Mission Statement

Junior High Retreat February 1 from 8 p.m. to February 3 at 1 p.m

Senior High Winter Retreat February 8 from 8 p.m. to February 10 at 1 p.m.

The Swan Lake Christian Camp

Cookbook version 2.0 is now

available. These cookbooks in-

clude nearly all of the recipes

from the original book, plus an

additional 155 new recipes. All

of these are recipes that Mary

uses here at camp and are

“camper approved”. It is a sig-

nificant part of our ministry at

camp to provide for the physical

nourishment of our guests as

we also work to give them spiritual nourishment. Mary

has devoted much of her life to ministering from the

kitchen and now we are glad to be able to share those

recipes with you. The cost of the new cookbook is $20.

January 2013 Viborg, South Dakota Issue # 15

We are so excited to share with you our heart for what

is happening at Swan Lake Christian Camp. The first

Saturday in March will begin with a great meal at 6 p.m,

and will include activities for the children and a drawing

for a Kindle Fire. We are looking forward to hearing

from two Christian men who have a heart for seeing

kids experience Christ in the camping setting. We will

be outlining the building schedule for the retreat center

and giving concrete details about our plans. This eve-

ning has the potential to shift the way people think

about SLCC. If you have an interest in the ministry of

SLCC, then you are invited. Please let the camp staff

know of your intentions to attend by calling 605-326-

5690. Our hope is to share with you how God is using

the camp to multiply His kingdom and to invite you to

partner with us in His work. Come make this a memo-

rable evening.

I want to spend a little time reflecting about the importance of our mission statement. Years ago, when we were

striving to find a pithy statement that reflected the attitude or heart of our mission, we considered this phrase from

Psalm 46:10. We changed the “I am God” phrase to “He is God” to insure that we were giving God proper acknowl-

edgement. “Be still” is a phrase that speaks to our need to come away from the busyness of our daily strivings to

pause and embrace the deity of God. When we stop long enough to notice, God is evident in nature and relation-

ships. He is also evident when we listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit within each one of us that recognize Jesus

Christ as Lord and Savior. God is also very evident when we search the scriptures with the intent of desiring to know

more about Him. Someone recently said to me that camp is that special place where we can be the person that we

want to be the rest of the year. I recognize that we are all maturing day by day in our quest to imitate Jesus. Some

days, I do a better job of that than others. Camp is designed to give us the space and the time to be that person who

is respectful and earnest in all things relating to God. It is one of our goals to always strive to be our best without put-

ting a lot of emphasis on competition over and above someone else. Many of our games here at camp have no clear

cut losers. Our hope is always that in our striving for excellence, that we are able to lift others up in the way in which

we see Christ reaching out his hand and saying to the lame man, take up your mat and walk. Camp is particularly re-

warding because we routinely are blessed enough to see the growth in a young person’s life. Rest, fellowship and

growth are all important aspects to our continued relationship with God. It is my hope that these simple words are

lived out here at camp so that it truly is a place where people can come and feel the presence of Jesus Christ.

Pledges have been received to do the excavating and site preparation

and also to pour the concrete for this building addition to the current

dining hall. We have been visiting churches to share our goals and vi-

sion for the ministry potential of this facility and are now also sending

out pledge forms to many of the camp supporters and to those who

use the camp. Both the excavator and the concrete person would like

to be able to do their part when the frost comes out of the ground in

the spring this next year. That is only a few months away. We need

around $250,000 to complete the shell of the building. Our goal would

be to complete the exterior shell of the building during the spring and

that we would work to complete the entire project over the next twelve months or so. Our building plan is to hire li-

censed electricians and plumbers as well as using qualified persons to complete the framing. We are intending to use

as much volunteer labor as we possibly can and still meet the code requirements of the state in order to hold costs

down. Doing the project in this manner, we feel confident that we can keep the total cost of the project around

$650,000.

Right now, we are really looking for that first $250,000 to feel that we can get a good start. We are committed to

not taking on significant debt as this could really affect the ministry focus moving forward. Once completed, this re-

treat center will really help the entire camp to meet all of its financial operating expenses unless we are servicing debt.

If you are in a position of donating $50,000 we would like to honor that gift with a plaque over the door of one of the

guest rooms. This might be a great way to honor a loved one and help with a wonderful project that will impact many

lives for Christ for years to come. Please consider your gift towards this project by the end of this year.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the staff members of your youth? I reconnected with former staff

members and will put some of their stories in each newsletter. Enjoy reconnecting!

SLCC: What memories do you have from SLCC? As a camper I recall the accep-

tance I felt - that was what kept me coming back! Then

there was the Cone Game, Ultimate Frisbee, the music,

challenging faith moments, canoe excursions to Outpost,

and stargazing at Prayer Circle. Winter retreat brought ice

skating, cups of hot cocoa, carpet ball and ping pong tour-

naments, and the priceless conversations with old friends.

As a staffer, I recall the closeness with the staff that oc-

curred as we lived and served together. There were late

night runs around the lake, kitchen raids after campfire, impromptu guitar lessons, oppor-

tunities to use hammers and power tools, and brainstorming sessions for games and

campfire devotionals. I also loved watching former campers grow into amazing counsel-

ors. God never ceased to amaze me!

SLCC: What did you learn from your time at Swan Lake? My time at Swan Lake influ-

enced my faith journey by challenging me to be an authentic Christian and to put my faith into action in the world. It

also gave me valuable experience with youth of all ages which lead me into the teaching profession. I learned to lean

on the Lord for daily strength and motivation and to take joy in the gifts that I have and the gifts that others have to

offer the group as a whole.

Janene Sparke

(Goertzen)

2005, 2006

Hometown:

Henderson, NE

Current Residence:

Henderson, NE

SLCC: What memories do you have from SLCC? The year I was on staff,

we had some really crazy times. I remember making

a Swan Lake Survivor video in our free afternoons

and week-ends.

We also enjoyed taking the sailboats out on our

week-ends. We had some memorable Crazy Singing

times with the highlights being Red / Green Show

and some copy-cat skits from Saturday Night Live.

Finally, I remember dressing up gothic for Twin

Night with Shanda Hochstetler, Colleen Dyck, and

Tara Anderson.

SLCC: What did you learn from your time at Swan Lake? My time at

Swan Lake shaped who I am today by forcing me to live and work in community. I

learned a lot about sacrificing my own "space" and time for the good of the whole.

I also learned to see God at work in more powerful ways through the testimonies

and joy I could see in the other staff members. Finally, all those summers of praising God around the campfire brought

me into a heart attitude of worship.

Portia Strasser

2001, 02, 04 Staff

Hometown: Freeman, SD

Current Residence:

Twin Cities, MN

by way of China

It’s been

nearly 3 ½

months since I returned from an adventure of a lifetime hiking the Appa-

lachian Trail. As I meandered through the 14 states from Georgia to

Maine, I saw bears and snakes up close, got sweaty and bloody, took in

beautiful creation and made lifelong friends. In addition I grew closer to

my Creator. How can someone hike in these beautiful places and not be-

lieve there is a higher power? It boggles my mind, yet many hikers were

searching. Being in the wilderness strips you of your masks and it’s easy to

talk in the darkness of a shelter or while walking together. I found myself

having several conversations about Christianity, both with those that

were Christian and those that weren’t. I was able to share my story and

let them share theirs. Often they had been hurt by the church or other Christians and this made me sad. Christianity

isn’t about shutting people out that aren’t like us, but to point them in the direction and guide them toward Jesus

Christ. I hope that I was able to be Christ to those I met on the trail and I hope that I can continue to be a light wher-

ever I go. God blessed me in so many ways on the trip whether it was allowing the sun to shine after a cloudy morning

or bringing people into my life when I needed them. He gave me the strength to keep on hiking even when I felt like

quitting.

I was also very blessed to help raise money for Swan Lake’s building project, and it's not too late to donate. I thought

and prayed for the camp every day during the summer. It was so special for me to receive a phone call from the staff

and campers one week. I even walked 26 miles on the day of the Swan Lake Marathon! Camp was never far from my

mind.

I would love to share more of my adventures with you. Please check out my blog at: www.atforslcc.wordpress.com or

ask me your burning questions when we meet each other. Thanks so much for your support and prayers during my

journey!

Third Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 2-4

Fourth Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 4-7

Swan Lake Marathon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 9

Camp Achieve . . . . . . . . . .June 11, 12, 13, 14

Fifth Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 16-21

Sixth Grade Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . July 23-28

Cottontail Day Camp (ages 5 & 6). . . . . . July 1

Chipmunk Day Camp (grades 1-2) . . . . . July 2

Senior High Camp (Grades 9-12) . . . . July 7-12

Junior High Camp (Grades 7-8). . July 28– Aug 2

Renee pictured at the northern most point of the Appalachian Trail