DuBois Center Fall Festival – Sunday, October 2, 2022, 11am to 5pm

Be a part of the Fall Festival: Volunteer, promote the event, or come spend the day with us!

YOU Are Our BEST Volunteer

Our Fall Festival is only possible because of the efforts of countless volunteers. This is a great opportunity for families, confirmation classes, students in need of volunteer service hours, or, really anyone, to volunteer. Shifts can be as short as 30 minutes or as long as you want to help. If you’re interested in volunteering, sign up online or contact us by email at fallfestival@duboiscenter.org.

All Churches Can Promote the Event

If you would like to help promote the festival, promotional materials are in Weekly Connection and on the DuBois Center website. Any help to spread the word will be appreciated. Download this flyer or bulletin insert to help promote Fall Festival.

Hay is for Horses

On Friday afternoon, DuBois Center staff and volunteers worked along with a local farmer to bale some of the hay from our fields into square bales for our horses. In about three hours, the group baled, loaded, unloaded and stored 369 square bales. About a third of the bales were sent up our new (to us) hay elevator into the barn. The rest has been stored in the hay shed. Using our own square bales to feed the horses in the barn is healthier and saves us money.

Great thanks to Tom Karhoff for coordinating the cutting and baling of the hay. Thanks to Josh Meredith for working with the baler to load all those bales onto wagons. And thanks to the rest of the staff and volunteers who helped to unload and store the hay.

Photo above (l to r) Rylee Hodges-Stone, Sharon Murphy, Sandy Kuether, Scott Kuether

Group photo below (l to r): Meredith Malone, Mary Wagner, Tom Krueger, Tom Kahrhoff, Rylee Hodges-Stone, Josh Meredith, Jonathan Copple.

Larry Reeble also helped out, but didn’t end up in any of the photos. Thanks to all.

Camp Fare Dinner & Groundbreaking Celebration

On September 17, 2022, you can be a part of celebrating the groundbreaking for Hillside Cottage and taste some of DuBois Center’s favorite camp foods. Food will begin to be offered at 11 am using a fun menu of camper favorites. Then at 2 pm, everyone will have the opportunity to turn a shovel of dirt for DuBois’ new Hillside Cottage. Come and eat, walk the grounds, and/or groom the horses. The event is free but donations will be accepted on the day of the event for the meal.

Please RSVP by September 12 to jriechmann@iscucc.org, so we can plan for food.

New (to us) Hay Elevator for the Barn

The hay elevator at the barn isn’t used weekly or even monthly. But when we need to load hundreds of bales of hay into the hay loft it is invaluable. Our old hay elevator had been on its last leg for a while – rotting tires, rusting supports, broken gears, etc. Our wonderful maintenance staff nursed it along for close to a decade. By the Fall of 2020, we decided it was time to look for a replacement before it fell apart completely.

Steve McClay from our Outdoor Ministries Team offered to help us with the search. He monitored auctions and in February of 2021 found a used elevator that might work. Unfortunately, we were outbid this time around. Another possibility was found in July 2021, but it would have needed too many repairs. This February, Steve won the bidding on a used hay elevator for camp!

There is even more good news. Steve spoke with his church council, and they agreed to cover the cost (over $800) of the hay elevator and donate it to camp. Many thanks to Steve for his dedication and perseverance and to the members of Addieville Zion UCC for their support for DuBois Center!

Honoring Sue Reeble

On Saturday, August 6, a Celebration of Life was held at DuBois Center for Sue (Larry) Reeble, who was a long-time volunteer with the horse program there. Sue and Larry spent much time sharing their love of the horses and DuBois Center, so it was the perfect place to honor her life and the time she donated to DuBois Center. In lieu of flowers, Sue requested that donations be given to DuBois Center by check to Illinois South Conference, 1312 Broadway, Highland, IL 62249 or online. Please note that the donation is in memory of Sue Reeble.

Volunteers like Sue and Larry Reeble have made DuBois Center a place to find the love of God through nature.

DuBois Center will be open for summer camp next week (July 17-22)

Camp Update: DuBois Center was closed to campers last week July 10-15 due to COVID exposure the week before. Our staff responded properly to this and are taking the necessary measures to have a healthy week of camp.

We feel comfortable welcoming back campers for the camp sessions starting Sunday, July, 17–as the PCR test results for our staff have been negative.

Our staff and volunteers will be required to wear masks during check-in and when indoors with campers not in their cabin groups.

Similar to last summer, cabin groups will form a pod or family unit for the camp session. At this time, we recommend masks for campers, but it is not required. If we were to require masks for campers, masked time daily would be MINIMAL as almost all activities are outdoors or with cabin groups only. For safety reasons, masks are NOT to be worn while sleeping.

Camps Cancelled for next week (July 10 – 15)

Out of an abundance of caution, we are cancelling all of next week’s summer camp sessions (July 10 – 15, 2022).  Our lake has been treated, but is not yet safe for campers.  There is also a chance some staff members were exposed to COVID.  All camper parents and guardians have been notified.

At this time, we expect camps to be back on track the following week (July 17 – 22).  Thank you for your understanding.

WELCOME TEAM – Join Us!

June 19, 26, July 10, 17

On these Sundays, scores of campers will arrive at DuBois Center eager and excited to begin their time at camp. Several volunteers, plus summer staff, are needed for each of these Sundays to ensure the check-in process runs smoothly! Volunteers assist with greeting, parking, distributing t-shirts, health screenings, etc. They arrive by 11:15 pm and are done by 2 pm. Please consider joining our Sunday Welcome Team on one or more check-in days. Even consider bringing a team from your church!

Let us know in advance when you can help; contact the DuBois Center office at dcinfo@duboiscenter.org or 618-787-2202.

Donate to DuBois Center’s Scholarship Fund

Each year, DuBois Center serves hundreds of campers who are both part of our Illinois South Conference churches and our area neighbors. For some, attending camp would not be possible without the generous gift of a camp scholarship. Each week, campers enjoy countless activities including horseback riding, water mat play while swimming, gaga ball games, campfire cook-outs, and creek walks. They also have a chance to step away into nature, form lifelong friendships, and experience faith formation in a lasting and fun way. Simply put, camp changes lives through radical acceptance, risk-taking in a safe environment, and the chance to step away from busy lives, sports schedules, and all of the things that often distract our attention.

Consider supporting the transformative power of camp this summer by donating to our scholarship fund. This allows us to continue to provide this needed space to our neighbors. You can mail checks to the office or consider an online donation. All funds designated to our scholarship fund will help us provide the camp experience to those who may not be able to experience it this summer otherwise.

Summer Camp Updates: M.A.D. camp cancelled – additional Settler camp added

M.A.D. camp for this summer has been cancelled due to low registration.

An additional Settler camp session has been added – July 10-15.  Settler camps are a classic summer camp for campers who have completed grades 3, 4, 5 or equivalent.  Register today!

The three other Settler camps are full.