WWC Report to the Board

“We Can With God’s Help”

As the summer nears its end, all of the campers and summer staff have left to begin getting ready to go back to school. This summer was a partial success, as the camp had 72 more campers than from the previous summer, with most of the camps at 50% full. Here is a breakdown of how the camps were attended:

Caregivers weekend – 2

Wyoming Boys and Girls Club Camp – 30

Middler Camp – 23

Family Camp – 39

Art/Music/Photography Camp – 19

Junior High Camp -18

Angel Camp – 25

Big Horn Blast V- 11

Wind River Mission Camp – 16

181 campers – 2010 109 campers – 2009

Note* Equestrian Camp was canceled due to low registrations. (below 10)

The camp has switched gears, getting ready for school programs for August and September. We anticipate the following groups:

Wheatland MS 8/27, 9/3, 9/9 230 youth

Cathedral Home for Children – 8/20 – 8/22 16 youth

Guernsey-Sunrise MS – 8/24, 8/25 – 60 youth

St. Pauls Newman Center – 8/27-29 13 young adults

Converse County School Dist. 9/14, 9/15, 9/29, 40 youth

Kaycee MS – 9/27-28 - 37 youth

Bear Lodge HS – 9/20-21 20 youth

Dist. 5440 Foreign Exchange Students – 924-26 25 youth

I am still working at filling other days with groups up to October 13, 2010. Overall, the summer was a good one, I look to improve are attendance next summer and surpass this year’s numbers.
The camp continues to be a cornerstone in the faith development of our young people. Some of the reasons for this are as follows: It is one of the most beautiful places in Wyoming, as the facility makes the most of it’s setting of natural features as it was given to the Diocese by Hank Raymond. The climbing routes are challenging, and safe, and the swimming hole is cold and dramatic, and the view of Laramie Peak is amazing. Although the dining hall is in need of repair or replacement, it continues to produce good healthy food for the campers. The staff works hard to pull the necessary parts of the program together: fun, safety, and spirituality. They encourage campers to challenge themselves, and to look for God in all that they do. God is always present at Wyoming Wilderness Camp. God is present in nature, and in the relationships between the campers, and in the relationships of the staff as they teach the campers throughout the week.,

Tristan English said in the e-spirit: The counselors are focused on providing these campers with the experience that many of us have had: sharing in the beauty of the setting, the self esteem one earns by completing the ropes course and the friendships and bonds that form between strangers after a week. When you watch the staff and the camp’s director, Pat Walsh, interact with the kids you sense the passion that they have for what they are doing. There’s a smile in their voice and a sense of grace . Even after one night, everyone knows that this will be a different week.

I encourage the board and others who read this report to also go to the camp blog (off the web site) and to read what the campers and staff have written about their experience this summer. Thank you for your unwavering support of the camp, the staff, and me as we all work together for ministry to young people.

- Pat Walsh (Director of Wyoming Wilderness Camp)