DTP Spends the Day at Camp Daniel

Liz Henderson--Program Team Assistant

Yesterday the 23 students and six counselors in the Discipleship Training Program spent the day serving at Camp Daniel. 
The mission of Camp Daniel is to bring God's love to people with
disabilities.  Camp Daniel allows campers with disabilities to
participate in a camp experience that has been specifically designed for
them.  They have swimming, sports tournaments, banquet activities,
fishing, crafts and a variety of other activities.  Camp is made
possible through volunteers who spend a week at camp being the counselor
for one camper and providing a safe and loving experience for them.  The DTPers spent the day doing a variety of service projects around camp in addition to serving lunch and spending time with the campers.  It was a very fun and encouraging day for all involved.  HoneyRock was delighted to be able to partner with Camp Daniel this summer, and we would encourage you to take a look at their website and learn more about their ministry. 

 

"HoneyRock, this is Becki (or Sarah or Liz or Elizabeth)"

If you have ever dialed the main HoneyRock number and not entered an
extension, then odds are good that the phone was answered by one of
these four women in the office.  50% of the time Sarah answers the
phone.  25% of the time Elizabeth answers the phone.  15% of the time Becki answers the phone.  And 10% of the time it's Liz.

Sarah is the HoneyRock Receptionist this summer and is the one
who is most likely to answer the phone.  Elizabeth is
our Registration Coordinator and she has the most knowledge of campers
and cabins and schedules.  Becki is the Administrative
Assistant who is paying the bills and writing contracts but also
answers the phone when Sarah is already speaking with someone.  Liz
is the Program Team Assistant who graciously answers the
phone when all the other lines are busy and the phone just keeps on
ringing.  Contrary to popular belief, Liz and Elizabeth are two different people!

All four of these ladies enjoy their jobs and love to answer the
phone.  We thought it might be fun for you to see faces to put with the
names of the people you speak with!

(Pictured from left to right are Becki Henderson, Liz Henderson, Elizabeth Baltus and Sarah Gallagher)

Living on a Prayer

Well, in the famous words of Bon Jovi, we are definitely half way there as far as making it through the summer goes.  This depends a little bit on how you define the actual start and end dates of the summer--does it start when the SLS counselors get here?  Does it end when the last Res Camper goes home or not until the Passage bus raises a cloud of dust as it leaves the Chrouser Parking Lot?  But by any definition we are more than halfway done with the summer.

Bon Jovi's lyrics to the song "Livin' on Prayer" use the phrase "We're halfway there livin' on a prayer" which I think is applicable to our lives here at HoneyRock.  We do a lot of praying here.  We pray before meals and we pray after devos in the mornings.  We pray during our meetings, we pray during the Cabin Impact times.  We pray individually and we pray together.  We pray "popcorn" style and we pray in an organized fashion (depending on who is leading--some of us do better with the organization...)

We are so thankful that the God of the Universe who is the God of HoneyRock hears all of our prayers. There are two verses in Psalm 116 which say in the New Living Translation "I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy.  Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!" 

Imagine that!  A God who bends down to listen to our prayers!  Today we are thankful for a God who inclines His ear to HoneyRock and listens intently to all the things we say.  

The World Comes to HoneyRock

One of the best things about HoneyRock is that our staff come from all over the country and sometimes from all over the world!  This summer we are pleased to have Yaphet Tedla here as an SLS counselor.  Yaphet was born in Ethiopia and moved to the States when he was 10.  He chose to go to Wheaton College because it was academically rigorous and provided a Christian atmosphere for him to grow spiritually.  He appreciates Wheaton's focus on the integration of faith and learning.

Yaphet chose to come to HoneyRock this summer because he wanted a challenge and he knew HoneyRock would be a great opportunity to really invest in the lives of the kids and to show them how much Jesus impacted his life so the kids can see there is no better life to live other than the one that Jesus gives.  He wanted to share with the kids how Jesus has provided for him and his family and is there for you no matter what goes on in life.

He loves working with the kids and has a passion for teaching Scripture.  Yaphet says HoneyRock does a great job of teaching children other skills (like we do in the Activity Areas and on the overnight camping trips) and getting them involved in other stuff--it's a very well rounded camp!  Below is a picture of Yaphet (in the yellow sweatshirt) with some of his campers. 

Mail Time!

The mail room is an exciting place at HoneyRock!  Every day, bunches of packages and letters come rolling in for the campers and staff.  It is encouraging to see so many letters and care packages and it is fun to see the eyes light up when campers and staff receive their mail. 

Because there is so much mail during the day, it really helps when mail is labeled correctly.  Simply writing your child's name and program is a lot of help!  You can even abbreviate (instead of 12 Day Res. Camp Session 2, 12Day #2 will suffice).  If you know your camper's cabin number and would like to add it, that is always helpful too.

Thanks so much for encouraging the staff and campers with your love and support!

Just another day down at the range

John Vandervelde - Program Director   

HoneyRock offers unique activities that are designed intentionally to
help give campers a new and unique experience with the unfamiliar,
expand their minds, increase their potential, and encourage them to
think big. Campers sign up daily for the activities of their choice.
Options available include: canoeing, archery, kayaking, riflery,
wilderness skills, mountain biking, swimming, sailing, crafts,
climbing, horsemanship and
waterskiing.  In each activity area, campers work to progress through our
levels system. Campers move from ‘basic’ to ‘intermediate’ to ‘masters’
with each new level achievement being recognized at our Family Day
awards ceremony, and campers are awarded with a special sticker unique
to each level.

Today I wondered down to the shooting range and took a few pictures of campers having a great time.  It turned out the group that was there were some residential camp girls ages 10-12.  What fun it was to see these girls learn all about shooting and having a great time challenging themselves while working on get their basic awards.  A truly unique "camp experience" that they can't do everyday back home.  So cool!  

I thought you readers would enjoy a few pictures.