Upload
others
View
1
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Mission Statement
Junior High Retreat February 1 from 8 p.m. to February 3 at 1 p.m
Senior High Winter Retreat February 8 from 8 p.m. to February 10 at 1 p.m.
The Swan Lake Christian Camp
Cookbook version 2.0 is now
available. These cookbooks in-
clude nearly all of the recipes
from the original book, plus an
additional 155 new recipes. All
of these are recipes that Mary
uses here at camp and are
“camper approved”. It is a sig-
nificant part of our ministry at
camp to provide for the physical
nourishment of our guests as
we also work to give them spiritual nourishment. Mary
has devoted much of her life to ministering from the
kitchen and now we are glad to be able to share those
recipes with you. The cost of the new cookbook is $20.
January 2013 Viborg, South Dakota Issue # 15
We are so excited to share with you our heart for what
is happening at Swan Lake Christian Camp. The first
Saturday in March will begin with a great meal at 6 p.m,
and will include activities for the children and a drawing
for a Kindle Fire. We are looking forward to hearing
from two Christian men who have a heart for seeing
kids experience Christ in the camping setting. We will
be outlining the building schedule for the retreat center
and giving concrete details about our plans. This eve-
ning has the potential to shift the way people think
about SLCC. If you have an interest in the ministry of
SLCC, then you are invited. Please let the camp staff
know of your intentions to attend by calling 605-326-
5690. Our hope is to share with you how God is using
the camp to multiply His kingdom and to invite you to
partner with us in His work. Come make this a memo-
rable evening.
I want to spend a little time reflecting about the importance of our mission statement. Years ago, when we were
striving to find a pithy statement that reflected the attitude or heart of our mission, we considered this phrase from
Psalm 46:10. We changed the “I am God” phrase to “He is God” to insure that we were giving God proper acknowl-
edgement. “Be still” is a phrase that speaks to our need to come away from the busyness of our daily strivings to
pause and embrace the deity of God. When we stop long enough to notice, God is evident in nature and relation-
ships. He is also evident when we listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit within each one of us that recognize Jesus
Christ as Lord and Savior. God is also very evident when we search the scriptures with the intent of desiring to know
more about Him. Someone recently said to me that camp is that special place where we can be the person that we
want to be the rest of the year. I recognize that we are all maturing day by day in our quest to imitate Jesus. Some
days, I do a better job of that than others. Camp is designed to give us the space and the time to be that person who
is respectful and earnest in all things relating to God. It is one of our goals to always strive to be our best without put-
ting a lot of emphasis on competition over and above someone else. Many of our games here at camp have no clear
cut losers. Our hope is always that in our striving for excellence, that we are able to lift others up in the way in which
we see Christ reaching out his hand and saying to the lame man, take up your mat and walk. Camp is particularly re-
warding because we routinely are blessed enough to see the growth in a young person’s life. Rest, fellowship and
growth are all important aspects to our continued relationship with God. It is my hope that these simple words are
lived out here at camp so that it truly is a place where people can come and feel the presence of Jesus Christ.
Pledges have been received to do the excavating and site preparation
and also to pour the concrete for this building addition to the current
dining hall. We have been visiting churches to share our goals and vi-
sion for the ministry potential of this facility and are now also sending
out pledge forms to many of the camp supporters and to those who
use the camp. Both the excavator and the concrete person would like
to be able to do their part when the frost comes out of the ground in
the spring this next year. That is only a few months away. We need
around $250,000 to complete the shell of the building. Our goal would
be to complete the exterior shell of the building during the spring and
that we would work to complete the entire project over the next twelve months or so. Our building plan is to hire li-
censed electricians and plumbers as well as using qualified persons to complete the framing. We are intending to use
as much volunteer labor as we possibly can and still meet the code requirements of the state in order to hold costs
down. Doing the project in this manner, we feel confident that we can keep the total cost of the project around
$650,000.
Right now, we are really looking for that first $250,000 to feel that we can get a good start. We are committed to
not taking on significant debt as this could really affect the ministry focus moving forward. Once completed, this re-
treat center will really help the entire camp to meet all of its financial operating expenses unless we are servicing debt.
If you are in a position of donating $50,000 we would like to honor that gift with a plaque over the door of one of the
guest rooms. This might be a great way to honor a loved one and help with a wonderful project that will impact many
lives for Christ for years to come. Please consider your gift towards this project by the end of this year.
Have you ever wondered what happened to the staff members of your youth? I reconnected with former staff
members and will put some of their stories in each newsletter. Enjoy reconnecting!
SLCC: What memories do you have from SLCC? As a camper I recall the accep-
tance I felt - that was what kept me coming back! Then
there was the Cone Game, Ultimate Frisbee, the music,
challenging faith moments, canoe excursions to Outpost,
and stargazing at Prayer Circle. Winter retreat brought ice
skating, cups of hot cocoa, carpet ball and ping pong tour-
naments, and the priceless conversations with old friends.
As a staffer, I recall the closeness with the staff that oc-
curred as we lived and served together. There were late
night runs around the lake, kitchen raids after campfire, impromptu guitar lessons, oppor-
tunities to use hammers and power tools, and brainstorming sessions for games and
campfire devotionals. I also loved watching former campers grow into amazing counsel-
ors. God never ceased to amaze me!
SLCC: What did you learn from your time at Swan Lake? My time at Swan Lake influ-
enced my faith journey by challenging me to be an authentic Christian and to put my faith into action in the world. It
also gave me valuable experience with youth of all ages which lead me into the teaching profession. I learned to lean
on the Lord for daily strength and motivation and to take joy in the gifts that I have and the gifts that others have to
offer the group as a whole.
Janene Sparke
(Goertzen)
2005, 2006
Hometown:
Henderson, NE
Current Residence:
Henderson, NE
SLCC: What memories do you have from SLCC? The year I was on staff,
we had some really crazy times. I remember making
a Swan Lake Survivor video in our free afternoons
and week-ends.
We also enjoyed taking the sailboats out on our
week-ends. We had some memorable Crazy Singing
times with the highlights being Red / Green Show
and some copy-cat skits from Saturday Night Live.
Finally, I remember dressing up gothic for Twin
Night with Shanda Hochstetler, Colleen Dyck, and
Tara Anderson.
SLCC: What did you learn from your time at Swan Lake? My time at
Swan Lake shaped who I am today by forcing me to live and work in community. I
learned a lot about sacrificing my own "space" and time for the good of the whole.
I also learned to see God at work in more powerful ways through the testimonies
and joy I could see in the other staff members. Finally, all those summers of praising God around the campfire brought
me into a heart attitude of worship.
Portia Strasser
2001, 02, 04 Staff
Hometown: Freeman, SD
Current Residence:
Twin Cities, MN
by way of China
It’s been
nearly 3 ½
months since I returned from an adventure of a lifetime hiking the Appa-
lachian Trail. As I meandered through the 14 states from Georgia to
Maine, I saw bears and snakes up close, got sweaty and bloody, took in
beautiful creation and made lifelong friends. In addition I grew closer to
my Creator. How can someone hike in these beautiful places and not be-
lieve there is a higher power? It boggles my mind, yet many hikers were
searching. Being in the wilderness strips you of your masks and it’s easy to
talk in the darkness of a shelter or while walking together. I found myself
having several conversations about Christianity, both with those that
were Christian and those that weren’t. I was able to share my story and
let them share theirs. Often they had been hurt by the church or other Christians and this made me sad. Christianity
isn’t about shutting people out that aren’t like us, but to point them in the direction and guide them toward Jesus
Christ. I hope that I was able to be Christ to those I met on the trail and I hope that I can continue to be a light wher-
ever I go. God blessed me in so many ways on the trip whether it was allowing the sun to shine after a cloudy morning
or bringing people into my life when I needed them. He gave me the strength to keep on hiking even when I felt like
quitting.
I was also very blessed to help raise money for Swan Lake’s building project, and it's not too late to donate. I thought
and prayed for the camp every day during the summer. It was so special for me to receive a phone call from the staff
and campers one week. I even walked 26 miles on the day of the Swan Lake Marathon! Camp was never far from my
mind.
I would love to share more of my adventures with you. Please check out my blog at: www.atforslcc.wordpress.com or
ask me your burning questions when we meet each other. Thanks so much for your support and prayers during my
journey!
Third Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 2-4
Fourth Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 4-7
Swan Lake Marathon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 9
Camp Achieve . . . . . . . . . .June 11, 12, 13, 14
Fifth Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 16-21
Sixth Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . July 23-28
Cottontail Day Camp (ages 5 & 6). . . . . . July 1
Chipmunk Day Camp (grades 1-2) . . . . . July 2
Senior High Camp (Grades 9-12) . . . . July 7-12
Junior High Camp (Grades 7-8). . July 28– Aug 2
Renee pictured at the northern most point of the Appalachian Trail