, this camp is located near Lampe, MO. The camp is especially designed for middle school-aged campers who participate in over 20 sports and Christian activities. The camp was established in 1983.
K-Seven
K-Seven was begun in 1993. Conducted in twelve one-week terms, it is for boys or girls aged 7-18. Camp locations are near Lampe, MO, and just east of Shell Knob, MO. This camp is directed by Keith Chancey. Like the other camps, K-Seven plunges campers headlong into seven days of intense physical and spiritual activity.
K-Kountry
Started in 1988, K-Kountry is a special two-week term for ages 7-11. The camp is located at the Branson location, off of Lakeshore Drive. The focus of this camp is to provide an exciting, activity-filled country experience for young people with over 40 sporting activities. The camp ministry is focused on the developing needs of these pre-teens.
Kids-Across-America I & II
These two camps are conducted just north of Golden, MO, in Barry County. Funded by the I Am Third Foundation, the six two-week terms are designed especially for inner-city and special-needs youth. KAA-1 is open to ages 14-18; KAA-2 is for ages 11-13. Over 4,000 urban youth take part in this experience (www.kanakuk.com/kamps). KAA-1 began in 1991, with KAA-2 following in 1995.
K-Extreme
O
pened in the summer 1999, K-Extreme is designed for young people who actively seek Christian counsel and education. Conducted in four two-week terms, this camp is located near Lampe, MO. It offers the same physical activities that the other camps provide. However, campers engage in much more rigorous study sessions on various topics relevant to their developing Christian faith.
To gain more information on any Kanakuk-Kanakomo Kamp, contact the Kanakuk Office, 1353 Lakeshore Drive, Branson, MO 65616. (Telephone 417-334-2432)
Works Cited & Consulted
Image of soccer ball from http://www.arttoday.com. member page. July 1999.
"Kanakuk Kamp." <www.kanakuk.com.> (17 July 1999)
Photographs of kampers and map courtesy of Kanakuk Kamps, at http://www.kanakuk.com. 18 July 1999.
Van Buskirk, Kathleen. "The Kanakuk Kamps." In the Heart of Ozark Mountain Country: A Popular History of Stone and Taney Counties, Including Branson, Missouri. Ed. Frank Rueter. Reeds Spring, MO: White Oak Press, 1992, pp. 187-88.
