Greetings in the name of our Lord. I usually don’t start my newsletters with personal news, but wanted to this time as a way of explaining why this is so late in coming out. This has been a very busy Fall for my family. First we celebrated the marriage of one of my nieces in September and there was much visiting with family from BC, Alberta and California. Then my mom, Val, was diagnosed with lung cancer and we were in a whirlwind dealing with that - doctor’s appointments, visits to specialists, testing and finally an operation to remove half her lung. The next night the surgeon had to reopen her to stop an arterial bleed. She had a very difficult time and was in ICU for nine days. She is feeling much better and is well on the road to recovery. And this is after a triple bypass in April. This was a total surprise. Mom had been having some arm pain, but didn’t suspect such a serious heart condition. Her recovery from that has been slow but steady.

My youngest sister, Linda, also had a health crisis the week before my mom’s heart operation. She had stroke-like symptoms with paralysis on one side. Doctors discovered an abscess on the brain and operated to remove the infection. She spent several weeks in the hospital. She and her partner, Harry, live with my mom and have four children. Linda has been unable to care for her family on her own so Harry has had to leave work to assist. It has been a struggle and continues to be with doctor’s appointments, therapy and the challenges of daily living. Both my mom and Linda recognize the Lord’s hand in their healing and thank the many people who have prayed for them. Please continue to pray for their recovery and adjustment to a different quality of life.

On the home front: Carly and Beth are in grade 11 this year. They both had fantastic summers serving the Lord. Carly served as a Summer Missionary with Monarch and did a great job. She really felt that is where the Lord wanted her and she can see how He used her to help kids in their walk with the Lord.

Beth served with Teen Impact Missions on a trip to Jamaica where she assisted with VBS, community outreach and street evangelism. She loved the challenges and excitement of the ministry and wants to go back.

Riley is with us at home right now. He worked at Dorion Bible Camp again this summer. He leaves on Nov. 21 to participate in Katimavic. This is a gov’t program that mobilizes young people to give to their country by serving in different communities. Riley will spend three months each in Newfoundland, Alberta and Quebec. He’s pretty excited about his upcoming adventure.

Nicole is still in St. Catharines going to school, co-oping at a detention centre and working. She enjoyed working for the Y Summer Day Camps with special needs kids and was able to obtain a job with them this Fall.

Ryan is in California right now taking yet another course. He was in Halifax just before and in school all summer taking courses. He will join his ship and continue in his career as a Weapons Tech in the Canadian Navy.
The summers are really hard on Barrie with all the physical strain of setting up camp, moving all the “stuff”, preparing meals and the multitude of behind the scenes work. He is recovering and busy about home. He continues to volunteer with 2817 Army Cadets

So now on to the Camp Report
We had a great season! Our team of young ladies did a great job ministering to the campers and relating well with each other. They worked so hard and made camp so much fun for our returning campers and many new ones. We had many fun times at camp and in our leisure time.
Staff Lineup starring...
Angie Sornberger -as Program Director- Angie has completed her course in Police Foundations and is pursuing a career in the Police Force. In the meantime she is working at 3 jobs!
Melody Fogwell -as Music Director -Melody spent two weeks in Peru on a Missions trip -grade 12 student at Fenelon -5th year on staff
--------as Camp Counselors---------
Melissa Bate -grade 11 student at Fenelon High- 1st year at camp
Amanda Braniff -grade 11 student at St. Thomas -worked at camp 2 yrs ago - this year taught swim lessons and life guarded as well
Sarah Paterson -grade 11 student from Ajax -long time camper and 3rd year as staff
Erika Pauls -grade 10 student from Bradford -long time camper -1st year as staff
Beth and Carly Ward -3rd year as official staff -many years of camp experience

At Minden we had the joy of having a young man from Switzerland join us. Pierrick was a great addition and we had lots of fun helping him understand our culture. He enjoyed teasing the other staff like a big brother. We’ll never forget him and his favorite expression, “That’s crazzzzzy!”

The Summer of 2006 will be remembered as "The Summer of the Storms". We got hit by two storms this summer that revealed the awesome power of the Lord through the power of tornados and through His protection. The first week at Coby Day Camps a mini tornado touched down and blew over our 20 x 30 foot circus tent. The rain started and within a matter of seconds we were battling poles, tent pegs and tables crashing around us. The quick thinking staff hustled the campers to safety inside several trailers as we waited out the storm. One young camper received a head injury that bled profusely and needed stitches. A few others suffered minor injuries and two had to visit the hospital. We were all badly shaken, but praised the Lord for His protection. The next week tornados struck the area again. The place we rent for Resident Camp was badly hit. At first we hoped to run camp just one day late, but as Kinark accessed their damage it became evident that they could not ensure the campers’ safety that week. What a disappointment to have to phone those many families, again, and say that camp was cancelled.

Stats for 2006

Campers /Salvations/Recom
West Guilford 20 /1
Minden 26 /6
Coboconk 52 /10 /4
Skills Camp 28 /1
Haliburton 28/ 8
Eagle Lake 30 /9
184 /35/ 4

Praise the Lord for these new believers, for the growth in our Christian campers and the seeds planted in the hearts of the “not yet” Christians.

One great inspiration was to see a camper who made a commitment to the Lord last year. He had been a difficult young man to handle at camp, doing things his own way and not following directions or routines at all well. We had heard that he had changed since the summer, but were blown away by the changes we saw in him. He looked like a new kid. His face was peaceful and his behavior was fantastic. Praise the Lord for the chance to see how awesome He really is in the lives of these campers.

Another encouraging note came from a parent. I cried when I read it, seeing how God is using camp to touch lives. Every Fall I send out a camp evaluation and invitation for campers to receive Bible lessons through the mail. The evaluations have been very positive and they help with future planning. Two questions deal with the spiritual impact the camp is having on the lives of the campers. One parent sent this note to explain the impact.

“One day during the summer, I picked up on a conversation Emily was having with her friend from down the road. Unbeknownst to the girls, I watched Emily sit down directly in front of her friend. Staring directly at her, Emily said, in her most serious voice, “Have you taken Jesus into your heart yet?” The little girl with eyes open wide shook her head no.

“Well”, said Emily, “let me tell you all about Him.” She pulled out the booklet she’d gotten from camp and I could hear her repeating the words she’d obviously listened to at camp that week. They sat engrossed for the better part of the afternoon, ending their little tete a tete with a prayer. So in answer to your questions #11 and #12-Yes!”

The letter was such an encouragement to me and I thank the family for sending it!

Ministry News
Carole Stanton has been appointed as a new Board Member. She is a gentle, caring woman with a love of children. She has volunteered as a Counselor at Resident Camp so knows some of the stresses and joys of camp. She replaces her husband, Doug. The Board meets once a month to help guide the camp and be a resource and accountability partner to the director. The board consists of:
Pete Curry-Chairman, Ross Fogwell-ON rep, Sue Vanderlip-Secretary and members Michelle Reay and Carole Stanton. If anyone is interested in joining please let myself or any Board Member know.

We now have a new Ontario Director!! Howard McLeod felt it was time to step down from full time ministry and we have been searching for some time. Rob Pollet came onboard mid October. He and Howard will work together for a few months to facilitate the change.

Prayer Needs
-better ways to promote camp
-better financial support for the camp and for Teresa
-Spiritual growth for the campers and staff
-God to start inspiring young people to serve with camp in 2007
-God’s wisdom in how to minister through the unique ministry called CAMP!
Thank You!