Jeremy and Kerrie joined the resident missionary staff in 2003. They were commissioned by Calvary Bible Church of Appleton, Wisconsin. Jeremy works in the program department. They are the parents of Tylee, Josiah and Simeon.
Jeremy and Kerrie Linsley
(March 10, 2013)
Though we still have plenty of snow on the ground, the critters around here seem to be anticipating the arrival of spring as much as we are. This chipmunk is the first one I spotted this year to come out of his winter hiding place and nibble on the seeds we put out.
Our winter camping season finished up last weekend. We enjoyed nine weekends of retreats – including nine Teen Retreats, three Father/Son Retreats, a Couples’ Retreat, a Father Daughter Retreat and a College/Career Retreat. Over 2,700 campers came for a weekend this winter (1,937 of them came to one of our Teen Retreats!). We tubed, skied, skated, fished, broomballed, bowled, ate, talked, listened, sang and learned. It was a good season.
One of the biggest blessings to our family this winter was full-time staffer, Mike Baker. Mike started helping Jeremy with the Ice Rink in December and by mid January; he had basically taken those duties over! This was HUGE for us as it opened up Jeremy’s schedule to focus on the program and enabled him to be at home more in the evenings. Looking back at the sicknesses we battled all winter long, it is very evident that God provided Mike’s help just when we needed it most!
We now have a bit of a break before the next campers arrive in May. So what do we do with that break?
Cleaning
The staff ladies have already started the process of deep cleaning camp; the rest of the staff will join in next week. In a few weeks a group from Calvary Bible Church in Wisconsin (our sending church) will be coming to help us! Many hands make light work!
Camping Conference
Jeremy attended the Great Lakes Christian Camping and Conference Association Conference (isn’t that a long name?) last week. He loved talking with other camp people and enjoyed teaching a session on how to put together ambush games.
Planning and Meetings
Summer is coming soon and now is the time we put the details together for our summer programs. This time of year is also thick with meetings. What do we talk about in those meetings? We ask questions like: “What verses are we going to use for Summer 2014?”, “Who is going to fill what role this summer?”, “How can we best communicate the details of summer camp to the parents of our campers?”, “How do we make sure summer staff have enough personal time and yet fulfill their roles?” and the all important question “Do we really need a Pinterest page?”
Fixing
There are always projects on the To Do List, and spring is prime fix-it time. Our construction crew is busy tearing up and replacing the flooring in the East Side Dining Hall (some say the cheering for High School Week might have done some damage -:)). We will also be replacing one of the cables on our zipline, pulling the old West Side boat dock out and putting a new one in and putting in a new Blob.
Work Groups
We love help! God is sending several work groups throughout the spring to help us with different projects. We already mentioned one that we are excited about. The C-Team youth group from Calvary Church in Wisconsin will be coming for several days to help us clean. They are also going to be working with us at His Love Family Resources putting together and hosting kid nights at the center.
Art of Marriage
Through His Love, we will be hosting a weekend marriage conference called the Art of Marriage. The conference is this next weekend. Please pray that it would be a marriage-strengthening event for those attending!
Thank you for your partnership in all parts of this ministry, whether we have campers here or we are plugging away at our lists. May God be glorified through Barakel and our family!
In Christ,
The Linsleys