Camp is gearing up for the final two science camps; then it's into staff break (which will be filled with baby-times and no sleep for us, I'm sure) and off to summer camp (two weeks of staff training, a horsemanship camp, then what we've been planning for all year). 

The question we get a lot is whether camp runs year-round.  The answer is "yes," but nothing nearly as intense as the few months in the middle of summer.  We have about an equal number of camper days (that's how we measure how many have come...think of it like a mathematical formula of number of campers multiplied by how many days they were here.  So, for each camper staying a week, it's 5 camper days.  Much of our budget and other camp operations rise and fall on camper days.)  Anyway, we have a roughly equal number of camper days throughout the summer as we do the rest of the year combined.

 

A few prayer requests, though.  We obviously have a larger staff pool in the summer, yet our numbers are about half of where they normally are for this time of year.  God just didn't prosper recruiting for some reason.  He no doubt has His plans, and we've adapted accordingly.  But it'll be a stretching time for us all (especially with a new family member for us! :D).

 

In addition, I'm still responsible to recruit for the Bridge (our college program) as well as to plan for the next cycle we're starting.  Not only are we offering correspondence college in association with Maranatha, but also we're starting up what could be considered a ministry training program -- a Christian trade school, if you will.  One (the Maranatha arm) will be "Bridge to Campus," while the other (the trade school) will be "Bridge to Life."  It's an exciting time, to be sure, but certainly something that pushes me out of my comfort zone in a lot of ways.  I'm not particularly charismatic when it comes to recruiting, so that aspect of convincing people to come to either "Bridge to" option is a stretch for me.

 

In addition, once Deb is finished with her maternity leave (which will probably be a good chunk of the summer if Baby doesn't arrive soon), she'll be dropping from full-time to half-time so she can be home with Baby in the afternoons.  This will be quite a change of pace for Deb.  As such, she's stepping down from being in charge of the coffee shop and is also training another to help cover her work in the front office and her tasks with hospitality.  However, for someone who enjoys "puttering," as she calls it, the down time at home will be good, busy, yet strange.

 

It seems weird to ask for prayer in this area as well, but pray my clumsy streak will end.  In the last month, I've broken off a headphone jack in my phone, dropped my phone and broken the screen, realized a piece of tech I bought at Christmas no longer works (and so I tried to get it replaced with the company... no word yet), and I've dropped my tablet off the hood of my car and shattered the screen.  It's been an interesting time for me and tech (here's hoping my desktop doesn't break as I type this).  God has provided financially in replacing some of these, so for that we're thankful.  But we want to be good stewards of the money He's entrusted us with, and dishing out money to repair accidents is ... taxing.

 

Thanks again for your prayers.  Keep us in prayer with all the new seasons coming upon us.  We thank you greatly for how you've supported us, particularly those who simply write us letters.  Sorry, we're not as faithful in writing as you are.  We appreciate it greatly.

 

For His Glory Alone,

 

Mike and Deb Wareing