Diocese of Spokane’s Camp Cross in Idaho to host inaugural Queer Camp

[Episcopal News Service] The Diocese of Spokane’s Camp Cross in Coeur d’Alene, northern Idaho, is hosting its inaugural Queer Camp from Sept. 6-8 as an opportunity for LGBTQ+ youth and their families to connect and support each other in a safe and affirming environment.

“This is our committed way of showing what The Episcopal Church is, and camp is a place where people can show up and be seen and witnessed and affirmed,” Alex Flannagan, the diocese’s canon for camp, youth and family ministries, told Episcopal News Service. The Diocese of Spokane encompasses eastern Washington and northern Idaho.

At Queer Camp, the 20 campers will participate in typical summer camp activities, including games, crafts, campfires and water activities. Flannagan said, however, that worship will include liturgies specifically chosen for LGBTQ+ people and will include “careful use of pronouns.” Additionally, campers will be able to swim in swimwear that best suits their gender identities without judgment. Pastoral care will also be available for the families, including parents as they privately share their feelings and experiences with supporting their LGBTQ+ children among each other.

Queer Camp is open to all people regardless of religious beliefs or affiliation, though Flannagan said most people who’ve registered are affiliated with The Episcopal Church.

Molly Haffner, a school psychologist for the Colfax School District in Colfax, Washington, will volunteer as a cook while she and her husband, sister and niece attend Queer Camp. She said she’s most looking forward to building a positive community for her teenage niece as she explores her identity.

“As a developmental psychologist who works with children, I know what kind of harm can come from not having a community of acceptance and any kind of moving forward. This is why we need to offer more safe spaces for LGBT youth,” Haffner told ENS. “I think The Episcopal Church is making a big statement, but in a very respectful and positive way.”

In the latest survey from The Trevor Project, a nonprofit organization committed to providing counseling and suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ youth, 39% of LGBTQ+ people ages 13-24 nationwide reported they “seriously considered” attempting suicide in the past year, including 46% of transgender and nonbinary people. Those percentages are higher for LGBTQ+ people of color. Ninety percent of young LGBTQ+ people reported recent politics has “negatively impacted” their well-being, and 45% of transgender and nonbinary people or their families have considered moving to a different state because of LGBTQ+-related politics and legislation. However, the same report shows that young LGBTQ+ people who live in “very accepting” communities attempt suicide at less than half the rate of those who live in “very unaccepting” communities.

“Every person on the planet needs to belong to a community of people who understand them. If there’s no pathway to feeling safe and secure, then clinically it makes sense that the rates of mental health problems are so high,” Haffner said. “If you don’t have peers that can support you, then suicidal ideation is a lot harder, depression is higher and you have more anxiety.”

Flannagan and Haffner both said that offering a queer camp in Idaho for LGBTQ+ youth and their families is more important now than ever as lawmakers in the state continue to pass anti-LGBTQ+ bills. Over the past four years, Idaho has led the country in passing anti-LGBTQ+ bills – nearly 1,800 nationwide. In 2020, Idaho became the first state in the United States to ban transgender women and girls from competing in women’s sports teams sponsored by public schools and institutions of higher education. In June 2020, state lawmakers passed several other anti-LGBTQ+ bills, including a bill that keeps public funds from being used for gender-affirming care.

Anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment also continues to spread nationwide. In 2023, state legislators introduced at least 510 bills targeting LGBTQ+ rights, nearly triple the amount proposed the year before. Additionally, hate crimes targeting marginalized groups, including LGBTQ+ people, have increased in recent years.

“This is why it feels like an obvious call to show Christ’s love and to be bold, and to stand up and say, ‘This is what The Episcopal Church stands for,’ and we’re proud to do it through Queer Camp,” Flannagan said. “It starts with God’s love for all of us as human beings and our dignity.”

Flannagan said Camp Cross is “uniquely positioned” to keep campers safe because it’s situated on McDonald’s Point south of Loff’s Bay on Coeur d’Alene Lake, therefore only accessible by boat. Local law enforcement officers, who regularly visit the camp, have been cooperative and are available if any threats arise during Queer Camp.

Security isn’t just physical, but also verbal and mental, which is why Flannagan said he had to disinvite one Camp Cross counselor from working at Queer Camp after she expressed inappropriate views about LGBTQ+ people.

“Social justice is like a path, and some of us are further along the path than others, and it’s no shame or shade,” Flannagan said. “But when you are catering to a specific population like this, you need to have done some personal work first. Maybe it’s reading or conversing with the right people, or confronting your internal biases that you don’t realize you’ve picked up from the culture you grew up in.”

Flannagan said he hopes Queer Camp can become a bigger, annual Camp Cross event in the middle of summer. He also said he hopes Queer Camp will help families grow closer.

“It’s important to help normalize being LGBT, and to prove that it’s not weird or a trend or a fad. It’s a human experience,” Flannagan said. “By uplifting and showcasing these young people, I hope Queer Camp opens up the hearts of the rest of their families and becomes a celebration of God’s eternal grace.”

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service based in northern Indiana. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.