Over the weekend, Camp Arcadia was invited to be part of a Farm Worker Appreciation event, hosted by partner organizations Trinity Lutheran Church, the Pleasant Valley Community Center, the Arcadia Lions, and Arcadia United Methodist Church. This event offered the opportunity for our community to say “thank you” to the tireless workers who help harvest crops in our area with a meal (including ice cream scoops from Jess Knoll and Matt Froehling), raffle prizes, activities and a clothing drive.
We were honored to be invited to contribute to the event, as being good neighbors is a core value of Camp Arcadia’s ministry! Here are several other ways we’ve been blessed to be part of community this summer.
Staff Day of Service & Trinity Lutheran Church Events
During staff training, our summer staffers were able to put in an afternoon of work at Trinity: cleaning, landscaping, and organizing. Then, summer staffers joined members of Trinity for dinner and fellowship.
In addition, we hosted the 2nd Annual Crosstown Showdown baseball game between Trinity and Camp Arcadia’s summer staffers. It was truly a well-played game, and fun was had by all! Trinity took home their second victory – another way that we were, obviously, just being good neighbors…
Summer Service Project for Lighthouse Pregnancy Care Center
This summer, Camp Arcadia partnered with Thrivent Action Team Donors to bless the Lighthouse Pregnancy Care Center in Manistee by creating blankets for expectant mothers and their families. Through the Thrivent Action Team Funds, supplies were purchased. Volunteers prepared the supplies for blanket construction, creating kits for students to work on each week.
During their week at Camp, middle and high school students studied the Fruits of the Spirit – and then discussed what it meant to use those gifts to bless and encourage others. Students worked in teams to construct the blankets, which will be gathered at the end of the summer and donated to the LPCC. This project wraps up over Labor Day Weekend and we can’t wait to share the final report with you in a couple of weeks.
Cottager Community Wrap-Around Support
In the wake of tragedy this summer, we were blessed to receive support from our neighbors in town and the Arcadia Cottage Colony, who stepped in to help with cooking, cleaning, serving and supporting our staff. We were and are tremendously blessed by their encouragement, prayers and support. From baking to making beds, from providing a meal to offering counseling support, our community wrapped closely around us. We even had a special visit from Dona Martin, staying in the Cottage Colony, who brought LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs Ruth and Emma to greet guests and staff.
What a gift it is not only to serve but also be served by our community! We are grateful for the ways that we see faith in action within and through our community each year, and we continue to actively seek ways to connect with and serve our local neighbors.
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.” – 1 Peter 4:8-11
One Response
Loved reading about how Camp and the Arcadia Community have come together for different things to get to know each other somewhat as well as to serve each other . Also loved to hear that the Cottage Colony was able to help Camp when Camp really needed Christian support! Thank you for letting us know about these beautiful occurrences!