Celebrating Patricia Frye and Her 10 Years of Ministry in CRM

Camp and Retreat Ministry Administrative Assistant Tricia Frye will be retiring at the close of 2024. She manages a varied and complex range of leadership responsibilities including registering summer campers, being an information hub for the ministry, organizing staff and volunteer paperwork, and so much more. We have all been blessed by Tricia and her many gifts and abilities. Tricia remembers how it began and reflects on what it has meant for her. 

“Earlier, I worked for travel agencies. I was between positions when a colleague showed me a job opening at the Conference office for the Camp and Retreat Ministry Registrar and Admin. It was perfect timing. I thought to myself that if I could send people to the Caribbean, I could send kids to camp! 

It is a joy to serve in a way that is truly beneficial for others. I have really cherished working with the people at the Conference. The atmosphere is uplifting and collaborative. We care about each other and it’s like family.

Getting kids to camp is deeply gratifying, especially for those who really need a loving camp experience. It makes such a difference in their lives.”

Camp and Retreat Ministry: New Vision Forward Director for CRM

By Kevin Witt Director of Age Level Ministry / Beloved Community Ministry / Camp & Retreat Ministry

Beginning in January of 2025, Charlie Renner will be transitioning from his role as Center Director at Greene Hills Camp and Retreat Center to a new team role as the Vision Forward Director within Camp and Retreat Ministry (CRM). This new position reflects major steps underway to reach new young people and families in collaboration with local churches, enhance facilities and expand programming, enrich volunteer and staff training and preparation, build new relationships and partnerships with growing communities of color, and deepen the Christian missional focus and effectiveness of these important ministries. The Vision Forward Director will specifically facilitate follow through to keep the ministry staff and volunteer leaders moving forward on the vision, new directions, and master plan for CRM. 

Charlie brings many strengths to this new role. His long leadership experience and calling to Camp Retreat Ministry has its roots in childhood church and camp experiences. Grace UMC in Carlisle (Now Carlisle UMC) provided the love and pathways of discipleship that nurtured a heart for service and leadership. During his formative years through college, Charlie was deeply impacted by camp experiences. He went to Mount Asbury with his youth group, achieved Eagle Scout recognition, and worked at Greene Hills, Mount Asbury and Appalachia Service Project during his college years at Penn State. This was when his call to Camp and Retreat Ministry became clear. After first serving as the Program Director for the Keystone Area Council of the Boy Scouts, a deep desire to be involved in Christian leadership and ministry prepared the way for a long and meaningful 14-year tenure as the Center Director for Greene Hills Camp and Retreat Center. All along, Charlie has continued to grow in knowledge and experience through intentional continuing education in this specialized ministry.

Charlie shares the following thoughts and hopes as he enters this new role: 

“First, I am thrilled to be continuing my involvement with Susquehanna Conference Camp and Retreat Ministries. I have personally witnessed the tremendous benefits these experiences provide to campers and guests both related to their journey and their inspiration to share Christ’s love and grace with others in their daily lives. It is vital that we extend these opportunities to new people in new places and steward this ministry forward to fulfill its mission in fresh ways for long-term connection, relevance, and vitality. I feel blessed to be serving as part of our core team as we prayerfully discern and carry out the next steps in strategic planning as we launch a new chapter for Camp and Retreat Ministry.

There have been so many dedicated volunteers over the years who have been integral to the power of this ministry. Community and service are such vital parts of what Camp and Retreat Ministry offers. I cherish the opportunity to celebrate, nurture and create fresh avenues for even more people to find joy and purpose through serving in ways that help them use their own passions and gifts to transform lives. What a blessing it has been to serve at Greene Hills and to bring the heart of those experiences forward in the ongoing impact of Camp and Retreat Ministry here in our Conference. Thanks to all who have and continue to support me in life and ministry.”

New Strategic Directions for the Future of Camp & Retreat Ministry

Dear friends and supporters of Susquehanna Conference Camp & Retreat Ministry,

The Susquehanna Conference Camp & Retreat Ministry Board has been working diligently for the past two years studying, assessing, prayerfully discerning, and developing strategic direction. The goal of this in-depth process is to provide the best way forward for the future of the overall ministry, its growth, and its missional impact among a widening circle of people in our congregations and communities. Central to it all has been a deep cherishing and valuing of the importance of camp and retreat experiences and the unique benefits and life transforming opportunities they provide.

As many of you know, the past several years have been very challenging and the landscape in which we all do ministry has changed significantly. It is a great responsibility to steward this ministry forward so that it can be responsive and thrive within the changing dynamics, and re-orient to address the emerging needs of our congregations and communities. The Board of Camp and Retreat Ministries will be bringing key recommendations to Annual Conference this year that include strategic realignment to enhance the programs, leadership preparation, outreach, and facilities.

This recommendation also involves reducing the number of facilities we manage, and reinvesting resources and re-aligning staff focus to enhance the fruitfulness and impact of the overall ministry. The plan is to transition programs to Wesley Forest, Camp Penn, and Sky Lake (our Upper New York partner to serve northern tier churches closer to this center.) The recommendation is to sell Mount Asbury and Greene Hills and reinvest the resources for improvements and growth of the overall ministry.

We encourage all of you to attend one of the upcoming regional gatherings to learn more about the background, details, and important reasons for these recommendations. This will also be an opportunity to ask questions and be in conversation together.

Important: These recommended changes do not affect 2024. Camps and Retreats will proceed as normal this current year. Implementation of changes will begin in 2025.

Two gatherings have already taken place. Remaining gatherings are as follows:

Harrisburg Supervisory Area – 
Sunday, March 3, 3 – 4:30 pm
Fishing Creek Salem UMC, 402 Valley Rd, Etters, PA 17319.

Scranton Wilkes-Barre Supervisory Area –
Sunday, March 10, 3 – 4:30 pm
Trucksville UMC, 40 Knob Hill Road, Trucksville, PA 18708.
(in the Education Building.)

State College Supervisory Area – 
Saturday, March 16, 10 – 11:30 am
Park Forest Village UMC, 1833 Park Forest Ave, State College, PA 16803.

2nd Annual Camp Fancy Gala

Mike (left of center, back row) and Nadine “Dee Dee” Ogden (center, middle row), the honorees at the second annual Camp Fancy Gala, are pictured with many camp friends made throughout their 40+ years serving at Camp Penn.

Words of deep appreciation for all who came and generously supported SUSUMC Camp and Retreat Ministry at our Second Camp Fancy Gala. Your time and gifts were so very much appreciated. A special thanks to our honorees Mike and Dee Dee Ogden for their years of leadership and inspiration among young people seeking a deeper connection with God and the way of love. 

Join us in celebrating that our donors and sponsors surpassed the Camp Fancy Gala goal and raised over $36,000 in ministry support and scholarships! This money directly supports the mission and ministry of our beloved Camp and Retreat Ministry.

We offer our deepest gratitude to our event sponsors: Aldersgate UMC (Mechanicsburg); Beaver Memorial UMC (Lewisburg); Calvary UMC (Harrisburg); Cardinal Cree; First UMC (Mechanicsburg); Graham Company; Hess, Hanna & Associates; and Strock Enterprises, Inc.

Nadine (or “Dee Dee” as her family and camp family call her) heard her call to be a camp counselor in her teens, but that call wasn’t realized until her early 20’s when she and Mike were invited in 1978 to counsel at a High School camp at Camp Penn. The couple was newly married at the time with no children.

Mike went to camp with Dee Dee in 1979 and the couple soon realized that their gifts complimented one another as a team; Dee Dee called them the “right and left brain.” They continued to be counselors or Deans in High School and Elementary Camps until 2022, having raised their 4 children and some grandchildren at camp.

When Mike wasn’t at camp he worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers, retiring after 36 years. After retiring he worked as Risk Management &; Safety Director for the Harrisburg Diocese for 9 years. He retired a second time and continues to serve through various church and Conference committees.

Dee Dee worked at home full time and was involved in church and her children’s school life, including about 20 years on the church staff and then employed by her School District for 15 years. Dee Dee discovered Moms in Prayer International in 1997 and continues in that ministry, praying for her children and grandchildren and their schools. She serves the ministry as the PA State Roster Manager.

Mike and Dee Dee will tell all who ask that they don’t know a more valuable time invested for the Lord than the camp week. They witnessed as God transformed hundreds of lives, including their own and their children’s.

Dee Dee writes, “We have been honored to serve beside Deans and counselors of the highest degree of faith, integrity, creativity and of course crazy fun, using their gifts as the Body of Christ to make disciples—SO many disciples—who are now scattered throughout the world continuing God’s work! God is amazing!”

Thank you again for your continued support of SUSUMC Camp and Retreat Ministry as we partner together Building Authentic Connections in Christ, Community, and Creation. If you would like to make a donation please click here.

All Are Welcome at Camp!

We have received multiple inquiries this spring about whether young people, families, and adults from beyond The United Methodist Church can come to our camp and retreat centers and sign up for summer camp. The answer is an enthusiastic YES! 

This includes those who may decide to disaffiliate from membership in The United Methodist Church. 

Camp and Retreat Ministry continues to provide places where all are welcome in Christian love. In addition to serving our United Methodist faith communities, we have a long tradition of connection and collaboration with a wide variety of denominations, nonprofit organizations, and seekers who may have no faith community affiliation. This ongoing ecumenical spirit is deeply rooted in the wide embrace of God and the valuing of all as beloved children of God. 

As a ministry of the Susquehanna Conference of the UMC, we are blessed to be a blessing.

Find more information about our camps and retreats at suscrm.org

2022 Camp & Retreat Ministry Impact Report

As we move through the opening months of the new year, we can’t help but look back on 2022 with immense gratitude for your support of the outdoor ministry.

In 2022 you were part of....

Giving $91,636.00 in donations and gifts to ensure a bright future for these spaces we love so much. 

This total includes surpassing the funding goals for the annual Matching Monday Campaign and surpassing the funding goals for the first ever Camp Fancy Gala!

Impacting 841 camper lives.

425 volunteers who gave time to volunteer for a week (or more!) of summer camp or came to lend a hand during a work day.

Welcoming 129 retreat guest groups to these treasured places apart.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your support!!!

www.suscrm.org 

Camp & Retreat Ministry Hosts Camp Fancy Gala

by Kristin Hoover, Chair of the Camp and Retreat Ministry Board

On October 22, 2022, in the large recreation field at Wesley Forest, surrounded by stunning autumn leaves, The Susquehanna Conference UMC Board of Camp & Retreat Ministry held their first Camp Fancy Gala.

When at camp, things get a little silly! Guests dressed in their “Camp Fancy” finest; Camp Fancy means anything from prom night outfits to outdoor gear, and in most cases a fun blend of the two. Guests celebrated the goodness of God with smiles and laughs as we offered the Superman Prayer before our meal and sang and danced to camp classic “Pharaoh, Pharaoh.”

Campers and former campers offered testimonies- sharing their memories of camp and explaining how the camping program has impacted their lives.

 

The SUSUMC camping community generously participated in the Live and Silent Auctions. Guests bid on items like a Fly-Fishing Experience, Wesley Forest Rolls, Old Camp Signage, Camp Penn Metal Trays, Philadelphia 76ers tickets, Hershey Bears tickets, local theatre tickets, Greene Hills Oreo Fluff, Camp Tie Dye Shirts, and a Mystery Box of Camp Lost and Found Items!

Guests also celebrated gala honoree Dave Poole, one of the most prolific and longest-serving camping program mentors/volunteers. Dave first came to the camping program in 1982 in the form of a counselor.  In 1990, he became a camp dean at Wesley Forest, alongside Beth Jones.  Since then, Dave has impacted thousands of lives with his kindness, his care and his love.  He has launched the career and nurtured the call of at least a dozen pastors in the Susquehanna Conference. 

The Board is thrilled to announce the Camp Fancy Gala raised over $20,000 for the Camp and Retreat Ministry! Many thanks to our generous gala sponsors- Aldersgate UMC Mechanicsburg, Swissdale UMC Lock Haven, Trinity Charge Williamsport District, Calvary UMC Harrisburg, Cardinal Creek, Hess Hanna & Associates, and Juniata UMC Altoona.by Kristin Hoover, Chair of the Camp and Retreat Ministry Board.

 

Dave Poole ended his remarks at the gala with the simple, yet profound statement “Camp Changes Lives.” The success of this event allows us to change the lives of even more young people. You too can offer your support to the SUSUMC Camp & Retreat Ministry through the Matching Monday campaign. https://susumcamps.org/index.php/donate/matching-monday

Stay tuned for information on the 2023 Camp Fancy Gala!

 

Donors Continue to Make the Difference

pixabay: Alexas_Fotos

This is a note of thanks to all of you who are donors to Camp and Retreat Ministry! You have been a shining light, especially during the last couple of years when the need has been so great. Last year, you surpassed the needed $100,000 goal to reach $125,000! Such generosity!

This year we share the good news that we are continuing our comeback following the COVID pandemic. Camper numbers were up again this year exceeding 2021 numbers by close to 250 additional participants. We are still 450 campers short of our pre-COVID levels, so we have a ways to go but will arrive. We are counting on donor partners again to raise $100,000 in 2022, not only to sustain the ministry, but to expand it!

Our Fall Fundraising season will soon begin. Please consider coming to the Camp Fancy Gala on October 22 at Wesley Forest, contributing to the Monday Match Campaign beginning in late October, supporting Evan Funk with his Eagle Scout Project at Wesley Forest (see article on page 9), or give right now! It really does make a difference for so many!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

www.suscamps.org

Camp and Retreat Ministry Team