Hello to all our camp supporters and friends!
As summer draws to a close and schools start back up again, we’re reflecting on the last two (wild!) years and also looking ahead to 2022. We wanted to share some notes as we do our best to prepare under largely unpredictable circumstances.
A Quick Recap
First of all, HOORAY that we were able to host high schoolers this year! Having to close our doors in 2019 was extremely disheartening, so although only hosting one age group in 2020 wasn’t what we’re used to, it still seemed like a win and a big blessing in the grand scheme of things.
Then, of course, fire season had to butt in! The silver lining of the situation is that even if a second week of camp been scheduled, we likely would have had to cancel it due to the Spur and Walker Creek fire threats. As it happened, though, the staff members at camp during high school week were able to maintain excellent communication with the nearby Forest Service Camp Host at Lost Lake Campground (such a blessing to have them so close!), and stayed entirely out of harms way. Although campers were evacuated one day early, thankfully we had resources and manpower to ensure everyone (and everything!) was taken down the mountain to regroup at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Havillah where we coordinated rides home. In retrospect, it went quite smoothly and everyone acted quickly to help out. Thanks to all who made that day easier than it could have been!
Looking Ahead
With two somewhat rocky summer camping seasons behind us, we’re now looking ahead to what 2022 might have in store. For the time being, we’re committing to two weeks of camp, but we are restructuring it slightly to ensure we can serve as many campers as possible:
Senior Camp - July 24-29 (Sunday through Friday) - grades 8-12
Junior Camp - July 31-Aug. 4 (Sunday through Thursday) - grades 4-7
This harkens back to the camp structure we had pre-1984, so although it feels new, it is also in many ways very familiar. This decision was made for a variety of reasons, but primarily it came down to staffing issues. Finding qualified and willing staff members has continued to be a struggle over the last few years, and the pandemic certainly did not help our efforts. Given the current uncertainty, we feel planning for 2 weeks of camp in 2022 is the most realistic goal. That said, we are still holding dates on the calendar for a 3-week slot for 2023 in the hopes that we’ll be able to build back to that model soon.
To that end, if you know of a student who is interested in being a counselor, or an individual who might like to help out with crafts, cooking, programs, or speaking, please don’t hesitate to connect us! We would love the opportunity to share Ortoha’s mission and build new partnerships.
We’ll be adding our 2022 camp dates as Events for you to follow on our Facebook page soon so you can begin planning ahead. We’ll also be sure to keep you posted on any improvement projects as they get underway, and other opportunities to pitch in. We’re so thankful to have such a big network of supporters and those eager to hear how camp is doing. Please help us spread the news by sharing this page with someone you love!
As a final note, we are overjoyed to confirm here that camp structures were NOT impacted by the fires this summer! While it came very close, the various wildfire teams did an outstanding job of prioritizing building protection and keeping camp out of harms way. We are so thankful! The landscape looks much different right now due to the extreme thinning and brush-clearing measures the firefighters had to employ, but we know the vegetation will grow back. Hallelujah!