Photo Competition - One week left!

 Just a reminder that we have just one week left to submit enties for our camp photo competition.

We have had some great submissions so far but I am sure that there are many more in your photo archive. Remember that entries close on April 30, 2010, so please search through your files and send us your best!

Please send as soon as possible to tewilson3@gmail.com

New Archery Certification program!

To open the archery range at Camp Li-Lo-Li requires an NADA Basic instructor certification. NADA (National Alliance for the Development of Archery) is the training organization for the two main national archery organizations (USA Archery and National Field Archery Association). The stated purpose of the Basic certification, "To introduce how to teach archery to a new instructor, who has most likely never shot before." Scope of training includes safety, range setup, basic equipment setup and repair, and teaching the basic steps of shooting. The certification process is broken into approximately 50% classroom training and 50% hands-on instruction at the archery range.

This nationally recognized course will enable you to be an archery instructor and open the archery range at camp and elsewhere. Mark White will be teaching the course, which will be offered during Summer Round-Up, August 15-21. The course is open to Round-Up campers from ages 15 (but in their 16th year), and is also open to other staff members age 17 and up. For more information, contact Mark White at Mark.Lori.White@gmail.com. If you know anyone who has expressed an interest in being an archery instructor at Camp and needs a Basic instructor class, please have them contact Mark at the email address above.

Photo Competition! Entries Close April 30, 2010

One of the great things about Camp Li-Lo-Li is its location in the beautiful Sunfish Run Valley. We constantly receive compliments on not only the beauty of our valley but also the way in which the property and facilities are kept. We want to be able to showcase camp and let others see what we see! We will be using sme of these photos in our publicity materials including brochures, powerpoint presentations, our website and on our postcards.

We are looking for your best photos in two main categories: people and scenery. The photos can be from any time of the year as each season is so very different. They can also show any of the many activities at camp including the waterfront, the horses, ropes and challenge courses, climbing tower, archery and riflery ranges, as well as the pool and crafts. Indoor photos from the Chapel or the Lodge would also be great. They don’t have to be recent, although higher resolution digital pictures will be better for print projects. They just have to be your best!

Selected submissions will be posted to a Picasa website for viewing. We will be selecting winning entries, but would like your permission to use any of the submitted photos on our website and elsewhere, even if you don’t win the main competition. The winners of each category will receive a beautiful Camp Li-Lo-Li towel and coffee mug as well as photo credit on our projects.

Please email your entries to me at tewilson3@gmail.com. The competition begins today and entries will be received up until April 30, 2010.

So start searching your photo archives and see what you can find!

New Family at Camp

Since the Williards left last summer we have been praying that the Lord would bring us a new family who love the Lord and want to serve Him at camp. We are very pleased to let you know that the Bodder family will be joining us starting May 1. Stacy and Bethany have four children - Isaac 12, Lydia 9, Rachel almost 8, and Joel 4.

Stacy will be coming on board as the new Assistant Property Manager and will be working closely with Larry Thompson. Stacy has a background in farm management and has not only the practical skills we were looking for but also has a passion for the Lord. They are going to be a great asset to camp.

Please join us in welcoming them to Camp Li-Lo-Li and please remember to add them to your prayer list. There will be many changes and adjustments for them in the months ahead and I know they would appreciate our thoughts and prayers.

Important! New Camp Web Address

We have added a new domain name to the current www.campli-lo-li.com The new web address will be shorter, easier to remember and will also reflect our non-profit status.

The new web address is http://www.liloli.org/

The old web address will still work but you will notice it automatically changes when you get to the site! Please start to change your bookmarks or favorites to the new site and let others know as well.

Over the next year we will be updating brochures, mailings, letterheads, and other print projects to show the new web address. And remember the new web address ends in .org not .com.

Important Update to the Zipline Training

The minimum age for certification on the Challenge and Ropes course is 18, but younger individuals who have been trained may work on a course with appropriate supervision. If you have an interest in assisting on the challenge course or want to 'learn the ropes', make plans to join us the weekend of June 4-5!

Important Training on our 1700 foot New Zipline ! Must Read!

After much planning and praying, our new 1700 foot zipline will be installed this spring! In addition to the design, building and inspection of the physical structure, we will also need to make sure we have many committed, competent and certified leaders and facilitators.

If you are currently certified and need training on our new zipline, this weekend is for you! If you are 18 and older and have an interest in being certified, this weekend is also for you!

We will be conducting "In-House Challenge Course and Ropes Training" Friday, June 4th and Saturday, June 5th at camp. Remember, minimum age for certification is 18. It is essential that we get as many people trained as soon as possible. This is going to be an exciting summer and we need all the help we can get!

For more information, please contact Larry Thompson or Matt Bennett.

Pre-Teen 2 Boys Registration Full

Online registrations have run well ahead of schedule this year. Pre-Teen 2 Boys is now full. There is still room in the Pre-Teen 2 Girls session, but hurry because it is filling up fast.
Both Pre-Teen 1 and Pre-Teen 3 are ahead of last year in registration so please encourage as many as possible to complete their registrations as soon as possible. Online registration is best, but use the paper registration to get your applications in very soon to secure your place at camp this summer.

Reminder to all past and potential staff: please use the new 2010 staff application form. There is a great need for spiritually committed counselors and staff members. Please continue to pray that the Lord will be working in the hearts of the campers who have already registered.

The Bushes Have Been Removed!

For many years, the bushes in front of the Lodge have grown taller and stronger making it more difficult to see the activities on the lawns below. These have now been removed increasing the visibility and also paving the way for some future plans regarding the front porch.
This would be a good time to remind you all of the upcoming workdays. If you or your chapel have an interest in helping, please contact Larry Thompson to let him know when you would be available!

Testimony from Larry Thompson

If you have ever hiked some of the larger hiking trails across the United States you will find that many of these trails are marked with piles of stones stacked on top of each other. Cairns, as they are referred to, are markers indicating to others where the trail is and what direction to head to. Cairns can also represent a monument, or a spot of significance. As I look back on my life I can recognize several figurative cairns that would indicate moments of significance and the fact that my trail cut across this path.

That first cairn, which was followed closely by the second, was when I watched my father surrender his life to the Lord at a Billy Graham Crusade in 1967. The impact of watching both my father and short while later, my brother Toby, making Christ the Lord of their lives influenced me to do the same when I was seven years old. Camp Li Lo Li would be represented by another of these cairns as the ministry of Li Lo Li played a significant role in those early years as a young believer, and in fact, all the way into my teens; first, as a camper and later as summer staff.

Some may think that a stint in the US Navy would be a marked and significant time in my life – and it was, but the significance was not on all the places I saw, or things I had done. Rather, my time in the Navy was highlighted by the fact that I had a decision to make in who I would choose to follow. Would I follow and be a part of the World, or, would I commit my ways to the Lord? The Lord was gracious in placing Godly people in my life during these days to help me keep my eyes focused on Him. There were setbacks from time to time but the Lord prevailed and continued his refining process.

Shortly after leaving the Navy I found myself back at Camp Li Lo Li once again as a volunteer. It was on a beautiful starry night while literally standing at the crossroads at Camp Li Lo Li and figuratively at a crossroads of career paths and choices that the Lord answered my prayers by directing my steps into the wonderful ministry of Christian Camping. The rest, as they say, “is history.” Helen and are entering 20th year in full-time Camping ministry and our 10th year as Camp Li Lo Li’s Property Manager. We are so grateful for the Lord’s to allow us to be a part of such a strategic ministry. What opportunities we have!

These are a few of the cairns that have been left behind as mileposts in my life. However, I’m not much one for going over the same trail twice – so I’m looking forward to seeing how the Lord will lead in direct in the days ahead.