Report of the
Victory Valley Camp
Victory Valley Camp has experienced a year of transition. In April of 2009 Doug Manwiller was appointed as Interim Director and in November was appointed Director by the BFC ExecBrd. With the summer camping season fast approaching the Lord blessed the camp with a dedicated leadership team and had 38 returning staff with a combined experience of over 90 years working at VVC. We were able to recruit a total number of 60 summer missionaries. We thank the Lord for the ministry of training young people to serve.
Despite a downward trend in the economy, we believe that our enrollment numbers have remained strong. We had an average of 92 campers per week which was slightly higher than last year and we praise the Lord for the increase. Our total number of campers this year was 554 for 6 weeks of camp as compared to 614 in 7 weeks in 2008. This year VVC was approached by an outside group called Explorer Girls and we worked out an arrangement with them to exclusively rent our facilities to them for what is normally our last week of the summer. They brought 85 girls along with 30 staff. The Lord worked in the hearts of their girls and 5 made professions of faith. We believe this arrangement was mutually beneficial and furthered the cause of God’s Kingdom.
Our summer Day Camp continues to provide day time activities for local children. This year our total enrollment was 135 in 6 weeks, which is a slight increase over last year per week. This program requires one leadership staff person and 4 summer missionaries. The strength of this program is its ability to reach into the local community.
The 2009 Budget year ended with a $13,629.67 surplus. A number of factors contributed to this surplus. First, we were able to increase our revenue with the Explorer Girls rental group. Second, we were able to save money in the kitchen through hiring an onsite summer cook and controlling ordering costs.
We continue with our Winter Weekends as churches continue to come as groups. We offer three Winter Weekends and had a total of 124 children. We continue to encourage BFC churches to send their children to these weekends in groups. This year 6 churches brought groups with one BFC church bringing over 30 children. Many of the churches bring their own adult leaders. They testify that the value of these weekends is the building of relationships that last beyond a mere three days.
Victory Hall is booked most week nights (Monday through Fridays by local sports teams). Our facilities are rented by churches for their picnics and activities. We seek to offer enjoyable retreat experiences along with access to all our facilities including the Pavilion, sports fields, dinning hall, game room, indoor climbing wall and Victory Hall. Outside groups have taken particular interest in Goliath, our outdoor challenge course.
Facilities Manager John Masters continues with his dedicated service to maintain and improve the facilities at camp. This year he oversaw volunteer groups from various BFC churches. They completed steps from the swimming pool to the campfire site and built a walking bridge with hand rails across the creek. Another group painted the inside walls of Victory Hall and also made a contribution towards the cost of the paint. A member of one BFC Church donated and installed a hardwood floor in the stone house.
We thank the churches that continually pray for Victory Valley Camp and support us financially. Please remember we are your camp and are available to serve you. Please consider Victory Valley Camp when planning your retreats, adult and youth and picnics.
Board of Directors, Victory Valley Camp, Timothy J. Bertolet, Chairman; Bruce A. Ellingson, Vice-chairman; Timothy D. Weaber, Secretary; Carolyn Cruise, Jason Englehart, Rachel E. Norris, Timothy J. Schmoyer
Douglas J. Manwiller, Director