Camp IdRaHaJe got its name from the old Christian hymn with lines that read, “I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause. I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause. I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame. Yes, I’d rather be true to His holy name.”
But as Colorado officials have increasingly abandoned the truth regarding gender and sexuality, the camp’s founders may never have realized just how true these words would ring.
The present-day paraphrase to the camp’s name – as a response to radical state officials could be, I’d Rather Have Jesus Than Gender Ideology.
Colorado law requires children’s resident camps to maintain a license to operate in the state, and Camp IdRaHaJe has done so since 1995. But Colorado officials recently made a substantial change to the licensing requirements.
In 2024, Colorado enacted new regulations that require resident camps to adopt radical gender ideology in order to keep their license.
Specifically, the regulations require camps to allow campers to use showers, toilets, and changing areas based on “gender identity” rather than their sex. This means that boys who believe they are girls must be allowed to use girls’ facilities, and vice versa.
In addition, campers must be allowed to “sleep in the same room or tent with individuals” regardless of their sex.
ADF attorneys recently filed a lawsuit on behalf of Camp IdRaHaJe challenging Colorado’s gender ideology requirements for resident camps.