CAMP UNITED WE STAND

A COMMUNITY RE-ENTRY CAMP

My name is Jordan. Three and a half years ago, I arrived at Camp United We Stand (CUWS) with nothing. A personal crisis had led to me losing my home, and I was navigating the darkest and most difficult period of my life.

I arrived at camp a boy, broken by my circumstances and expecting only shelter. But instead of a handout, the community offered me a path to becoming a man. I was surrounded by people, primarily elderly residents and veterans, who understood struggle but refused to be defined by it. They didn't just offer sympathy; they offered responsibility. I went from being a resident to being a part of an elected leadership committee, entrusted to help manage the daily life and survival of our 30-person encampment.

That trust changed everything. The camp provided constant opportunities through hardship and community to test and strengthen my character. I found myself mediating disputes, organizing meetings, and managing the immense physical logistics of moving our community every 90 days. In that work, I also solidified my faith, going from a scattered, broken individual to a confident and steady follower of Christ. By ensuring our community was safe and heard, I rediscovered the mature, responsible adult I was meant to be.

The camp didn't just save my life; it gave me a new one. It was from my tent at CUWS that I enrolled in college, and it was the stability and self-worth I learned there that allowed me to make the honors list. The discipline and sense of purpose I regained at CUWS are the primary reasons I am now enlisting in the Washington Army National Guard.

Camp United We Stand is proof that a community can do more than just house people—it can restore them. It restored my pride, my discipline, and my belief in a future. For that, I am eternally grateful.

God Bless this camp, and everyone involved.