By Sarah Sankovich
The following was a speech at the JBS Council Dinner in Parsippany, NJ on October 9, 2004.
Good Evening, Ladies and Gentlemen. I�d just like to say that I�m so grateful to have this opportunity, and I�m so honored to be in the company of such amazing people. I wouldn�t be up here though if it weren�t for my mom and for her forcibly �encouraging� me to attend Robert Welch Youth camp this year.
Years ago, my mom found out about Robert Welch Youth camps. She was immediately excited about it, and suggested that I go. I, however, was reluctant. I thought that I could make more productive use of my time than sitting in a canoe at some camp.
But my mom wanted me to go to this camp because she thought it would be a valuable learning experience for me. My mom�s always trying to turn everything into a learning experience. In previous years when it came time to register for camp, I was always full of excuses. This year was no different in that respect, especially when we looked up the camp on the internet and I found out I�d have to sing campfire songs every night. Any situation where I�m required to sing can only end badly, for myself and for any innocent bystanders.
But this year was different because the camp location was just down the road from where I live in Pennsylvania. Because it was so conveniently nearby, my mom insisted I take advantage of its proximity and go. I resisted, but I know from years of experience that it�s futile to argue with my mother. She quickly convinced me to see things her way.
I wasn�t entirely disagreeable, though; once I was already registered for camp, (and could no longer weasel out of it) I committed myself to get the most out of the experience, and at least approach it with an open attitude. But I still felt like I would be sacrificing a week of my precious summer vacation, and I walked around with an air of martyrdom about me. I thought that I was doing my mother a huge favor by going to this camp. I really had it backwards.
Even though I was trying to approach camp with an open mind, I think I still had a bit of an attitude that I wouldn�t find out anything that I didn�t� already know. I thought that I knew all of the important stuff that concerned my life. Boy, was I wrong.
In the relatively short space of one week, I was exposed to more information than I would have thought possible. It amazed me that I could be so ignorant of so many vitally important things, and not even know it. If the least thing that camp had done for me was to demonstrate how little I know, that alone was worth attending. I often forget just how much I don�t know.
But what an incredible wealth of knowledge was offered at camp! I learned not just about America�s history, but also about how I can help shape its future.
I learned that freedom and morality are inseparable.
I learned that a Right is not the same as a privilege, and that all of my rights come from God.
I learned that the freedom of a people decreases in proportion to the power of its government.
I learned that my government is taking more and more powers which it has no claim to, attempting to regulate my rights, making my money worthless, and fighting unconstitutional wars; I learned that my government, instead of being accountable to its people as it should be, is answering to other countries and the United Nations, effectively making me into a subject of a world government instead of a citizen of a Republic.
I also know that if you take away our God, you�ve taken away the reason for America�s greatness, and I have a greater appreciation for just how truly great America is. I refuse to take it for granted any more. I don�t want to be one of those individuals who possesses a great gift and doesn�t even realize it until it slips away and cannot be retrieved. Instead, I want to learn more. I want to understand the values and morals that America�s roots are planted in. I know that this Republic is a rare and precious institution. The more I become aware of this, the more fiercely I am willing to fight to keep it that way.
