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A host of Centrifuge for more than 14 years, Union will have more than 5000 youth and their leaders attend this summer. Centrifuge is a weeklong camp experience for youth grades 7-12 that challenges students to a new and deeper relationship with Christ and is sponsored by the Southern Baptist Convention.

"I really like that we get the chance to meet new people and get closer to Jesus while we're here," said high school senior Charles Wood of Louisville, Miss., who is a member of First Baptist Church in Louisville.

Through personal interest tracks, nightly worship experiences, and a number of recreational activities, Centrifuge incorporates a teenager's need for activity, fellowship and spiritual growth with the desire to learn.

Taylor Cheatham, an eighth grader who attended Centrifuge with his youth group from First Baptist Church in Cullman, Ala., was surprised at how much he enjoyed the worship services.

"I thought the worship would be like regular services with older adults, but it was actually cool," said Cheatham, and added that the upbeat music and dynamic speakers were his favorite part.

Lenee Moore, also a member of First Baptist in Cullman, and Allison Trullet, of Shady Grove Baptist in Ripley, Miss., didn't know each other but by the third day of the week, found themselves inseparable.
"I didn't know anyone here the first day, but I've now met so many people," said Trullet, who had collected several email addresses from new friends.

John Biedermann, youth pastor at Mill Creek Baptist Church, said this is the fourth time he has brought a group of students to Union for Centrifuge.

"We've been everywhere, from Hawaii to Illinois, but we've really settled on Union as being the ideal place to bring our youth, particularly our younger students," said Biedermann. He added that Union's facilities "are the best" for students, especially for "kids who haven't been away from home before."

Coach Linn Stranak, chair of the physical education, wellness and sport department at Union, directs the Union support staff that assists the counselors and campers. He agreed that the facilities at Union and the support staff supplied by the university are a big part of why people return year after year to the campus for Centrifuge.

"Each week, the evaluations we get back consistently give high ratings to our dorms, our food and our support staff," said Stranak. He added that good relationships have been developed with the churches that have come over the years. "Youth leaders and students alike feel at home - they know that Union wants them to be here." The Union support staff provides a wide variety of services to the weekly campers, from lifeguards and nurses to recreational and student activities staff support.

Students are not the only ones who learn and grow while at Centrifuge. Youth leaders and willing adults who accompany their youth groups also gain something. Sheryl Vanderhoeven, a mother of two young children, accompanied fifteen teenagers from their home church, First Baptist in Gurley, Ala., and said one of the experiences she had during the week taught her something very important about the teens of today.

"I've always hated some of the terms teenagers today use, and a lot of it was because I didn't understand what certain words meant," said Vanderhoeven. So Vanderhoeven finally did something about it this week. She talked to the teenagers in her youth group.

"I discovered that certain words had different connotations to these teenagers then they did to me," explained Vanderhoeven. Now when she doesn't understand why teens do something, she asks. And it's clear to her that the youth appreciate her questions.

"These kids are more than willing to explain when we ask on a level that shows we're listening, not judging," said Vanderhoeven, who has stayed up several nights this week with "her girls," listening and talking.

According to Stranak, a video crew from Centrifuge national headquarters in Nashville recently visited Union's campus for filming. The campus facilities and location will be featured on a promotional video that will be distributed nationwide next year to thousands of youth groups and churches.

For more information on Centrifuge at Union, contact Linn Stranak at (901) 661-5288. Or visit the national website at .