Happy New Year

Well, I hope that your 2011 is off to a wonderful start. If you have ever been on staff at Camp Deer Run, then you probably know the tradition of spending New Year's Eve at Camp. Last night was no different. There were around 30-40 young people at Camp and it was a good time just like always. I am not sure when the tradition of the summer staff coming to Camp for a New Year's celebration began, but I know that it has been happening for many, many years. It is a time for the previous summer's staff to come together and see each other, many for the first time since the past summer. It is also a night that people interested in working at Camp for the next summer to come out and find out a little about Camp and be around the people they may be working with at Camp.

The festivities of the night are always pretty laid back. People show up whenever they want, anywhere from 8:00-10:00. Everyone hangs out in the Mess Hall, eating, playing games, and just fellowshipping with good friends.

Last night had a new wrinkle added to it. When someone was going out for a walk around Camp, they saw a beaver right behind the Mess Hall. Not really sure what he was doing so far away from the swap, but his presence was one of the highlights of the night.
While everyone looked in amazement at this strange creature, someone decided it would be a great idea to put a leash on the beaver, much like a dog, and have him be our pet for the night. Here is a picture of Camp Director Ty Ford with said beaver on leash, with his hound dog that help him wrangle the beaver.
Just before midnight, everyone headed out to Hoche Ballfield to watch the annual Camp Deer Run New Year's Ever Fireworks Extravaganza.
After the fireworks are shot off, and everyone celebrates the new year, a night devo is led on Hoche Ballfield, much like Night Devo during the summer. I have spent probably 10 New Year's at Camp, and I can think of no better way to start off a new year than by singing praises to God underneath the stars surrounded by fellow believers. It really is a powerful time.

Like I said, hopefully your new year is off to a blessed start. I know God has many great things planned for 2011, and it is up to us to let him lead our lives how he sees best.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run,

Sparky

Merry Christmas, All Year Long

Merry Christmas, maybe a day or two late. I hope that everyone has enjoyed this holiday season as much as my family and I have. I really enjoy all of the things that come with the Christmas season...the music, the happiness that it brings to so many people, opportunities to spend time with people I love, and with so many people talking about the reason we celebrate Christmas, the birth of Christ. While thinking about Christmas, it actually reminded me of spending time at Camp Deer Run. I love the singing at Camp, I am always happy when I am inside the gates of Camp, I love the people I am around while there. And most importantly, I love that the focus of Camp is telling Christ's message to the kids who are there. Which led me to think of something that may be a challenge for many people, me included. Its easy to keep our focus on Christ during the Christmas season, because we are constantly thinking that "Jesus is the reason for the season". Or we are seeing nativity scenes in every yard. Just like it is so easy to be burning for Christ when we are at Camp. The challenge is to have that same focus about Christ and the things He does in our lives throughout the entire year. We need to make sure that we are sharing the story of Christ in April and May, just like we do during December. Jesus isn't just the reason for the season, He is the reason we have a hope of an eternal life in Heaven. And because of this hope, we are expected to live our lives in a way that reflects Christ. As we start a new year in a few days, make it a priority to live every day in a way that reflects Christ for others to see, so that they are thinking about God's gift to us in more ways than just as a holiday in December. Have a great finish to 2010 and a wonderful start to 2011.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run,

Sparky

Christmas...CDR Style

Its that time of year. Christmas music is playing everywhere, people are out shopping, cold weather has moved in, and people are thinking about Christ's birth. Unfortunately, Camp Deer Run is a pretty quiet place during this time each year. But that doesn't mean that Christmas doesn't hold a special place in Camp Deer Run memories for many people. Of course I would be talking about Christmas in July!

As you you can tell from the picture above, Christmas at Deer Run is not exactly like the Christmas we are celebrating right now. Obviously some Deer Run flavor has to be added to make it a truly unique experience. Christmas in July is celebrated on July 25th, and is a unique celebration at Camp, since it only happens once a summer, if the 25th is on a day that Camp is in session. Because of this, many people never get to experience Christmas in July at Camp during their years at Camp. Christmas is celebrated all day long, and activities have a Christmas feel to them, like making Christmas tree ornaments in crafts, as well as making gifts to give to friends. It all comes together in the afternoon when the campers and staff gather around the "Christmas Tree"(which is really a small little cedar tree next to the canteen) to sing carols and share gifts. There is nothing like singing Jingle Bells in the 102 degree heat. Finally Santa Claus makes an appearance and shares his holiday spirit with everyone. It might not be the Christmas we all know, but it is a lot of fun and everyone who has experienced Christmas at Camp will tell you how great it is to share this special time with friends at Camp.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run,

Sparky

Men's Alumni Retreat

The time is getting closer for our first Camp Deer Run Alumni event of the year. The Men's Alumni treat is February 5th-6th, and open to all former CDR campers and staff members 20 years of age and up. Festivities get started at 11:00 on Saturday and we will wrap up the same time on Sunday. There was a smaller Men's Retreat last year with about 25 guys spending the night out at Camp, and it was an absolute blast to be around old friends. The details are being put together and a schedule is being worked on. If you are planning on attending, then go to www.campdeerrun.com and register for the retreat. The cost is $25 each, and covers everything, including meals, a night in a wonderful Camp Deer Run cabin, and a CDR t-shirt. Make sure to spread the word about this retreat as we are wanting to get as many CDR Alumni men to make it out for this weekend of great fellowship and great fun. I promise that this will be a time that you will remember all year, and will be a time that draws you closer to God. Hopefully we can have a good group of guys get together, and we can make this an important tradition that we can do every year. If you have any questions you can email me at cdralumni@gmail.com, or get a hold of Ty Ford on the Camp website. Hope to see many of you there.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run,

Sparky

Prayer Thoughts

This weekend, many members of the summer staff trekked to the Piney Woods of East Texas and had a staff retreat at Camp Deer Run. These young adults did a great job this summer of showing over 1,000 kids how wonderful it is to have God in their lives. They gathered this weekend to reconnect, praise God, and to be rejuvenated in their quest to live for God. I want to ask everyone to pray for this past summer's staff. Many of them will be back out at Camp this next summer, continuing to work for God. Others will move on to the next part of their lives. Pray that they continue to live their lives for God, and to be leaders in their churches. Ask Him to give them the strength to stand up to Satan as he tempts them when they become adults and enter the working world. The staff members are very important to the success of each summer of Camp, but let's make sure we continue to keep them in our prayers all year round, as they are young people continuing to learn about God and the great things He can do in their lives.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run,

Sparky

Changes at Camp...Canteen

Camp Deer Run has undergone many changes since it was founded over 50 years ago, which is pretty amazing considering that it has basically stayed the same place over that time. I wanted to highlight one of the most central parts of Camp that was forced to change after a very memorable, and scary moment...the Canteen.

Three times a day, each group makes a trip the canteen porch to get something to snack on, drink a soda, and relax out of the hot sun while fellowshipping with each other. Its always one of the favorite times of the day for everyone because it is a chance to just sit back and relax during a schedule that always keeps everyone moving.

This first picture shows what the Canteen was like before. The porch was about 8 feet wide all the way around the Canteen. After the campers went through and got their goods, they would hang out all around the porch, eating and drinking and having a good time.

Every so often, the canteen was used as cover for Flag Devo when it was raining. It was the best place to have everyone cram so that they could stay out of the rain, yet still be close enough to the flag pole to make it seem like a flag pole devo. During 4th Session sometime in the mid 90's, it was raining in the morning so everyone crammed onto the canteen for a very crowded flag devo. Little did they know that they were about to become a part of Camp Deer Run history.

4th Session is always one of the most popular sessions, and the mid 90's was no different. With everyone piled on the porch, something bad happened...the porched collapsed! Thank God, there was no one severely injured, but several people were shaken up. But everyone had a great story to tell everyone. Since the porch was not connected to the actual canteen building, only the porch was affected. But the porch obviously needed to be repaired/replaced. Instead of just replicating the old porch that went all the way around the canteen, an extra level was added on one side. The porch still wraps all of the way around, but now there is a large area to the left of the canteen. You can see that canteen as it is today in this picture.
This new porch has been a wonderful addition to Camp over the past 15 years or so. On the old porch, everyone was spread out all around the porch and there was no way to be together as a group. Now during Canteen all members of the group can be together on the porch, sharing laughs and stories with each other.

The new porch (which its hard to think its new since it is around 15 years old) offers so many other opportunities for Camp that the old one didn't. There is now another place that Group and Cabin Bibles can go to spend time in the Word.
The new porch also affords Camp with some flexibility about different activities throughout the session. The porch is a great place to hold an indoor scavenger hunt, or have a luau to celebrate Hawaiian Day.
I think that the canteen porch is a great example of how Camp is always making changes, but is never truly changing. Each change that is made at Camp is made to continue the mission that has been Camp Deer Run for over 50 years. If you haven't been to Camp in many years, I hope you enjoy getting to see what it looks like today. I really do believe that if you were to go out there today, you would see the same place that you fell in love with many years ago. Camp's main purpose is the same today as it always has been...to change young lives with the story of Christ.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run,

Sparky

Thanksgiving

Wow, its been a very long time since my last post, and for that I truly apologize. I will do my best to fix that little problem. With the month of November being here, we all know that in a few short weeks we will be gathering with friends and family to celebrate Thanksgiving. I want to encourage everyone to think about what they are thankful for, and give thanks to God for these things everyday, not just on a designated holiday. We are always taking prayer requests and needs to God in prayer, but too often we forget to give true thanks to Him for the things we have been blessed with. Whether you thank Him for big things or small things does not matter. We know that God wants us to have a true relationship with Him, and that He likes to hear us talking to Him. This includes voicing our gratitude for the great things that have been put into our lives.

As always, if you have prayer requests, or thanks, that you would like to share with the CDR family, you can email them to me at cdralumni@gmail.com and I will post them on this blog. I also promise to start writing more often on this blog, so make sure to check back often.

Hail, Dear Ol' Deer Run

Sparky