More than Camp

Getting to Know Erin Wolf and The Visible and Invisible Work of Youth Ministry

Erin Wolf, Diocese of Wisconsin’s Youth Networking Coordinator and EpiscoWisco Camp Executive Director
Erin@diowis.org

If you’ve met Erin Wolf, the Diocese of Wisconsin’s Youth Networking Coordinator and EpiscoWisco Camp Executive Director, chances are it was somewhere joyful and visible: standing near a campfire at EpiscoWisco Camp, leading worship with young people, or laughing with a group of campers discovering the church in a new way.

For many people across the diocese, camp is where they first encounter Erin’s ministry.

As Executive Director of EpiscoWisco Camp, Erin helps shape the spiritual life of camp sessions—creating spaces where young people build friendships, try new things, and explore faith in ways that feel real and alive. Campers sing, pray, canoe, hike, and spend time together in a community where questions are welcome and belonging comes easily.

Those days at camp are often some of the most memorable and formative moments young people experience in church life.

But as joyful and visible as those camp sessions are, they represent only the tip of the iceberg of Erin’s work.

Beneath the Surface

🏕️#camplife

Behind every summer camp session are months of planning and preparation.

Erin coordinates camp programs and schedules, recruits and trains staff, promotes participation, and works with professional camp ministry networks across the Episcopal Church. She helps develop leadership opportunities for youth—including the growing Camp Ambassadors and CIT leadership programs—and ensures that camp operates safely and faithfully within Safe Church standards.

She also collaborates closely with diocesan leadership, communicates regularly with the Bishop and Canon to the Ordinary, and participates in wider province and church-wide networks focused on youth ministry, camp leadership, and Safe Church formation.

Much of this work happens quietly throughout the year so that when campers arrive, the experience feels effortless.

But even that is only part of Erin’s role.

Networking Youth Ministries Across Wisconsin

The majority of Erin’s ministry happens across the entire diocese when camp isn’t in session.

As Youth Networking Coordinator, Erin works with congregations to support youth ministry wherever it already exists—and to help imagine it where it doesn’t yet.

That might mean visiting a congregation to meet with clergy and youth leaders, sharing ideas and resources, connecting churches to diocesan programs, or helping communities think creatively about what youth ministry could look like in their context.

Often the most important part of this work is simply helping congregations realize they don’t have to figure it out alone.

Recently, members of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Sheboygan Falls invited Erin to join an exploratory meeting as they began thinking about youth ministry possibilities.

“We were in the early stages of thinking about youth ministry and honestly weren’t sure where to begin,” said a member of St. Peter’s. “Having Erin join our meeting was incredibly helpful. We didn’t even know what we didn’t know. She brought research about our area to the convo, asked thoughtful questions, and helped us think creatively about possibilities right around the corner from us. Most importantly, she reminded us we’re not alone in this work.”

Those kinds of conversations are at the heart of Erin’s role—helping congregations connect with resources, ideas, and one another as they nurture young people's faith.

Supporting the Wider Church

Erin’s work also connects the Diocese of Wisconsin to the wider Episcopal Church.

Through participation in provincial and church-wide networks focused on camp, youth ministry, and formation, Erin helps ensure that Wisconsin remains connected to national conversations, resources, and best practices. These relationships allow our diocese to stay informed about new training opportunities, leadership development programs, and emerging ideas in youth ministry across the church.

Just as importantly, they ensure that Wisconsin’s experience and voices are represented in those broader conversations.

Erin also serves as part of the diocese’s Safe Church team, helping ensure that our congregations, camps, and ministries remain safe environments for children, youth, and vulnerable adults. This includes supporting Safe Church compliance, assisting with training and education, and helping congregations navigate the policies that protect both participants and ministry leaders.

Much of this work happens quietly behind the scenes, but it plays an essential role in sustaining healthy and trustworthy ministries across the diocese.

When Should You Contact Erin?

You don’t need to have a fully developed youth program to reach out. In fact, many of the most helpful conversations happen before a program exists.

Congregations might contact Erin if they:

• Are thinking about starting or rebuilding youth ministry and aren’t sure where to begin

• Have Safe Church questions or training needs

• Want to connect youth with EpiscoWisco Camp

• Want to support camp even if their parish currently has few youth

• Are looking for ideas, resources, or training for youth leaders

• Want to partner with nearby congregations (Episcopal, ELCA, or others) for youth programming

• Are planning youth gatherings, retreats, lock-ins, or mission opportunities

• Simply want to talk through possibilities

Erin’s role is not to replace local youth leaders. Instead, she works to support, encourage, and connect the people already doing this work across the diocese.

Sometimes that means offering guidance. Sometimes it means sharing resources that already exist. And sometimes it simply means giving leaders the space to step back, ask “what if,” and reimagine what ministry with young people could look like in their community.

A Ministry Built on Relationships

Youth ministry across Wisconsin doesn’t happen in just one place.

It happens in church basements and parish halls, around kitchen tables and youth group circles, on mission trips and service projects—and sometimes around a campfire under a northern sky.

Through camp leadership, congregational visits, leadership development, and the steady work of building relationships, Erin helps ensure that young people across the Diocese of Wisconsin have opportunities to encounter faith, community, and belonging.

If your congregation is wondering how to support young people—or simply wants to start the conversation—Erin would be glad to connect. Her email is erin@diowis.org.