Summer 2017 Youth Camp @glennandlaurensullivan

This summer we successfully packed all the fun and activities of a week of camp into four days! Our theme for this summer was “Follow”.

In July, we welcomed our junior campers who learned about how to follow their Lord and Savior and His plan for their lives! There was a great time of worship, led by the CLIME team and powerful messages from our speaker, John Carlson! Students also participated in many activities such as canoeing, climbing the ropes course, crafts and hunting down their counselors!

Lucky for Kevin’s beard, Ryan’s legs and Glenn’s hair, just under 75 teens joined Pine Brook for Teen Week 1! The teens were challenged spiritually to follow God’s leading in every aspect of their life! The RiSE team from Clarks Summit University led our teens in a wonderful time of worship each evening. Teen Week 2 proved to be just as inspiring, as the teens were challenged spiritually by Anthony Wirth, pastor of City Church in Springfield! We also had the privilege of having Shane Symolon lead worship that week.

Each week teams were matched up for traditional camp games such as, woods ball, speedball and capture the balls. We also debuted a new action packed, all-camp game, called bonanza ball. This year in the triathlon, CLIME member Owen Ortiz, in his last year as a camper, set a new camp record in the sprint! Genesis Connors took home the trophy for bible memory champion for BOTH teens week! The teens jumped into all the optional activities this year, with more than 90% participation!

It was a full and rewarding summer and we can’t wait to see how God moves during the Summer of 2018!

IN THIS ISSUE...

2017 Youth Camp

CLIME/IMPACT

New Staff

A Note from Director

Guest Hosting

New and Exciting Things!

Global Encounter

Fundraising

Annual Christmas Party

New Staff @loribrink

Each summer, Pine Brook assembles an amazing group of students to serve on our CLIME team. The CLIME program is an 8 week discipleship program that shapes the spiritual and leadership skills of students and gives them an opportunity to serve in our summer programs.

This summer, the team consisted of eight students from all over the globe. Nick Sullivan and Lea Pepper served as our CLIME leaders and excelled at connecting and bringing the group together around the tasks of the day as well as leading by example in each of the spiritual de-velopment times and as counselors during overnight camps. Thank you Nick and Lea for your terrific leadership this summer!

Owen Ortiz, Kari Taylor, Megan Leone, Michael Carlson, Marissa Courchesne and Ben Gilmore served on the team this summer and were used in great ways to serve the camp, the campers and the staff. Each week during Day Camp, these CLIME team members led their “adventure teams” to discover the attributes of God that are observable in nature, connected those to the truths of scripture and applied them to the lives of the campers. Each week, we were amazed to experience God and nature through the campers’ eyes! These CLIME team members were a huge part of this amazing work.

At the end of Day Camp, the CLIME team heard of a camper that wanted to attend Jr. Camp and couldn’t afford the registration. Unbeknownst to the staff, these CLIME team members pooled their money, called their churches and families and raised the money for this camper to attend. After the staff found out about this wonderful gesture, it was further confirmation that God had brought Pine Brook the right team members.

This past summer saw us create a new team that served on a weekly basis during Day Camp, called the IMPACT team. This team was loosely modeled after JST, which runs during Jr. Camp. The IMPACT team worked in cooperation with the CLIME team on a daily basis, by taking on various tasks, helping with upkeep of the facility and coming alongside the adventure teams during the Day Camp program. Since these teams served for only one-week, the IMPACT members were able to pour out and be a terrific blessing to Pine Brook. Thank you IMPACT and CLIME team members for an amazing summer!

CLIME/IMPACT @ryanmccullah

We are excited to welcome Marty and Teresa Roberts to our staff team! I’m sure many of you were able to meet and connect with them throughout this past summer! They come to us from Oceanside, California! They have been married for 17 years and have 2 beautiful children, Cassidy who is 15 and Joseph who is 12. Marty has experience working in manufacturing and Teresa has been a stay at home mom, homeschooling both children. They have been involved in youth ministry for 10 plus years in Virginia and California.

The Roberts heard about Pine Brook Camp through the McCullah family and their daughter Cassidy who spent a ½ year here, working at camp and attending Classical Conversation classes with the McCullah family! After hearing about Global Encounter, they felt God’s calling to come help with that program and spend a year in ministry at Pine Brook Camp. Teresa is currently working on becoming ESL certified to enrich our Global Encounter program. They both work part time jobs outside of camp and are here on faith! Currently, they are seeking missions support from their friends, family and home church.

The Roberts plan on staying with us through next summer. They have already been a blessing and great addition to our camp family and staff team. If you haven’t met them, please stop in and welcome them!

Pine Brook has gone global! Global Encounter is a Pine Brook program that connects people, language and culture by hosting current and potential international students, to help them learn and experience American culture. In January, Pine Brook hosted its’ first group from a Florida Christian School that included 10 international students from China. This group toured western Massachusetts and despite 8 inches of snow, explored Boston as well! The students experienced the fun and hospitality of Pine Brook and a few of these students came back this past summer and served on our CLIME team! Please pray for this program to grow. There are currently proposals out to students from 5 countries for the spring and summer, including hosting students during our overnight camps.

Everyone has had times in their lives where a little help goes a long way to make a situation better. Pine Brook is experiencing this now! There is a growing need to extend scholarships to students and families that would benefit from time away to enjoy a slower pace, have fun and grow spiritually. There is also the expense of new programs and general upkeep that can put a strain on finances. This has led us to pray, which led us to talk, and then propelled us into action. We have started a fundraising planning team and have already held 2 events!

Our first event was the Swing for Hope Golf Tournament. It was held on October 7that the East Mountain Country Club in Westfield. It was a beautiful day and boy did we learn a lot about golf etiquette! We had 7 teams participate, had great raffles and a delicious steak dinner! After dinner, Curt Anderson gave a wonderful concert to bring this great day together!

Another new event that was held was The Pigskin Classic, a flag football tournament! This took place on October 21st! We had 3 local churches that participated in a little competition and brought their families to enjoy a great fall day- what else could we ask for?! The day even provided fun and a little competition for the children who participated in a scavenger hunt and got prizes of their own. There were also some great raffles and prizes for the adults! Our championship teams were both from Maple Ridge Church! Can you guess who won?!? Congratulations and bragging rights go to them!

So what's next? We are currently planning to host a basketball tournament in the spring and have many ideas for fundraisers in the near future! We are also planning our 2nd annual Swing for Hope Golf Tournament. We would love for you to partner with us in this or any of our events, at any time! If you would like to be involved in anyway please call the camp office and let us know! Keep your eyes on our calendar – there are many more things to come!

Global Encounter @christiemccullah

Fundraising @teresaroberts

A Note from the Director @kevinwilliams

Dear Friends, Families, Volunteers and Alumni,

The ministry of Pine Brook Camp is under a great deal of stress and we need your help! As you read through the newsletter you are able to see that God is using Pine Brook to reach lives for Christ. Many of you have attended programs, or been a part of the ministry as a volunteer and have been personally impacted by the missional work taking place at Pine Brook Camp. Part of the DNA of our ministry is that we love campers, love each other and we put the work of the ministry above all else. God has been using camp to fulfi ll His calling for generations! Pine Brook is a very is a special place where the following has happened, is happening and will continue to happen:

Reaching those outside of the Church. Pine Brook Camp has worked hard to reach youth that normally would not find themselves involved in church or Christian programming. This now includes our work with low-income housing both in Greenfield and Springfield, MA. Our staff and volunteers are working to share the hope and the love of Christ with these students!

We have the opportunity to share Christ with campers. Over the years, our staff has been able to pray with campers as they make

decisions to start a relationship with the Creator. Some of you have perhaps been the one to pray with a camper and experience the joy of them coming to Christ. Maybe you found a personal relationship with Christ at Pine Brook!

We have been witness to staff praying and crying with campers and other staff, reassuring them that even in the chaos and difficulties of life, no matter what it is, God has not abandoned them, or let them down.

We have watched and listened as children from other faiths recite Bible verses, pray to Christ and learn that there is a God who loves them and desires a deep personal relationship with them, which is in complete contrast to all that they have ever known or thought of God.

Pine Brook Camp has had a tradition of connecting local churches with one another. Today, busy schedules and with so much going on within each church ministry, it becomes difficult to connect with other believers outside of your own church. At camp, children and adults learn of other believers as they play, work and serve alongside one another to build relationships and form connections.

There are few opportunities in western Massachusetts like Pine Brook Camp. Few places where young people outside of the church, can find a Christ-like community of acceptance and love that holds to the truth of the Scriptures and teaches a relationship with Gods first. While Pine Brook is known for great games, silly songs and fun activities, it is so much more! Our real purpose is to: Proclaim Christ, Equip believers for service and to Serve others. Far too often camp is seen as a fun optional activity like school sports and clubs. The reality is that all of these things are fun, but they are not eternal. They do not last. The work, the fun, and the learning that takes place at camp is eternal. It directly connects students to the Cross and disciples youth into a personal relationship with their creator. This value is eternal!

Pine Brook Camp is at risk!!

Pine Brook has deep financial needs. There is a real possibility that if these needs are not met, this ministry may cease to be an option for churches and families and may no longer continue to be a support to the local faith community. We need your help! We are calling upon local churches, past campers, volunteers and all those whose lives have been impacted by Pine Brook Camp to help us meet our current need.

As things stand right now Pine Brook Camp is currently just over $50,000 behind in our annual budget. This loss is made up of three things:

General giving is down. We have highlighted in the past that we are in need of regular donors. Many of our faithful donors have re-tired or even passed on and it has been extremely difficult to fill this void.

Much of the Pine Brook budget/ income is based on Guest Hosting. This year we lost a few very large groups because they outgrew our facility. Resulting in a loss of over $30,000.

Teen camp registrations were low this year. Changing demographics has impacted our Teen programs, as we have graduated many campers out of our programs.

We are calling upon all of you to pull Pine Brook through these difficult times. We cannot afford to loose staff, fall behind in our mortgage or incur any further debt. We are in need of the Pine Brook Community, as well as the local Faith Community to come to our aid.

We have three distinct needs. First, is to meet the shortfall in our budget. We are seeking $50,000 to help offset this need. Second, we need to regain our donor base; those willing to contribute on a regular/ annual basis. Third, we need churches, and families to utilize the ministry of Pine Brook Camp. We need the faith community to see the value of Christian camping and support camp through donations and participation.

I am asking that you please consider a donation towards our immediate need. No amount is too big or too small. Collectively, I know that God can meet our needs. Please continue to pray in your homes and in your churches that our needs will be met and that God will be honored through these trying times. Please consider how you can help the ongoing ministry of reaching the next generation of students for Christ. Donations can be made online through a secure server on our website. Go to www.pinebrookcamp.org and click on the donation button on the left-hand side. Checks may also be written out to Pine Brook Camp and mailed to: Pine Brook Camp, 210 Lakeview Road, Shutesbury, MA 01072. All donations are tax deductible.

This summer our guest hosting took a bit of a new direction! We opened up extra weekends in our summer program to allow for more opportunity with our guest groups. We were able to fill 3 extra weeks that normally would have been empty. This brought in much needed income and allowed us to still run our summer camp programs. This fall has already been busy with new and returning guest groups. October has had every available weekend filled with double groups! As we look ahead, we are starting to fill dates for the spring and summer of 2018. As you know, our winter months are pretty slow,

but we are trusting in our faithful God to provide! Please be in prayer that we are able to fill every available week-end and make the best use of our facility!

Pine Brook is constantly trying to create new and exciting programs that connect believers in Western Massachusetts and New England. Our retreats and camps have done this for many years. There are two new opportunities that we’d like to share with you!

The first one is our new Pine Brook Family Camp, which is July 1-6, 2018. Pine Brook is happy to announce that we are expanding our amazing week of camp, worship and connection, to the whole family. Now families can experience the fun, play the unique games and worship together in a setting that is truly special. Each day will provide activities for children and adults, as well as plenty of time for families to enjoy and connect. Details and costs for this camp can be found on our website and in the bro-chures that will be mailed to the local churches soon, so be on the lookout! Our next great opportunity involves youth groups from local churches in our area. Have you ever wished you could take a piece of Pine Brook back to your youth group? Have you ever wondered whose youth group would win in a game of “Steal the Bacon” between your youth group and your friend’s youth group? If so, we may have a

program for you - The Pine Brook Youth Group Olympics. This event is a fun competition between local youth groups. There will be a series of competitions scheduled between various youth groups and held throughout New England in local churches. A final, large game will bring all the participating groups together in the spring! If you are interested in finding out more about how your church or youth group can be a part of these games, check out our website or email Ryan McCullah at ryan@pinebrookcamp.org

New and Exciting Things at Pine Brook @ryanmccullah

Guest Hosting @loribrink

Please Join us for a special Christmas Dinner at Pine Brook!

We invite you to bring friends and family mem-

bers for this evening of fun and encouragement. Come connect with

campers, counselors, and staff!

Friday, December 8, 2017 at 6:00 PM

Please RSVP by December 4th

413-367-2643

office@pinebrookcamp.org