Steve
and Lisa Walker reside in Central Florida and have
been blessed
with 2 children, Zach, 19 a freshman at Rollins College in Winter Park, FL and Nicolina,
15 a freshman at Winter Park High School. They are parishioners at St. Margaret Mary Parish. Before starting Catholic HEART Workcamp they were Youth Ministers
for 16 years.
The First Catholic HEART Workcamp was held in
Orlando in 1993 with 100 participants as an extension of St. Margaret Mary
Youth Ministry. Father Richard Walsh, pastor, encouraged and supported the
creation and ministry of CHWC. In 1998 Catholic HEART Workcamp grew calling
Lisa & Steve to move from parish youth ministry into the role as Presidents
of CHWC.
The first office was simply a desk in the corner
of their bedroom and then moved into a home consisting of a 3 room bonus
room above the garage. Catholic HEART Workcamp is now organized out of an
office building that was exclusively built for the operations. Steve and
Lisa pride themselves on maintaining a “Mom and Pop” organization in spite
of its growth.
The idea of offering a Catholic workcamp was
inspired by their participation in non-denominational Workcamps. These
Workcamps lacked a Catholic spirituality and perspective. These camps
nonetheless were a positive and life changing experience.
Steve and Lisa have blended their youth ministry
experiences to create the ministry/business of Catholic HEART Workcamp. God
blessed their efforts when they responded to His call to step-out in faith
to leave their position as parish youth ministers (and security). After
years of persistent prayer and planning, CHWC has expanded in ways they
never could have imagined. They have faced obstacles: betrayal, lack of
funds, loneliness and misunderstanding, but God provided them with loyal
friends & family and strength to endure over the years. The Walkers are
grateful to their “home office” staff of six, Catholic youth leaders
throughout the country and the summer staff that believe in Catholic HEART
Workcamp.
In the summer of 2007, 400 parishes and over
9,000 adult and teen campers registered. Their vision for the future is
clear, to listen closely to the Lord and continue to build CHWC in the
direction that God desires. They want to continue offering quality service
camps, serve the people in need, and spiritually enrich the lives of
Workcamp participants. Most importantly, Steve and Lisa want to provide
young people and those served by CHWC opportunities to experience God’s love
in a profound way!
