Keeping Camp Affordable
The BCORM is committed to keeping camp and retreat
experiences financially accessible thereby affording more
persons the opportunity to participate in these life
changing experiences. Campsite user fees are a
critical component in the cost of a camp or retreat
experience.
Many non-profit organizations that provide camp and
retreat experiences expect to recover 70% to 80% of their
operation expenses from user fees. Presently, in 2007,
we are trying to recover 94% of our operation expenses from
user fees. Not only is our fiscal structure making
camp and retreat ministries unaffordable to many churches it
is not providing funding for needed capital improvements and
deferred maintenance. There are three things you and your
congregation can do to make camp more affordable in the near
future and in the years to come.
- Provide camperships (financial assistance) to
members of your congregation who are participating in a
camp or retreat experience. In addition to
children and youth attending summer camp programs,
consider providing financial assistance for a church
sponsored family camp or other spiritual and leadership
experiences for members of your congregation.
- Provide your congregation and/or individual members
in your congregation the opportunity to participate in
the "Camping Changes Lives" conference advance special.
These monetary gifts are needed to provide a
supplemental income source to underwrite the camp and
retreat ministry and make available more affordable user
fees.
- Encourage someone from your congregation to
participate on a Site Committee. Each of our
conference owned campsites has a Site Committee charged
with the implementation of a master site plan to meet
the programmatic needs of our churches. As
facilities are refurbished and new facilities built,
capital will need to be raised to finance these
projects. The BCORM wants to encourage
representation from your finance committee and/or board
of trustees to participate on a Site Committee.
These three steps will minimize camp user fees while
maintaining quality programs and facilities.
Camperships
Camperships are a critical tool needed to keep camp
affordable to many campers while being able to meet our
financial obligations in providing quality program and
facilities. A campership is any financial gift
provided to a participant attending a camp or retreat
ministry experience endorsed by your congregation.
Some churches build camperships into their annual
budgets. Other churches take up a special offering or
conduct fundraisers for camperships. Many people
within you congregation have experienced a "life changing"
camp or retreat experience and would be willing to provide
gifts to enable others to have such an experience.
As a Camp and Retreat Advocate network we will be
gathering and sharing information for effective fundraising
for local church camperships. In this manual and
through email we will empower one another with ideas that
can help us find the needed gifts to keep camps and retreats
affordable by providing camperships to individuals and
groups in your congregation.
"Camping Changes Lives" Campaign ~ A Conference Advance
Special
The Board of Camping, Outdoor and Retreat Ministry was
designated as a Conference Advance Special at the 2006
Annual Conference. This means that tax deductible
gifts from churches, church organizations and individuals
given to the Board of Camping, Outdoor and Retreat Ministry
will be credited as missional giving for your congregation.
While these gifts will not lower your apportionments, they
will be recognized is part of your churches giving to
others.
The "Camping Changes Lives" Campaign is the name given by
the BCORM to this on going effort to build a supplemental
income stream through Conference Advance Special giving.
We hope every church will consider participation through
their missions committee, special offerings and annual
budget. Additionally persons who have experienced the
"life changing" impact of camp and retreat ministries may
wish to participate with an annual gift or on going pledge
to build the financial resources of the ministry.
Special print and video materials regarding the
"Camping
Changes Lives" campaign are available and new materials will
continue to be produced. You may want to consider
bringing in a guest speaker. Special "Camping Changes
Lives" events will be periodically scheduled across our
annual conference. Be sure to attend and bring your
friends to celebrate the life changing power of camp and
retreat ministry.
"Camping Changes Lives" gifts may be "undesignated" or
"designated". Undesignated gifts are preferred as they
allow the ministry to apply financial support where needed,
when needed, creating the greatest fiscal flexibility.
If you prefer, you can designate your gift to a special
program, special project or campsite.
"Camping Changes Lives" gifts may be made through your
church treasurer or directly to camp and retreat ministries.
It is preferred that gifts are made directly to camp and
retreat ministries as this will assure the desired
acknowledgement from the Board of Camping, Outdoor and
Retreat Ministries. A tracking program has been
developed to track gifts and assure that churches receive
missional credit and that gifts are used for there intended
purposes.
Regular giving to the "Camping Changes Lives" Campaign
will help us make camp and retreat ministries more
accessible and available to all. The bottom line is
that Camping Ministry changes lives…and your generous giving
changes lives, too!
Gifts made directly to camp and retreat ministry should
be made payable to California Pacific Annual Conference and
mailed to:
Camping Changes Lives
P.O. Box 6006
Pasadena, CA 91102-6006
Sow Seeds, Trust the Promise
"Endowment fund to empower quality camp and retreat
ministry."
An endowment fund is another source of supplemental
funding to support camp and retreat ministry.
Gifts made to an endowment fund are added to a protected
principal. Earnings, beyond those needed to protect
the value of the principal, are available for disbursement
in accordance with the stated purpose of the endowment.
An endowment gift differs from the "Camping Changes
Lives" Campaign in several ways:
Gifts to the "Camping Changes Lives" Campaign are
intended to support the annual program and facility
operation budgets.
"Camping Changes Lives" Campaign gifts do not accrue
interest.
Gifts to an endowment fund are typically larger "life time"
gifts to assure the on going interest of the donor.
"Camping Changes Lives" gifts are administered through
the California Pacific Annual Conference. Endowment
gifts are administered through the California Pacific United
Methodist Foundation.
Persons interested in making a gift to an endowment
should contact the California-Pacific United Methodist
Foundation Director, Jan Berentsen.