My relationship with UW began in 2007. My college roommate signed up to coach basketball for the summer. She sent me postcards from all the states she traveled to and called with exciting stories of using sports to share the gospel.…

Fast forward to 2011 and Cory Bradow was bringing us magnets from the states he traveled to with UW. In 2022 our church hosted our first sports camp! Pine River is a small town, so we partner with three other local churches to now host both a morning and evening camp. We have over 120 kids between the two camps.

UW has been amazing to work with. We love that we don’t need a team to learn songs, prep Bible stories/object lessons, or set a schedule. Instead, our volunteers focus on engaging with kids and making meaningful connections. We have seen Sports Camp open the door to kids and families who aren’t plugged in with a local church. They are coming back year after year and telling their friends. We appreciate UW’s approach to sharing the Gospel. They share Bible stories and songs that point to Jesus and the message of salvation.

Last summer, I had the incredible opportunity to serve with UW Sports Ministry, helping run basketball camps through the church and using the game we love to share the love of Jesus. One of the greatest blessings was witnessing how God moved…not only in the lives of the kids, but in their families and in us as coaches.…

What started as basketball became so much more: relationships were built, hearts were touched, faith was shared, and God showed us that His plans are always bigger than our own.

Saying goodbye to the kids at the end of camp was one of the hardest parts. When you invest in them, build relationships, and get to see God working in their lives, you wish you could stay longer. But there is something beautiful about knowing that our job was never to do the work of God, but to be faithful in planting the seed and trust Him to do what He does best. We may not get to see every part of the story, but God does. And we can trust Him to continue working long after we have left.

What an amazing reminder that sports is just a platform, but the real mission is so much greater. We may have come to coach a game, but God gave us the opportunity to be part of something with an eternal impact. Forever grateful for the opportunity, the kids, their families, and every coach who poured into them. All we can do is be obedient, plant the seed, and trust God with the harvest!

Our church was looking to do more outreach to our community beyond the traditional VBS. UW Sports Ministry was a great alternative that reached families that we would not normally reach through a VBS. UW is more active and hands-on, and allows our volunteers to bond in unique ways.…

Over the past 3 years, we have reached over 3 dozen new families who are now regular members of our church body. For example, we partnered with three summer daycares to provide a morning camp for their children. Not only did many of those children respond to the gospel, but many of their staff members also began attending our church because of their exposure to the truth of Jesus!

I would recommend UW Sports Ministry to any church or organization that desires to use their summer camp as a powerful evangelistic and church-building tool.

Working with UW simplifies the frenetic process of summer camp planning. They are well organized, and you can reach a staff member directly by phone or text. I would highly recommend inquiring into how UW Sports Ministry can best assist with your church’s summer program.