The Redwood Christian Ashram is a family camp that has been meeting at the beautiful Redwood Christian Park in the Santa Cruz mountains for over 60 years. Summer camp is always held the week of the 4th of July. Everyone is welcome at the Ashram regardless of age, race, gender, marital status, or creed. We all come together for a common goal, to experience Christ.
Evangelist
Before he retired, Rev. Dr. Paul L. Escamilla served as senior pastor in seven congregations, and also taught at Perkins School of Theology at SMU. He currently leads spiritual life retreats for clergy and congregations. Paul grew up in the Christian Ashram movement, and has served as Bible teacher at ashrams nation-wide. He has written several books, including "Longing for Enough in a Culture of More" and "True When Whispered: Hearing God’s Voice in a Noisy World." He and his wife, Liz, have three grown children; they make their home in Houston, within range of their three young grandchildren.
Bible Teacher
Raised in Muskogee, Oklahoma, Rev. Brian Matthews was involved in the life of the church from his earliest days. He did his best to run from God, but finally relented and graduated from the Phillips Theological Seminary with a Masters in Divinity in 2004. He has served in various congregations in Oklahoma and has been the Lead Pastor at First Methodist Church in Ada, Oklahoma since 2016. Brian excels at channeling his inner child, and has been happily married to Shannon for over 25 years. They enjoy hanging out with their grown son, Noah.
Co-Directors
We are proud to return to the role of Co-Directors of the Redwood Christian Ashram after a three year stint as directors about 10 years ago. We started attended the Redwood Christian Ashram with our three children over 20 years ago and feel that it has been a vital part of their faith formation. Experiencing the love of God proclaimed in a beautiful interdenominational, intergenerational setting has always been a highlight of our year.
