We were happy to welcome a group from St. Paul – Lebanon Sunday, May 2 who worked tirelessly to clean up our signs! We also welcomed a group of Green DuBois volunteers last week to help eradicate invasive species and plant herbs in planters near one of our cottages.
We are always happy to welcome volunteer groups, or host your communities for retreats! You can contact us at dcinfo@duboiscenter.org for more information on how to get involved!
Registration for a summer unlike any other is open! To learn more about our summer 2021 camps, you can visit our website or contact the office. Our residential summer camp COVID-19 mitigations are being finalized and will be available to all parents, but we are also offering family camp and DuBois Delivered this year. We hope that by offering traditional, family, and distanced options this summer, we can all be reminded of what makes DuBois Center special.
Summer Camp Schedule
Summer Camps for Adults & Children
Summer Camps for Grades 1-3
Summer Camps for Grades 3-7
Summer Camps for Grades 5-9
Summer Camps for Grades 8-12
We are currently hiring staff for summer 2021! Working at a summer camp is more than just a job, it is an experience unlike any other. If you or someone you know is interested in working at DuBois Center, we are currently hiring many positions including counselors/activity coordinators, kitchen and healthcare staff, and village coordinators. You can find more information at our website. If you know someone who could benefit from this opportunity, please pass it along! We will need all hands on deck as we navigate a summer unlike any other!
We still have open positions for summer 2021. Feeling God calling you to serve in a new way? Know a college student who needs excellent experience learning new skills? We’re looking for people like you!
We currently have openings for housekeeping staff, kitchen staff, nurses, and counselors/activity coordinators! Contact 618-787-2202 or dcinfo@duboiscenter.org for more information or to apply!
Summer Camp is back at DuBois Center, but we need your help to get the word out. We’re making resources available to you through the mail and online. Your church will be receiving promotional materials from us this week. Watch the mail for a package with posters, bulletin inserts, camp schedules, postcards, and fliers that can be posted, copied and shared. You’ll also find a letter from Hayley Elliott, our new Acting Camp Director, Top 10 Things Churches Need to Know about Summer Camp 2021, and suggestions for ways you can help us promote camp this year.
The Resources for Churches page on our website has electronic versions of the promotional materials that you can download and print. It also has slides you can download to include in your pre-service announcements. The slide sets are available in two different size, 16:9 or 4:3. You can download them from this Resource for Churches page by clicking on the appropriate link toward the bottom of the page. Choose whichever works best for your system.
Other Printable Resources:
Slides:
It was great to be with those who were able to be there at our Open House Sunday, April 25! The energy in the air of having a group back on site was fantastic. We blessed our new bees, said hello to the horses, and modeled what our summer cabins will look like with our COVID-19 precautions. If you missed this Open House, be sure to check out our website and social media pages for some of what you missed!
When it is spring, I feel hopeful: it seems like new life is bursting forth all around us. Grass is getting greener and growing, flowers pop up anew. But what I have realized over the last few weeks is that I tend to think of spring from an annual, not a perennial perspective. When spring arrives, I tend to think that this is all fresh and new and delightful. In reality, very little of how we usually experience spring is new, growing for only one season as annual plants do. Instead, our spring is influenced by a multitude of perennial plants, which have for a time moved underground to protect themselves from the harsher elements of winter. What we see in spring is not necessarily new life, but the perseverance of life through more difficult seasons. In the same way, what we see in the fall is not plants dying, but preparation. We can give thanks to God for the preparation and perseverance of creation!
Since DuBois Center made the decision that summer camps would not happen in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic approximately a year ago, much has been persevering in preparation for the future. At our last Outdoor Ministry Team meeting, Nancy Wagner, chair of OMT, pointed out all of the ways that our camp, DuBois Center, has ministered to its community and extended our care for creation in this more difficult season. From partnering with Hoyleton ministries, to working on the property, to Green DuBois’ bee project and removal of invasive species around our property, to the tireless work of our marketing team, DuBois Center has persevered and served God’s mission well. In addition, it has prepared for the new possibilities that spring has to offer. Thanks be to God!
In this uncertain time, making decisions about what will be safe/unsafe to do in a few months can be a daunting task. At DuBois Center, we want to take some of the anxiety and stress off of parents making these decisions. As such, this summer DuBois Center will be opening under the strict safety protocol recommendations of the Outdoor Ministry Association, the American Camping Association, the Center for Disease Control, and State of Illinois guidelines and restrictions. We will be closely following the guidelines and adjusting our procedures as new information becomes available.
While our plans are being finalized for each aspect of camp, from check-in, cabin groups, activities, food service, through pick-up, we can say they will closely follow the guidelines set forth in the Field Guide from the American Camping Association. These guidelines suggest that most activities occur outside and physically distanced, with masking when those two components cannot be maintained.
Understandably, there are mixed opinions when it comes to making a decision about sending kids back to camp, and as such we are offering some additional options. We are providing one in person “family camp” during July in which families are welcome to come to camp and enjoy some of our activities together – while not sharing sleeping space with people outside of their family group. We are also piloting our “DuBois Delivered” option – can’t make it to camp? We’ll bring some camp to you! We hope that by offering these two alternatives, more families can get a taste of what makes DuBois Center special.
The new signs are here. The new signs are here! We have had a project to update our signs at Highway 51 and Youth Center Road and where Youth Center Road intersects with Quarry Road in the works for many years. This project was completed recently. Next time you’re driving down highway 51 or taking Quarry Road from DuBois to camp, check out the new signs.
Many thanks to our Marketing Committee for their efforts designing and printing the signs and to DuBois’s Property Committee for mounting the signs. Thanks to the Outdoor Ministries Team and Conference Council for supporting and funding this effort.
It’s not all fun and games. We take health situations and preparedness seriously. Our counselors and staff are all certified in First Aid and CPR, of course, and we have a nurse available on campus. Should you need to reach us in a home emergency situation, please use the numbers below.
| DuBois Center/Program | 618.787.2202 |
| Emergency Cell | 618.314.6553 |
We check voice mail in the office on a regular basis, so if we are out, please leave a message.
Please do not ask your child to call home. Such calls often promote homesickness. In the case of an emergency or significant issue, we will contact you. If you have concerns, please contact DuBois Center.
We strive to provide a healthy environment and prevent the spread of contagious diseases. If, within the 24 hours prior to camp, the camper has an undiagnosed rash or open sores, a temperature at or above 101°, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, a persistent cough or cold, he/she must remain at home until healthy. An elevated temperature must be back to normal for 24 hours before a child comes or returns to camp. Transferring to another session may be a possibility.
A trained health care provider is in residence at camp and arrangements for emergency care have been made with local facilities and transportation units. The camper’s personal insurance provides primary coverage. The medical payment insurance provided by camp is an Excess (or secondary) Plan, which means any claims must first be filed through the camper’s primary insurance.
Ticks are common in Illinois and, though rare, some may carry Lyme Disease or Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. If your camper has unexplained symptoms such as a rash, sore throat, nausea, head or muscle aches, and you have reason to suspect a tick bite, please see your doctor. If treated early, serious issues can be avoided.
Ticks are easier to spot on light-colored clothing with solid colors or simple patterns. Bringing bug spray is recommended, but please send pump spray or lotions and not aerosols.
We ask campers not to remove their own ticks, unless they can “flick” them away. This ensures they are removed properly, the area is disinfected, and the bite is logged. We keep all “logged” ticks in our Health Center for 6-12 months, just in case they are needed for testing.
Current data on mosquito-borne West Nile virus indicates that healthy children and youth are at lower risk, and, if infected, show minor or no symptoms. If the mosquito-borne infection concerns you, send your child with non-aerosol insect repellent, and talk about its use beforehand, as well as when it might be appropriate to wear long-sleeved shirts and pants. If you think the camper might be at higher risk, please indicate this on the Health Profile.
Homesickness can be a typical reaction, especially for first-time campers and those with little experience being away from home overnight. Our staff is trained to handle these types of situations in loving and constructive ways.
You can help before your child’s camp session even begins. Please DO NOT SUGGEST to your child that he/she may call home or return home early if they are homesick. Many children never forget such a statement, and – in all honesty – it often leads to a child becoming more homesick, rather than less. It serves to keep them from fully engaging, which is key to a successful week at camp. This is one of many reasons campers are not allowed cell phones at camp.
It can be helpful to have a pre-camp conversation about homesickness, but it is important not to dwell on the subject. Encourage and support your child; let them know that you are CONFIDENT that they will do just fine. Send encouraging letters; ask about the activities and your camper’s new friends, without dwelling on how much you miss the camper. For example, avoid phrases such as, “We are SO SAD here without you.” or “Your cat misses you so much, she isn’t eating and just wanders the hallway all night.”
Campers who work through a case of homesickness often develop a new sense of independence and self-confidence. We have received many calls and cards from parents thanking us for the patient nurturing that helped their child overcome this hurdle. We have also seen children who have left camp too soon, without having the opportunity to work through their homesickness. This can result in lower self-esteem and the camper feeling defeated.
Please know that in the case of an emergency or even significant homesickness, you will be contacted. If you have questions or concerns, please call DuBois Center at 618.787.2202.