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HEADING DOWN THE RIGHT PATH
Finding new ways to reach new generations
By Bob Myers, chairman of the Board of Camps and Retreat Ministries
The Conference Board of Camps and Retreat Ministries is excited about the future of camping in East Ohio. We are finding creative ways to reach new generations for the gospel. We are growing our infrastructure and exploring fresh approaches to our marketing strategy. It is an energizing time to serve on the board.
At Camp Asbury, we have created a building committee to research and build a welcome and office center. The current office is in the basement of the site director’s house. The Welcome and Office Center has been a goal of the board for many years. We are hopeful that this goal will finally come to fruition.
At Camp Aldersgate, the current director lives in a renovated summer cabin. This home no longer meets the current needs. We are exploring options for building a new house. We have purchased land and a small group is looking at several plans from local builders. Our hope is to begin building this fall.
We have met with a marketing expert and are trying new ways to tell our story. Our web site is beautifully redesigned and user-friendly. We are trying to be good stewards of our resources and looking at ways to advertise our camping programs more efficiently.
The camping and retreat ministries of East Ohio Conference are blessed. We have great facilities and properties, an amazing and hard working staff, and a visionary board. Many lives have been touched and changed by the work and ministry of camps. Our prayer is that our camp and retreat ministry will continue to leave a legacy of reaching new generations. If you haven’t experienced one of our camps or it is has been awhile, now is the time to be renewed, refreshed, and revived. Come and see what God is doing.
Camping ministry has been exploring new ways to keep in touch with friends, supporters, alumni, etc. Technology is changing so quickly, and it is changing the culture. Technology when used in moderation provides ways for us to stay connected. E-mail, cell phones and web sites are great, but are quickly fading in the face of newer technology. We are learning that to keep in touch and to be present with former campers and staff, we need a presence on Facebook, blog spots, and Twitter.
Here are three ways to stay in touch:
Camp is a Safe Place!!
A significant part of making sure that the vision for Ministry of East Ohio Camps can be met is to provide for the safety and security of children and youth in our care.
Well-trained, carefully screened counselors spend 10 days to two weeks in staff training before campers arrive. Safe camp practices include:
- In-service training with emphasis on health, safety and child development, as well as community-building and group dynamics for counselors between sessions of camp.
- Camp professionals supervise counselors.
- Each paid staff member undergoes a fingerprint background check through the state of Ohio and by the FBI if they have resided outside the state of Ohio in the past five years.
- Volunteer staff are trained and have reference checks before being welcomed as staff.
- All volunteers are under the leadership of our paid staff.
- Ratios of campers to counselors are determined by age. They vary from 4:1 with the youngest to 8:1 with the oldest campers.
- Campers are signed-in by their parent or guardian upon arrival. Pick-up and sign-out authorization are required. Only those authorized can take campers from the site.
- All visitors must check in at the camp office and receive a visitor badge to wear. The staff is trained to look for camper wristbands or visitor badges when they come upon someone they do not know.
- If a camper is lost, procedures are set in place at each site and are continually practiced by the staff in case of such an incident.
RESOURCES
Conversations with the Bishop
In a recent “Conversation with the Bishop,” Bishop Hopkins spoke with Rev. Kelly Brown, a life-long East Ohio Camps alumnus and former board member, and Bob Myers, a long-time camp supporter and current chair of the Board of Camps & Retreat Ministries. Their conversation focused on the impact camping has made on their lives and the lives of their families and the folks they minister with. Give eight minutes of your time to tune in and hear what camp folks have to say. You can find this pod-cast HERE.
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