A look back at 2022

A Message from the President

As I sit to write this article, I find myself in a strange frame of mind. We are 8 days away from getting away for a family vacation. The anticipation within me is growing for a time of reconnecting with those I deeply love and finding rest after a full season. I was telling my team about a Vacation Optimizer that encouraged me to choose three goals for my time away to help A-types, like myself, disconnect with purpose.

As I contemplate the wonder and beauty of Nanoose Bay Pentecostal Camp, I can’t help but make a correlation between my upcoming vacation and what I love so much about camp. There’s an exhale that comes each time I drive through those camp gates. There is a beckoning for my weary soul to disconnect, to stay a little longer in the presence of God, to find awe along the ocean’s edge or in the starry expanse of night sky. There is an invitation to reconnect with the One I deeply love and find rest from the demands of life.

My prayer for NBPC continues to be first and foremost that it is a place set apart for those seeking to meet with Jesus! That life, strength, and hope would be found in meeting Him. That lives would be changed, not because of our amazing teams of volunteers or the beauty of the property, but because God is here. My second prayer is this: that life-giving relationships would form and forged together; that we would be people of life who come alongside one another to bear witness to the sacred, to speak life to each other, to remind one another in the day to day that God is the same in our workplaces as He was at NBPC if we will wait and make space for Him.

Would you join me in that prayer? That NBPC would be a catalyst to the calling to love God and love one another?

It is an honour to serve you through our camp.

Lisa Mitchell

2023 Camp dates

Kids Camp - July 5 - 8

Mids Camp - July 10 - 14

Highs Camp - July 16 - 22

Projects

**Dorm upgrade**

Last spring/summer, a team of volunteers worked to update one of our older cabins that struggled during the winter months. The upgraded ended up being more intensive once started but was barely completed in time for our camps! The cabins are now raised and can sleep more people.

Barn Bathroom/Loft stairs

After the stairs were deemed unsafe, we had a team of volunteers from Powell River give of their time and resources to fix the stairs. This project is ongoing!

**Social Media**

Follow us on Instagram (@nanoosebaycamp) to keep up to date with dates of Spring work bees, summer camp highlights, registration opening dates, and volunteer opportunities!

2022 Camp - Hidden Things - Highlights

Kids Camp - Lisa Mitchell - Director

I am so grateful for the incredible team who made Kids Camp happen! Our Leadership Team prayed that God would send the right team along, and He was so faithful. I am so proud of the way this team served with humility and consistency and how they lead with integrity and passion. Watching our volunteers

I want to say a huge thank you to Ryan & Leah Bennett who came to minister at camp. They presented a message of grace and life change in such a creative way; who would have thought you could do an entire Bible story using aerobics?! I had multiple kids ask me why we only had two chapels a day because it was their favourite part! That was honestly the best thing I could ever hear! While we work diligently to ensure our program is fun and varied, our main goal is always that they experience Jesus!

As always, God was so faithful to bring all the pieces together in a way that had us in awe of Him! We had 83 kids and 93 volunteers on the grounds; it was a blissful week of laughter and activity. I pray that what God spoke over our kids becomes the foundation they build their lives on.

Mids Camp - Markus DenBraber and Bren Michalski - Directors

We had a dream team at Mids Camp! Our volunteers are the backbone of camp running. They were a group of multi-generational volunteers who were willing to step into the gaps that needed to be filled, go above and beyond what was expected, invest their time into our students, and serve Jesus by serving His camp. We can’t do camp without them… and neither do we WANT to do camp without them!

We had 111 students at Mids Camp this year and I believe each one of them encountered God through chapels, time with their counsellors, and in their devotionals in the morning.

There were about 25 students who responded to a call to salvation for the first time as well as about 80 students who responded to a call for the baptism of the Holy Spirit at response times during chapel. It was so encouraging to see the hunger our students had to encounter God at Mids - it filled me with great hope for our future!

Pastor Lisa Mitchell was our camp speaker this year. She did an excellent job of unpacking God’s word in a way that brought life change to our students. We are so thankful for her contribution to Nanoose Bay Camp as a whole and to Mids Camp 2022.

Highs Camp - James Berkey and Christian Brouwer - Directors

Highs Camp was a busy week with around 200 campers and 75 volunteers. It felt great to be back into the traditions of Highs Camp for the first time in 3 years. 2/3 of the students in attendance had never attended Highs Camp, which made for a great culture of excitement and acceptance.