The Naming Project Summer Camp
Bay Lake, 16257 Brighton Point Road, Deerwood, MN 56444
About
The Naming Project Summer Camp is a five-day summer camp for youth that focuses on support for youth on issues of coming out, families, Christianity, and general support. The program includes communications with parents, pastors, and church staff about ministry with LGBTQ youth, as well as advice for LGBTQ youth organizations facing issues of religion.
• Schedule: Summer Youth Camp July 26-31, 2026; a five-day summer camp for youth
The mission of The Naming Project is to create places of safety for youth of all sexual orientations and gender identities where faith is shared and healthy life-giving community is modeled. The Naming Project is a Christian ministry serving youth of all sexual and gender identities and is described as an LGBTQ and allied church camp. It provides a space in which youth who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning or allied can learn, grow, and share their experiences, and a space in which youth can comfortably discuss faith, who they understand themselves to be, and how they relate to God and the rest of the world. The Naming Project is a Christian ministry that walks with youth wherever they are on their own faith journey. The goal of The Naming Project is to provide a safe and sacred space where youth of all sexual orientations and gender identities are named and claimed by a loving God; can explore and share faith; experience healthy and life-giving community; reach out to others; and advocate for systemic change in church and society. The work of The Naming Project is to provide a safe space for LGBTQ and allied youth to discuss spirituality and sexuality and to remind each person of being named as a child of God. Today The Naming Project continues to provide safe, welcoming, and nurturing environments for LGBTQ and allied youth.
In Minneapolis in the fall of 2002, Jay was approached by a Christian educator, and in April of 2003 The Naming Project came into being. From these beginnings, The Naming Project Summer Camp kicked off in August of 2004. Youth from around the country attend the summer camp, and the organization communicates with youth, parents, pastors, youth workers, and others who care for LGBTQ youth.
The Naming Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. The Naming Project Summer Camp was featured on “Our America with Lisa Ling” on the Oprah Winfrey Network, and some of the camp story is illustrated in the award-winning documentary “Camp Out.” The Rev. Megan Jane Jones Memorial Scholarship will cover a full camp registration and transportation costs to attend, and one scholarship will be awarded each year; this scholarship is in addition to the financial aid provided to campers who request it.
Campers have shared prayers and reflections such as, “I pray that God helps me to find my strengths and figure out how to use them to help others. I pray that God works through me so that I can use my gifts to do good in the world. I pray that God helps me to change the world for the better.” Another camper wrote, “Stop the hate. Feed the hungry. Accept the differences. Open your arms to all. Bless the broken. Forgive the sorry.” One camper shared, “A better future for all LGBTQ people and our generation. Love Jesus & God. World peace. Love for everybody.” Another camper wrote, “I pray for those who are alone in the dark. I pray for those who are lost and should be found. I pray for myself so that I may love all that I am. I pray for those who live as a shadow of themselves. Honestly, God, I would just like peace to wash over my heart... at least for a short time. Amen.” A camper also expressed, “Love God. Love one another. Celebration of diversity. Inclusion and equality. Experiencing God in the way we are created. Hope for the hurting, hungry, and oppressed. Anger turned into peace and gentleness. Transformation of our earthly bodies. Everyone gathered at the table.”
Last updated December 30, 2025.
• Schedule: Summer Youth Camp July 26-31, 2026; a five-day summer camp for youth
The mission of The Naming Project is to create places of safety for youth of all sexual orientations and gender identities where faith is shared and healthy life-giving community is modeled. The Naming Project is a Christian ministry serving youth of all sexual and gender identities and is described as an LGBTQ and allied church camp. It provides a space in which youth who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning or allied can learn, grow, and share their experiences, and a space in which youth can comfortably discuss faith, who they understand themselves to be, and how they relate to God and the rest of the world. The Naming Project is a Christian ministry that walks with youth wherever they are on their own faith journey. The goal of The Naming Project is to provide a safe and sacred space where youth of all sexual orientations and gender identities are named and claimed by a loving God; can explore and share faith; experience healthy and life-giving community; reach out to others; and advocate for systemic change in church and society. The work of The Naming Project is to provide a safe space for LGBTQ and allied youth to discuss spirituality and sexuality and to remind each person of being named as a child of God. Today The Naming Project continues to provide safe, welcoming, and nurturing environments for LGBTQ and allied youth.
In Minneapolis in the fall of 2002, Jay was approached by a Christian educator, and in April of 2003 The Naming Project came into being. From these beginnings, The Naming Project Summer Camp kicked off in August of 2004. Youth from around the country attend the summer camp, and the organization communicates with youth, parents, pastors, youth workers, and others who care for LGBTQ youth.
The Naming Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. The Naming Project Summer Camp was featured on “Our America with Lisa Ling” on the Oprah Winfrey Network, and some of the camp story is illustrated in the award-winning documentary “Camp Out.” The Rev. Megan Jane Jones Memorial Scholarship will cover a full camp registration and transportation costs to attend, and one scholarship will be awarded each year; this scholarship is in addition to the financial aid provided to campers who request it.
Campers have shared prayers and reflections such as, “I pray that God helps me to find my strengths and figure out how to use them to help others. I pray that God works through me so that I can use my gifts to do good in the world. I pray that God helps me to change the world for the better.” Another camper wrote, “Stop the hate. Feed the hungry. Accept the differences. Open your arms to all. Bless the broken. Forgive the sorry.” One camper shared, “A better future for all LGBTQ people and our generation. Love Jesus & God. World peace. Love for everybody.” Another camper wrote, “I pray for those who are alone in the dark. I pray for those who are lost and should be found. I pray for myself so that I may love all that I am. I pray for those who live as a shadow of themselves. Honestly, God, I would just like peace to wash over my heart... at least for a short time. Amen.” A camper also expressed, “Love God. Love one another. Celebration of diversity. Inclusion and equality. Experiencing God in the way we are created. Hope for the hurting, hungry, and oppressed. Anger turned into peace and gentleness. Transformation of our earthly bodies. Everyone gathered at the table.”
Last updated December 30, 2025.
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