Celebrating 50 years of Christian camping in Iowa

  

Camp Ewalu
Mission Statement:

In the rhythm
of Christian life,
Ewalu serves as
a place apart
to connect
the Word of God
with the world
of God.

Finding Colorful Ways
to Send Kids to Camp

The small congregation of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Hopkinton turned the dream of two young boys into a reality for eleven children. In early March of 2000, Tyler Sternhagen and Cody Miller expressed a strong interest in attending Camp Ewalu that summer. Tyler’s mother, Callie, called the pastor for information and discovered that the deadline for the early registration discount was only three days away. Knowing her own son’s interest, she wondered if there might be others interested in going to camp. She soon discovered nine more children who wished to attend Ewalu!

In order to help families with registration deposits, Callie set up a “Kids for Camp” account and organized some fund-raisers. She posted a thermometer in the church for the kids to keep track of their progress. At first, the kids were hoping to see the “temperature” rise a little bit each month, little did they know that the thermometer would quickly burst!

A variety of efforts led to a successful campaign at St. John’s. Funds were readily available from free-will offerings taken at the end of each month throughout the year. These offerings had already been in practice at St. John’s and amounted to over $200.

In April the church held their annual Easter raffle and bake sale, designating proceeds to the kids going to camp. The children were given tickets to sell with an incentive that the child raising the most money would receive a special Easter basket. Almost $900 was raised by this event. On Mother’s Day, the Sunday School teachers hosted a breakfast which raised $140. Anonymous donations amounted to another $250.

After all their efforts the congregation realized that they had raised far more than necessary for the registration deposits, so they decided to pay for the entire cost of camp for all eleven kids. To reach this new goal, $130 was still needed.

At this point, a little girl in the congregation recalled a promise her grandfather had made to her at Easter. She had tried to sell him a raffle ticket, but since he had already purchased some tickets, he promised to help out at the end if they needed more. Well, that dear old grandpa came through and the kids met their goal!

Thanks to the generosity of everyone’s hearts and the children’s eagerness to work together, enough was raised within a small congregation and community to send all eleven kids to camp. Looking back, the pastor was reminded of Acts 2:43 where the sharing of the community of faith allowed no one to be in need.

The children of St. John’s Lutheran Church have already started their drive for the summer of 2001 with the theme “Coloring Our Rainbow to Ewalu!” We wish them God’s best and look forward to seeing the St. John’s youth again this summer!

Note: Many campers receive assistance through church organizations such as men’s groups, WELCA, and youth groups. Ewalu also has campership funds available. For more information contact Ewalu at 563/933-4700.

By Callie Sternhagen and Paul Frantzen