Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
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Page Contents
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(27 April 2024)
Headline News
Camp Luther Appeal
Camp Luther has been authorized for a synod-wide appeal.
For full story, click here.
Summer Staff Application Time
Information related to summer staff applications is
posted under each camp. Applications are being accepted
for staff positions at Caroline Furnace and Agapé. Camp
Luther's application window closed 20 February 2024.
Summer Program Announcements
Information related to summer camp programs is posted under each camp.
Even When It Is Not Summer
Don't forget that Caroline Furnace
and Camp Agapé
have winterized facilities and are available for retreats
and meetings.
Camps
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp &
Retreat Center
Established in 1957, Caroline Furnace provides year-round retreat center services and eight weeks of summer camp, including traditional church camping and specialty camps. Caroline Furnace's primary facility is located in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley in Fort Valley, VA. Enumerating everything Caroline Furnace offers on this page would be difficult. Explore the surprising options at CarolineFurnace.org.
Caroline Furnace is a constituent camp of the WV-WMD
Synod, i.e., there is a formal relationship, and
people from WV-WMD Synod have seats on the Caroline
Furnace Board of Directors. This relationship has its
roots in pre-ELCA days. The Eastern Panhandle of the
WV-WMD Synod was part of the Virginia Synod of the LCA.
When the CNLC proposed that those congregations be part of
the newly forming WV-WMD Synod (called "West Virginia
Synod" at the time), the Eastern Panhandle congregations
asked that their historic support of Caroline Furnace
(their church camp) be continued in the new synod. Part of
that support is maintaining financial support for Caroline
Furnace in the synod budget.
Summer Staff Application
Detailed information on the camping season,
prerequisites, compensation, etc. are posted on Caroline
Furnace's summer staff page (https://www.carolinefurnace.org/summer-staff).
Summer Camp 2024
Caroline Furnace's summer camp schedule is posted on its
Summer Camp page. For camper
application, click here.
Camp Luther
Camp Luther has met for over seventy-five years at Camp
Caesar, the Webster County 4H camp. Camp Luther may be
unique in the ELCA church camping world in that it is in
session only one week out of the year (invariably
beginning on Fathers' Day), hosting campers from 3rd
grade through 12th in three camping departments
(junior, intermediate, and senior). Its counseling and
program staff is entirely volunteer lay persons and
pastors. Learn more by visiting CampLutherWV.com.
Camp Luther is a constituent camp of the WV-WMD Synod.
The relationship has its roots in the West Virginia Synod
of the ULCA.
Summer Camp 2024
Camp Luther will be held 16-22 June 2024. The Camper Registration page is now
active. Registration Fee Schedule: (make checks payable to
“Camp Luther”). Click here for access to the
registration form.
- Early Bird Registration*: $330 postmarked by May 1 *please note: Early Bird discount is not transferrable to other campers
- General Registration: (deadline to guarantee a free camper T-shirt) $350 postmarked by June 1
- Late Registration: $355 postmarked after June 1registration process
Camp Luther Appeal
Synod Council authorized a synod-wide appeal for Camp
Luther with the outreach phase to be completed by 31 July
2024. Full information on how you can donate as well as
the appeal letter is posted on Camp Luther's Newsletter page.
Mailed letters should be going to every synod
congregation.
| April 18, 2024 Dear friends, Greetings from Camp Luther, the outdoor ministry program of the WV-WMD Synod! One of the amazing, unique things about Camp Luther is that we have a cross-generational community that is nurtured year after year. Much of our staff, many having been raised up as campers themselves, return each year, which helps form the culture of Camp Luther. Our staff ranges in age from one year post-high-school-graduation to people in their retirement. These camp leaders take time away from their busy schedules, their families, and even take vacation time from work, so that they can come to Camp Luther to serve. They do so because Camp Luther is a ministry that was important to their own faith formation, and they want to be a part of shepherding others. They do all of this as volunteers, which is an important part of keeping camp accessible and affordable for our youth. It does, however, cost money for them to be at camp to serve. For the summer of 2024, it will cost us $315 for each staff person and we have approximately 70 staff people. That is a total of around $22,000 needed to staff our camp. In years past we had a large enough group of campers to cover the cost of our staff, but since the Covid years our camper numbers have been reduced. To reduce the staff accordingly would be to change the culture and community that is Camp Luther. Each and every one of those staff members are vital to making Camp Luther a safe, fun, spiritually renewing learning environment, rich with experiences that nurture the body of Christ that is being raised up in the churches in our synod. Our goal is to increase our camper numbers in the coming years, but in the meantime we could use some help. ... (Click here to read more) |
Camp Agapé
Camp Agapé, a Lutheran camp located in Pennsylvania just
over the line from the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia
in Hickory, PA, offers year-round retreat center services
and several weeks of summer camp. It has become known for
offering children living in the urban environment an
opportunity to get out in the country. It has also become
known for its educational programming designed to enhance
academic achievement.
Camp Agapé has historic ties to the some of the
congregations of the Northern Panhandle. WV-WMD was not
included as a constituent synod when redistricting took
place at the formation of the ELCA. Nevertheless, WV-WMD
is happy to share information about Camp Agapé's
offerings. Learn more by visiting https://www.campagape.org.
Staff Positions
Summer and year-round staff positions are posted on Camp
Agapé's employment page.
You'll find openings there for
- Assistant Executive Director/Program Director,
- Summer Program Director,
- Summer Program Assistant,
- Cabin Leader,
- Senior Cabin Leader,
- Junior Cabin Leader,
- Lifeguard,
- Food Service Manger,
- Assistant Cook, and
- Camp Chaplain
Summer Camp 2024
Camp Agapé has the advance information on its summer camp program posted on its summer camp page.
Camp Melanchthon
Camp Melanchthon operated from the late '90s into the
late '00s. It provided a camping ministry to
collegiate-age young adults during the Christmas recess.
Throughout its history, it met in Garrett County, MD,
moving between Herrington Manor and New Germany State
Parks. Nearly twenty collegians attended at its zenith.
Its educational ministry, the hallmark of the camp,
centered on a different book each year, including
Bonhoeffer's Life Together, Ralph C. Wood's The
Gospel According to Tolkien: Visions of the Kingdom in
Middle-Earth, and Karen Armstrong's A History of
God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and
Islam. Worship, common meals, recreation (including
rather cut-throat games of Scrabble) and continually
burning fire were all part of the camp. Camp Melanchthon
ceased operations when shifts in the economy, society in
general, and WVU's football fortunes changed the
collegiate culture surrounding Christmas recess. Camp
Melanchthon was a constituent camp of the WV-WMD Synod.
For more information, contact +Riegel.
Lutheran
Summer Music Academy
Lutheran Summer Music (LSM) is the nation’s premier faith-based music academy for high school students. In addition to advanced musical instruction and numerous performance opportunities, LSM students form an intentional community, living together for four weeks on a Lutheran college campus. Since 1981, this unique and immersive program has guided the lives of thousands of young musicians, many of whom credit LSM as the starting place for their future careers and vocations.
The "full session" for this coming summer will be held
June 30-July 28. There is a "half-session" option, running
June 30-July 14.
To learn more about LSM, visit its website: https://www.lsmacademy.org/
Scouting
National Lutheran Association on
Scouting
The National Lutheran
Association on Scouting. describes itself as "a
resource for youth and adults who wish to know more about
the religious emblems program, endorsed by the Lutheran
Churches for members of Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts
USA, American Heritage Girls, 4H and Camp Fire USA." It
also coordinates Lutheran chaplaincy services during
jamborees.
The NLAS Facebook
page featuring news of particular interest to Lutheran
scouts and leaders.
Jamboree
Jamboree 2024 was held at the Becthel Summit
Reserve, 16-29 July 2023.
Bishop Riegel participated in the 23 July 2023 Lutheran
service at the Jambo. 475 scouts and scouters attended. We
have a picture here, but, if you would like to see more,
visit the NLAS Facebook
page.
If you are interested in Lutheran Scouting, contact the synod office.
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304-363-4030 + Porter@WV-WMD.org