Report of the
Victory Valley Camp
We have much for which to praise the Lord! This is not only because we have had a record year at Victory Valley as far as number of campers, or because we continue to have faithful leaders in Phil Atkins, Director, and Donna Bauer, Assistant Director, or because God has been blessing financially as we prepare to undertake the building of our All-purpose building, but it is because God is faithful in revealing Himself to us through both hard times and good times. We, the Board of Victory Valley, give Him all the praise and honor and glory and power due His name! We wanted to mention once again our thanks and appreciation to Phil and Karen and their family and Donna and Al and their family for the hard work and fine leadership which they’ve given to the ministry of Victory Valley throughout this past year. Please join us in continuing to pray for these servants of God as they faithfully minister.
We want to report to you some of the God-increased growth which we experienced this year. The total number of campers which attended the Valley this summer was up from 775 in 1993 to 828 in 1994. Thirty-seven percent of those campers were from our BFC churches. Eleven campers were recorded as making first-time decisions for Christ and seven campers were recorded as re-dedicating their lives to Jesus Christ, and we’re sure there were many others who made decisions which were not spoken about with our staff. There were 13 full-week scholarships given this summer with several other church-supported scholarships given to other campers. When combining our regular camping program with the Outpost Village program, we have reached 83% of our capacity to have campers on our grounds during the summer. Pray with us as we seek to increase this percentage and look for ways to increase the overall number of campers which we can have during the summer programs.
We praise the Lord for the summer staff which He brought to Victory Valley in 1994. Sixty-seven percent of our summer staff was returning staff from a previous year. Seventy-one percent were from one of our BFC churches. Also, sixty-five percent of the staff were college-age or above. As is mentioned in the promotional video for our “All Purpose for God’s Purpose” campaign, our staff is one of the strengths of Victory Valley Camp and we would appreciate your continued prayer for Donna as she seeks to find the summer staff for 1995.
Our VIP program continues to be a vital part of camp ministry and support throughout the year. Many projects are completed and much money is given by our “Valley Interested People” and we thank the Lord for their commitment to making the Valley a safe and exciting place for children and teenagers to come and meet Jesus Christ and mature in Him. The chapel roof has been repaired, our dining room was re-painted, and many other smaller upkeep-types of jobs were accomplished throughout the year. We do say thank-you to each one who was a part of the work.
This year we intend to begin and complete the building project which we told you about last year at this time. God has been good in bringing us $10,000 of the $80,000 which we need to begin building the All-purpose building in the Spring of 1995. Please pray with us and consider what your church’s part might be in meeting this goal that we’ve set for our building. Also, we are in the process of hiring another full-time person to minister as a Buildings and Grounds Supervisor. Please be praying for us as we add this person to our full-time staff. If you might have any suggestions for people who we should consider for this position, please contact the Valley or one of the Board Members.
The Lord continues to provide for us financially through our increased number of campers this past summer and through your generous gifts. Being mindful of the recession and the struggles which continue to face our families financially, we will not be raising our camper fee again this year. We cordially request each church to evaluate its giving to the Camp again this year. Any increase in support will be put to good use and very gratefully received. Just a reminder that church contributions given in the winter months help cash flow tremendously. Most camp income is generated during the summer months. We appreciate all those Churches who can contribute earlier than the March deadline. Also, we want to remind the Churches that those who contribute 1% of their total budget are still eligible to receive a 10% discount for all campers/groups which come to Victory Valley.
The Board of Directors of Victory Valley Camp held five regularly-scheduled meetings during the year. In addition to the meetings of the full Board many additional hours were spent by individuals of the Board in service on committees and in fulfillment of other Camp-related responsibilities. The Board continues to be divided into three sub-committees: Program and Staff, Buildings and Grounds, and Development and Finance.
SCHEDULE OF FUTURE DATES
The dates for winter and summer program 1994-95 are as follows:
October 28-30. . . . . . . . . . Teen Retreat
December 3. . . . . . . . . . . . Christmas Banquet
January 6-8. . . . . . . . . . . . .Sno Valley
January 20-22. . . . . . . . . . .Sno Valley-ages 7-12
January 27-29. . . . . . . . . . .Sno Valley-ages 7-12
February 3-5. . . . . . . . . . . .Sr. High Ski Spree
February 10-12. . . . . . . . . .Sno Valley-ages 7-12
May 13. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .VVC Workday
June 10. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Open House and VIP Picnic
September 16. . . . . . . . . . .VVC Workday
September 29-30. . . . . . . . BFC Regional Youth Event
The dates for Summer Camp in 1995 are:
Camp Outpost Village
June 25-July 1. . . . . .ages 8-12. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Children 8-12
July 2-8. . . . . . . . . . .ages 8-12. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Children 8-12
July 9-15. . . . . . . . . .ages 8-12. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Children 8-12
July 16-22. . . . . . . . .ages 8-12. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Children 8-12
July 23-29. . . . . . . . .ages 8-12. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Children 8-12
July 30-August 5. . . .Jr. High 12-14. . . Children 8-12
August 6-12. . . . . . . .Jr. High 12-14. . . Jr. High 12-14
August 13-19. . . . . . .Sr. High 14-18. . .Jr. High 12-14
Victory Valley Board of Directors: William G. Schlonecker, Chairman; Clyde D. Bomgardner Jr., Secretary; Bryan B. Bray, Sr., Treasurer; Phil Atkins, Director; Donna Bauer, Asst. Director; Carl J. Fischer, Jr., Bright N. Heist, Jonathan D. Reynolds, John C. Vandegriff, Jr., Dana E. Weller, and David L. Weller.