Finding Christ at Camp

Growing up, Carrie Dixon relished spending time in the Missouri sunshine at Three Trails Camp in Kansas City.

“I have always loved camp,” she recalled. “It was a safe place, a place where I felt I could be myself. My first experience with The Salvation Army was though sunbeams and attending summer camp with my leaders.”

Today, Carrie and her husband Michael, who’ve been married for 23 years, run Three Trails Camp and Retreat Center—the place where they met as teens. Michael is the executive director, while Carrie is the assistant camp director. Three Trails serves children from Kansas and Western Missouri during the summer and is a retreat center from August through May. Even when camp is not in session, Carrie and Michael are busy all year, preparing for their campers.

“I think my experience at camp gives me an opportunity to watch how the guiding principles of [William] Booth are put to use,” Carrie said. “We are able to meet all of the physical needs of our campers, and then we can meet their spiritual needs. We do a lot of fun things, but the purpose of camp is for us to introduce campers to Christ and make sure they have an established relationship with Him.”

In addition to camp, Carrie is highly involved in her corps, working with youth and helping with special events. She serves as the divisional sergeant-major for the Kansas and Western Missouri Division and through this role is a member of the Territorial Soldiers’ Forum.

“I will represent our division and try to provide opportunities for our soldiers to have a voice in our territory. I will also be serving as a member-at-large on the forum’s executive committee. I am praying that God is in the middle of all the planning and implementation of the forum that is ahead.”

Faith in God is woven into every moment of Carrie’s life.

“I feel it’s important to live my faith out loud,” she said. “I try to make a point to always be aware of situations and to stop to offer blessing and pray with people.”

That strong faith has helped her throughout life, even with a heartbreaking loss.

“Many years ago, I was grieving the loss of a stillborn child. I had two children already, and I lost a baby and had to keep going,” Carrie recalled. “I was praying to God to take the hole in my heart and fill it up; let it go away so I could be whole again. I felt that God answered my prayer, saying, ‘I may never fill that hole. But I will let my light shine through it so that you can minister to others.’ There have been so many times in my life I have been able to see experiences like this impact my ministry for Christ.”

Carrie and Michael have three children, one in high school and two in college.

“I’m blessed to be actively involved in my kids’ lives. Some might say I am a professional soccer mom. I have been to lots of soccer games,” Carrie concluded with a chuckle.

Click here to learn more about the Territorial Soldiers’ Forum or find your representative.