The black dutch oven placed on the table had only minutes before been sitting on the coals left by an open fire. The Trailblazers’ chili was the first to arrive.
Cameron Boys Camp (CBC) director Drew Scott arrives at the dining hall’s kitchen and grabs his chili that had been simmering in a red crock pot. Placing his entry on the table, he opens the room’s window blinds and arranges benches around the four large, wooden tables.
The Rangers bring their chili to the table, and four more pots of chili made by Chiefs and staff members are added. The Camp’s 4th Annual Chili Cook-Off is set to begin.
“Times like this reminds us how we live in a community,” Scott says. “We focus on group, and even a friendly chili cook-off promotes working, achieving and celebrating something together. It’s our recipe for success.”
Chief Drew has served as Camp Director since March 2017. He says the journey that led him to this leadership role has been one of preparation. He recounts how as a boy he experienced challenges and heartache like the boys he now oversees.
“Although I’ve always had loving people around me,” he says, “my childhood was far from conventional. There were many ups and downs. When I was a teen, I went off the rails and got into a good bit of trouble.”
He was living in Arkansas with his family when his step-dad passed. It hit him hard.
At seventeen, he made the mistake of hanging out with friends that led to an arrest, school expulsion and standing before a judge.
“I remember thinking, ‘What am I doing to my life?’” Scott confesses. “My mom had given me cards with God’s promises written on them.
I stood before the judge with them in my hands thinking ‘There has got to be more than this.’ And asking, ‘God, what do you have for me?’”
Scott received probation and he says “God transplanted” him to a new place –– Washington State.
He began living with his older sister, attending church regularly, and working hard to graduate high school.
“My whole life changed,” Scott recalls. “My want became ‘Lord, what do you want for me?’”
He graduated in 2001 from a Christian college with a double major in biblical studies and camp administration, interviewed and was hired as a Chief at Cameron Boys Camp the same year, left twice and came back with a Master’s Degree in 2015 to serve as the Camp’s recruiter.
“It was good being back at Camp,” Scott says. “I never thought about becoming director – I was happy in my lane, but the Lord had something else for me.”
Scott says the importance of group among the Camp’s staff and Chiefs is as paramount as it is for the boys at their campsites. He says he sees his number one role as caring for those who serve the boys and families who turn to Camp for hope and healing.
“We have a powerful team who does all the heavy lifting,” he says. “They are people who love the Lord and serve to glorify Him.”
Do you want to join North Carolina's largest family? Explore current job opportunities at Cameron Boys Camp by visiting www.campcareers.org