Legacy for 2011

Good bye 2010 hello 2011. Here’s some great thoughts from John Maxwell

The Law of the Legacy
“…here’s what I know: we have a choice about the legacy we will leave, and we must work and be intentional to leave the legacy we want. Know the Legacy you want to leave.

Someday people will summarize your life in a single sentence. My advice: pick it now!

Live the legacy you want to leave. Chose who will carry on your legacy. A legacy lives on in people, not in things…only people live on after we are gone. Everything else is temporary.”

-The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership

Camp Facts 2010

Here are some incredible numbers from this years summer. Thanks for all that you do to help make these numbers possible. Remember, each one of these numbers is a child of abuse or abandonment, they are not just a number, they are someone special who need someone to come along side them and care.

Number of Campers ......................................6,835
Number of Volunteers (US only).................... 8,381
Number of camps .........................................175
U.S................................................................... 150
International ..................................................25
Average number of campers per US camp .....................41
Average number of campers per International camp ..25
Number of States represented .........................................33
Number of International Countries represented ...........9
Number of church denominations involved .................27
Number of volunteer hours (US only) ...........................1,357,779
Equivalent number of full time volunteer workers *...679
Total amount raised by US camps ..................................$4,140,852
Average amount raised per US camp .............................$27,605
Largest church ...................................................................10,000 +
Smallest church .................................................................40
Social Capital ** ...........................................$28,309,692
Returning campers as volunteer....................53
Total Campers Served since 1985 ..................66,526

* Total No. of volunteer hours divided by 2000 hours, which represents the annual hours of a full time employee.
**Social Capital is the number of volunteer hours multiplied by the IRS volunteer services rate of $20.85.

Mission To Mexico

Every year, our church makes a short trip to Mexico to a small church or two in San Quintin, a small agricultural town below Ensenada. This year, Jonathan and I joined the group and helped hand out Christmas bags that our church members had donated to the children of that community.

The Pastors house

Sorting bags

Jonathan with his name on the store behind him and grabbing a taco at a local taco stand.

For many of these children, these bags may be the only Christmas gifts they receive.

I specifically wanted to get involved with not only donating bags of toys and materials, but now get involved in the distribution part with our kids, so they understand how well-off we are in America.

Our group had a great time in only three days, and we were able to bless many young kids and help some local Pastors otu as well.

Maui Zaui!!!

This October, Janet and I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Maui for our 20th anniversary. I was planning to take Janet to the Islands for our 20th, which is actually next July, but Janet’s Mom and husband, Dan Petersen, happen to have a timeshare that they were not using this year and offered it to us, since Janet and I have been married the longest of Janet’s siblings. So we went a year early.

We had a great time! It was the first time since having children, 15 years ago, that we have been away on a vacation for a week without the kids. We have been away at camp for a week, but that was not vacation and it certainly wasn’t Maui!

Wow did we have fun! Relaxing, reading, dining out, swimming, snorkeling, driving, shopping and just hanging out with no particular place to go. I knew it would be good to get away, but I didn’t realize how good it was for our marriage. We just needed the chance to spend some quality time together, away from all the day-to-day routine of life, and Maui was definitely the place. If you haven’t rekindled your marriage in a while, do it!!!

We stayed in Kaanapali at a beautiful resort right on the beach, and visited several hot spots including: driving to Hana, Whalers Village, the Banyan Tree and Front Street, and touring the west side.

We visited Oahu for one day, and actually spoke to the pastor of a church about doing a camp, and then we visited the WWII sites at Pearl Harbor. We visited the USS Arizona memorial and toured the USS Missouri Battleship before catching a sunset and dinner on the Waikiki beach.

Yosemite Trip August 2010

Jessica and I had been thinking of climbing Half Dome and thought this would be a good test of our abilities. Jonathan joined us at the last minute. I wasn’t sure he could handle it all, and then I’d be carrying him down the Mt. Boy was I wrong! He just about had to carry me down the Mt. He earned the nickname "Billy goat". The rest of the gang joined us, and we made our way up the 600 steps to Nevada Falls. What a beautiful hike!

Jessica, Jonathan and I joined my brother, Jerry and his daughter, Candace, and a childhood friend, Terry Eseltine, to make a climb up to Nevada Falls this August.

It’s a killer on your quads, that’s for sure. We had to stop and take many breaks, but the incredible scenery was so worth it. Not only was the hike enjoyable, but it was a great time together as well. Great talks and experiences. We saw about 4 Boy Scout troops who had been on the trail for 4 – 8 days already. Those Boys can hike! We waded into the cold water and rested at the top of the falls. We also discovered that we were not in shape for the hike to the top of Half Dome. IF we attempt it next year, we will have to practice getting in stair-stepping shape first! We’ll see what the future holds.