March 27th, 2009
“Building up the Body of Christ for service to the church and witness to the world!”
Sometimes the simplest of questions can be the most difficult to answer? That’s exactly what happened two years ago when our Strategic Planning Task Force began to discuss why we have Camp Luther.
Our camp was purchased in 1946 by the North Wisconsin District LCMS as a place for the children, youth and families of our 222 congregations to be built up in the Christian faith. Facilities had been rented for years, but it was decided it was time to have a place of our own. So, the original purpose of Camp Luther was to serve our people, LCMS Lutherans in the north Wisconsin and the U.P. of Michigan. For the most part, that remains our purpose to this day.
But other questions arose. What about those who use the camp that aren’t Lutheran? How does that ministry fit within our purpose. The task force recognized the fact that Camp Luther does serve groups and individuals outside of district and denomination. In fact we seek out and encourage that involvement. We value the involvement of those groups and individuals and they through their involvement help to support the mission of our camp. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Mission, purpose
Posted in Mission, Uncategorized | No Comments »
March 25th, 2009
Every kid should get to experience the fun of Camp!
Youth learn you can have fun as a Christian. This is one of the most commonly shared comments after a week at camp. It’s at camp where many kids begin to see that “living the faith” is fun. It allows them to envision their whole lives as an adventure in faith. Camp is fun! Christianity is fun! And that’s something every kid should get to experience.
Youth meet the man or woman they may marry some day. This is a rarely discussed value of Christian camping, but one every camper, past and present, is well aware of. As a parent of teens, I’m not looking to push the dating process, but I am glad that they are in an atmosphere where they can meet young men and women who share the same faith and values of our family. Deb and I will be thrilled if someday, far in the future, our daughter Bekah and son Andrew meet their future spouse at camp. (Just like their mom and dad.)
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
March 17th, 2009
Bekah (right) and her friend, Sarah, at camp.
Recent newspaper articles across the country are chronicling the down turn in summer camp registrations. Of course, camps aren’t exempt from the effects of our current economy. In fact, Camp Luther’s summer camp registrations were down about twelve percent at the end of February. (A statistic we hope turns around in the next few weeks.) A recent New York Times article entitled “Cutting Back on the Kum Ba Yah” discussed some of the changes parents and camps are making regarding summer camp. The article drew ire from camp professionals across the country as it focused on the economics without discussing the spiritual, psychological, and relational value of the summer camp experience.
So for my first post of this blog, I thought I would ask the question. Is camp worth it? Is it worth the cost, the effort to register, the travel to and from camp, working out summer schedules, the worry, the tears (the parents, not the kids), and everything else involved? Is camp worth it?
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: campers, counselors, Summer Camp
Posted in Summer Camp | No Comments »