Why Church Camp?

Because church camp is joyful fun! It is a sacred place. It is intensely relational, and positive role models abound! Though an integral part of many congregations’ year-round faith formation efforts, church camp is different from Vacation Bible School or Sunday School. Campers and leaders live, work, play and worship together from early morning until late into the evening. They grow together through shared experiences in God’s amazing creation and form an intentional community. They hear our faith stories in new places and new ways, and find opportunities to share their own. The activities are fun, challenging and filled with opportunities to grow as part of a Christian community.

Camps for Younger Children

Children who have completed grades 1-3 are often looking for ways to experience life like the “big kids.” Parents are looking for opportunities for their children to gain self-confidence, critical social skills, and a greater awareness of God’s world.

At DuBois Center, we have five part-week sessions designed with this in mind. Shorter sessions and smaller group sizes are ideal for this age group. Their time is filled with new adventures under the watchful eyes of caring, safety-conscious leaders. Despite the length of these sessions, there is still time to ride a horse, explore the creek, swim in the lake, and make lots of new friends.

This summer, choose from Boy Meets Camp, Camp Quest, Discovery Camp or Girl Power. Check out page 6 of the camp brochure for details. You may also pick up a brochure in your church office or contact DuBois Center at dcinfo@DuBoisCenter.org or 618-787-2202 to receive one by mail. If you are ready to register, click here.

camps for younger children

Summer Camp Volunteers

Consider a week (or even a few days) at DuBois Center and join our Summer Camp 2018 team! Wanted: fun, engaging and caring volunteers to serve as nurses, cabin counselors, activity specialists and barn helpers. Minimum age is 18 for most positions; young adults and older adults are welcome.

Give of your time and talent; make a difference; and gain a wonderful sense of satisfaction…and even perhaps a bit of joy! Check out the photo above. Can you pick out the four volunteers? For more information, go to the volunteer page of our website or contact Shirley at shirley.director@DuBoisCenter.org or 618-787-2202.

High School Week at DuBois Center

June 17-22 older youth (completed grades 8-12) take over the Rustic Village. One week, two great options: Wranglers and X-Plore! It’s a week to be yourself, make good friends, find new adventures and grow with God.

Meals on Rustic are back! Choice times are back! And with them more opportunities to hang with your friends and customize your week. Play disc golf – DuBois style; get super crafty; fish at Deer Run; or ride horses in “the bottoms.” Play cricket or Aussie football with our international staff and check out weird and wacky activities at the waterfront.

For details, pick up a brochure in your church office, click here for the online version or contact DuBois Center at dcinfo@DuBoisCenter.org or 618-787-2202. Ready to register? Click here. Don’t delay – June is just around the corner!

High School Week 2

Meet our Summer Staff: Kurtwynn

Welcome Kurtwynn Trompetter from Johannesburg, South Africa to our 2018 summer staff team. Kurtwynn will be serving as a Counselor/Activity Specialist and hopes to gain even more experience and new tools for youth work. Kurtwynn wrote, “My career goal is to open a summer camp for underprivileged children in South Africa of different ages.” Kurtwynn has a variety of applicable experience. He has taught and coached football (soccer), assisted in a day care center and with the youth group at his church, and babysat for family and friends. One of his most significant learning experiences came while working with a 9-year old with Down Syndrome.

When asked about a favorite memory of the “outdoors” from his youth, Kurtwynn shared enthusiastically about an educational camp he was invited to attend while in high school. During the camp they visited an underwater marine exhibit where they learned about different sea animals and about the evolution of life underwater. The camp definitely made a lasting impression. In his free time, Kurtwynn enjoys the arts – making music, drawing and painting. He enjoys staying fit by taking part in soccer tournaments and fitness competitions. Road trips and outings with family and friends are also favorites. During a two-week visit to Mozambique, he was amazed by the beach, loved the HUGE prawns, and saw first-hand how people live in other parts of the world. It was a humbling experience. His “favourite” foods include creamy pastas and spicy prawns; he has a sweet tooth for chocolate and caramel cake.

Welcome Kurtwynn! 

Camps for Older Children: Completed Grades 3 – 6

Classic or specialty camp, three days or five days – there is a wide variety of sessions from which to choose for this age group. Whether a first-timer or experienced camper, new adventures await.

The cozy cottages on the Main Camp side of the lake are “home” for many campers in this age group, but those attending our Horsin’ Around, Rustic 101 and Splash! sessions venture across the lake and live in the Rustic Village. The week of July 22-25 there are shorter sessions for those who would like “a taste” of horse camp or rustic camping.

Additional sessions for those completing grades 5-8 can be found in the camp brochure. For more information, pick up a brochure in your church office, click here for the online version or contact DuBois Center at dcinfo@DuBoisCenter.org or 618-787-2202. Ready to register? Click here.

Older child camps 2

Session &
Grades Completed           Dates   
Settler (3-5)                       6/10-15, 6/24-29, 7/15-20
Pony Express (4-6)           7/22-25
Mad Science (4-7)            7/8-13
Move It! Move It! (4-7)      7/8-13
Rustic 101 (4-6)                7/22-25
Horsin’ Around (5-7)         6/10-15, 7/8-13, 7/15-20
Splash! (5-7)                     7/22-25

Churches: Here’s How You Can Help Promote DuBois

We often have churches ask us how they can help support DuBois Center! Our answer? Help us spread the word! We are often referred to as a best-kept-secret in Southern Illinois – well, let’s get that secret out there! See below for a list of ideas on how to share information on DuBois with your church, your community and below. Click here for a full list of additional information and downloadable promotional pieces.

 Celebrate FAITH FORMATION through OUTDOOR MINISTRIES in April and May! Pick a Sunday for your Camp Sunday. Recruit a planning team and help them brainstorm a list of creative possibilities, then turn them loose to implement the best ideas.

 Personally invite young people and their parents to participate in the spring events and summer camp program at DuBois Center. When pastors and key lay leaders speak, people listen. Your passion for church camp can be infectious.

 Community Outreach: Consider how your congregation might partner with DuBois Center to send children from low-income families in your community to camp. Special funds are available to assist.

 Involve experienced campers, volunteers and summer staff in the Children’s Message or a special Sunday School event. Personal testimonies, special camp stories, games and songs are especially helpful.

 Focus on the goals and values of Christian camping during worship on Sunday. Music, responsive readings and sermons can all be effective tools for this.

 Invite a guest from DuBois Center to join you on a Sunday to share a sermon, extended mission moment, children’s message and/or activities in Sunday School.

 Plan something special for Coffee Hour. Try s’mores or “ants on a log” instead of cookies. Set up a BBQ pit and roast hot dogs, hamburgers or marshmallows.

 Designate and PROMOTE a couple of Sundays during which DuBois alumni are at a table, before & after worship, to distribute brochures and answer questions.

 Encourage grandparents to send their grandchildren to camp.

 Utilize DuBois Center bulletin inserts – copy, cut and insert.

 Gather a group together and attend the RUSTIC BLOCK PARTY  at DuBois Center. Enjoy free youth-friendly activities and tour the facilities – Sunday, May 6.
 Post the CAMP SCHEDULE, POSTERS and FLYERS throughout the church.
 On two or more Sundays, advertise and insert a special offering envelope in the bulletin designated to provide financial assistance for your church’s youth to attend camp.
 Have a Chili Cook-off and use the funds raised to help send kids to camp.
 Have the Sunday School or mid-week program make a special camp banner,
then hang it in the Sanctuary or Fellowship Hall from March through June.

Fathers & Sons – Quality Time Together!

This past weekend, 41 fathers, sons, grandfathers and mentors – hailing from 10 ISCUCC churches and beyond – made the trek to DuBois Center for our annual Father-Son Retreat. Picture… boats on the lake, cool crafts, a hay ride, and rounds and rounds of 9-Square and Ga-ga. Picture… new friends, hikes and horseback rides. Picture… s’mores under a drizzly sky, late night UNO games, and quiet time for reflections. Together fathers and sons explored the creek, built shelters in the woods, “tipped trees,” took aim at archery targets, and dismantled a big section of the old boat dock. Now, picture

God among us everywhere! Throughout the weekend, they explored God’s call to be good roles as fathers and as sons, to be true friends and caring “neighbors.”

(Top photo: 2018 Father/Son group; Left: Aaron and Harmon Fuchs;  Right: Josh and Drake Muehlhauser)

FatherSon2018bFatherSon2018c

Buddy to Buddy – Hoyleton Mission Experience June 30 – July 3, 2018

Behind the 8 ball? Still looking for a meaningful summer mission trip for your youth? Look no further! This close-to-home mission experience offers teens the opportunity to “live kindness, do justice and walk humbly.” Youth encounter God as they participate together with young people from Hoyleton’s youth residential programs. They swim, create cool crafts, play games and more! Buddies walk hand in hand with their biblical “neighbors” and practice sincere acceptance and respect. Daily reflections and prayer times focus on diversity, justice and our role as Christians.

After the Hoyleton campers head for home each day, the buddies and their chaperones take time to debrief the day’s experience, plan for the next day and take-on a physical work project at DuBois Center. There is also time to relax, play and participate in some traditional camp activities. Faith-focused sessions are facilitated by the camp chaplain. Activity supervision is provided by staff from DuBois Center and Hoyleton Ministries.

Registration is by church group, not individual, and adult chaperones must accompany youth participants. Housing is in the cottages in main camp. Space is limited. Learn more on our flier, or contact shirley.director@DuBoisCenter.org or 618-787-2202.

Camps for Younger Youth – Completing Grades 5-9

Whether your camper prefers the Main Camp cottages or the Rustic Village cabins, there are great options on both sides of the lake. Hang out with the ponies, make a big splash, enjoy a “classic” camp or try roughin’ it. For this age group, individual choice times are a popular addition to the line-up. For details, pick up a brochure in your church office, check out the online version, or contact DuBois Center at dcinfo@DuBoisCenter.org or 618-787-2202.
 
New to the Rustic Village? Check out the Block Party on May 6. Ready to register? Go to www.DuBoisCenter.org or click here.
 
Don’t delay; some of these sessions are nearly full!
Session &
Grades Completed      Dates   
Horsin’ Around (5-7)      6/10-15, 7/8-13, 7/15-20
Splash! (5-7)                     7/22-25
Base Camp (5-8)             7/15-20
Trekkin’ It (5-8)               6/10-15, 7/8-13
Outlander (6-9)                6/24-29, 7/15-20
Saddle ‘Em Up (7-9)       6/24-29, 7/15-20