On November 2, 2019 the Lutheran Camp Association (LCA) celebrated its 50th anniversary as it held its annual membership meeting. 50 years ago a small group of Camp supporters came together to save Camp Arcadia and purchase the Camp and form the LCA. Executive Director Chip May remarked about this in his report:
“We remember those that have come before us. Those pioneers of the LCA that believed that God was and would continue to do something special through Camp Arcadia. We take for granted that a Lutheran Family Camp in NW Michigan would be a success, but this was not obvious in 1969 when the LCA was formed. Rooted in their faith and resilient to the naysayers they invested in Camp Arcadia’s ministry’s future. They trusted that God is always up to something, bringing life out of death, and making something new. Join me in giving thanks to God for all of those that have come before us, but believed in us and our future.”
At the annual meeting three board members were elected, two incumbents and one new board member. Stan Scheumann (Fort Wayne, IN) was re-elected to his third term and currently serves as the board chair. Kim Eveler (Granger, IN), was elected to her second term after being appointed in 2018 to the board, and serves as the board treasurer. John Basler (St. Louis, MO) was elected to his first term. Thank you to Rob Lewis (St. Louis, MO) for running for the LCA board.
Much gratitude to Phil Jones (Waverly, IA) for serving on the board for the last four and a half years. Phil has blessed the board with his business acumen and human resource experience as a former city manager and currently as VP of a manufacturing company. “Thank you Phil for your service to Camp Arcadia, the board will miss your insights and humor.” said Stan Scheumann when he was presented with a thank you gift of a picture of the Chapel on the Beach.
The Board also thanked Pastor Bill Yonker for his service as the board chaplain. Pastor Yonker has brought his stories of God’s grace to our board devotions, opening weekend worship and the annual meeting devotions for twelve years. He has provided counsel and encouragement to board and staff over the years. Chip commented on Pastor Yonker’s time as chaplain, “He has been there for me so many times as we wrestled with some tough issues over the years, always bringing the Good News of Jesus to the situation and reminding us that God is ultimately in charge of Camp’s ministry. I am forever grateful for him serving as board chaplain.”
Other notables from the business portion of the meeting included:
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- 2019 reservations were up compared to the previous year and will exceed the budgeted revenue.
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- Chip praised the efforts of Camp’s new chef, Taryn Woell, and the kitchen team for their hard work and commitment to Camp’s mission this summer under difficult circumstances.
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- Chip also praised the work of his whole management team, summer staff, and fall staff.
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- A beach update was given highlighting the work that is being done to protect Camp’s shoreline from record lake levels. Click here to read more about the beach.
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- Board Chair, Stan Scheumann, on the plans for Stage Two of the Spirit of Arcadia projects, “With the most recent expansion work completed, the board believes it is now appropriate to reexamine the original SOA Inn expansion plans to determine if the parameters of those original plans still fit our needs and vision. No timetable has yet been established for this reexamination.”
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- The board spent time on Friday at its day-long meeting exploring Camp’s staffing models for its management team, summer staff and fall staff.
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- Video stories of how Camp Arcadia has impacted their lives – either as a staff member or a guest – were shown from Devin Petrillo and Cedric Gegel as staff members, and David Beck and Karl & Katie Shininger as a family campers.
- Celebration of Chip’s 20th year as Camp director.
One Response
Congratulations to Chip for so many years of service to camp’s ministry and vision! Thank you to the LCA for it’s dedication and diligence in preserving and improving Camp for future generations.