Executive Director Don Johnson will occasionally post reflections as he travels to Lutheran Outdoor Ministry sites. Here is his latest entry from his travels in February 2016:
Wednesday, January 27: Flight from Boston to Phoenix. Drove from the airport to stay with friends in Scottsdale.
Thursday, January 28: Spent the day with good friends in Scottsdale – Al and Carol Anderson. Great reunion in their beautiful home. Al and I were camp counselors together and remain best of friends. When Al was in seminary, he and Carol, to whom he was now married, returned to Calumet to serve as wilderness trip leaders. For that matter, they were the founders of Calumet’s wilderness tripping programs (week-long backpacking, canoe camping, and bike hiking).
Friday, January 29: Took the beautiful drive from Scottsdale to Payson. Visited longtime friends from Freedom, NH – Dick and Sally Low. Then visited the site of Lutheran Outdoor Ministries of Northern Arizona (LOMONA). LOMONA is a small retreat center located adjacent to Mount Cross Lutheran Church in downtown Payson. They have a building that is used as a meeting place with a small kitchen, and a bunk cabin with several rooms equipped with bunk beds and bathrooms down the hall. The current executive director, Jo Wright, was not available at that time, but I did have an opportunity to find out a great deal of the history of LOMONA from the former camp director, Maryann Rowe. It was, to say the least, a very interesting visit. From there I made the drive to Prescott, AZ – another very beautiful trip through the mountains of Arizona.
Saturday, January 30: I visited Camp Aloma in the morning. The road from downtown Prescott to Camp Aloma is an absolutely dramatic pass through incredibly majestic mountain views. Camp Aloma is at elevation 6,200’, so there was plenty of snow on the ground and pretty chilly air just to make me feel right at home – quite a contrast from being in shirtsleeves in Phoenix. Camp Aloma is on a very small plot of land surrounded by millions of acres of national forest. Their facilities are simple and rustic, but they are equipped for retreats during all four seasons and the confirmation group that was meeting there at the time seemed to all be having a good time. Leah McKean is the executive director and I had delightful conversation with her in between her dealing with questions for the retreat group, supervising the preparation for the noontime meal, and a variety of other things that were being called to her attention. Yes, Leah pretty much takes care of everything that needs to be taken care of at Aloma – brought me back to my early days as a camp director. This was a very enjoyable visit.
In the afternoon I drove back to Scottsdale. I met with Hank Rausch, a retired LCMS school principal who has a passion for outdoor ministry and is looking for ways to contribute to a more vibrant outdoor ministry program for more Lutherans in Arizona. Then went back to Al and Carol’s for a delicious dinner and one last evening as a guest of theirs.
Sunday, January 31: Visited in late morning with friends CC and Brian Childree, who live in southwestern Phoenix. CC grew up in Freedom and was a camper and counselor at Calumet. It was great to see her and her husband and to see how happy they both are. I then made my way to Mesa and had the great opportunity to visit with Jerry and Linde Manlove at their winter home. Jerry served for many years in a variety of outdoor ministry positions (and also with the YMCA before that). He also served as the director for outdoor ministries in the ALC so I was very excited to have the opportunity to pick his brain about my position with LOM. Linde also has a vast amount of churchwide experience from the many years she had doing youth ministry work in the ALC. Our conversations covered a whole range of subjects, mostly dealing with outdoor ministry. I came away from this valuable time of sharing with a renewed awareness of the importance for outdoor ministry organizations to have competent, skilled leaders who are constantly provided with opportunities to learn the most currently acknowledged best practices, and a renewed enthusiasm for outdoor ministry opportunities to be made available to all people regardless of background or social status. Thank you, Jerry and Linde, for a great afternoon. I then checked into the Carefree Conference Center for the next few days of participation in the CEO Academy of Lutheran Services in America (LSA).
Monday – Wednesday, February 1-3: The CEO Academy is a pretty intense experience of being confronted with some pretty sophisticated theories of management and leadership. I’m glad I took part in this experience and would recommend it to others, especially outdoor ministry CEO’s who have already had the opportunity to participate in both the program track and administrative track of the LOM Leadership Training Event (LTE). In addition to the educational aspects of the CEO Academy, it also provided opportunities to network with CEO’s of LSA who are in charge of organizations that have the potential for collaborative partnerships with LOM organizations. It also provided me the opportunity to have some in depth conversation with the LOM executive directors who were also participating – Keith Johnson of Novus Way (NC); Jeff Bluhm, Lutherdale (WI); Brent Seaks, Badlands Ministries (SD); Janis Sloka, Camp of the Cross (ND); and Dave Coker, Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministries.
Wednesday, February 3: Checked out of Carefree Conference Center at noon. Made my way across town to Spirit in the Desert Lutheran Retreat Center. What a beautiful place. The setting is right there in the desert and the whole place feels like a lush oasis. The lodging rooms, meeting rooms, dining facilities, chapel, swimming pool, lounges, porches – everything is first-class. If you are looking for a great place for a very nice retreat experience for a group of adults in a unique setting – this is the place. The new executive director, Richard Andersen, started in that position at the first of this year. He is eager to get plugged into the activities and opportunities of LOM, and I know he will be an excellent addition to our membership.
In late afternoon I got on a plane bound for Los Angeles. Arrived early evening, Got a car, and drove up to El Camino Pines, elevation 5,200’ and temperature 27 F upon arrival at around 10:00pm. I was greeted by a couple of the year-round staff who were very busy with a school group from LA, there for a few days of environmental education. I had the good fortune of having an A-Frame cabin all to myself.
Thursday, February 4: The day dawned bright and sunny over the beautiful mountainside on which El Camino Pines is located. This place is beautiful! The ponderosa pine forest is beautiful, the bright sunshine on the new white snow is beautiful, and the bacon and eggs in the dining hall for breakfast were beautiful. The place was bubbling with activity with all the school kids excited about another day of environmental education. And Glen and Lauri Egertson, co-executive directors, were bubbling with enthusiasm about the ministry of El Camino Pines and Luther Glen, the camps that are part of the Lutheran Retreats, Camps, and Conferences organization (LRCC).
Because of a mix-up with the UPS delivery of materials for the LOM display table at the YM Extravaganza, Glen and I had to drive to Bakersfield to recover the delivery. We then drove to the other site in their organization, Luther Glen Retreat Center in Yucaipa (formerly known as Yolijwa). We spent about 5 hours in the car that afternoon, but the conversation flowed freely and I’m grateful for the opportunity to get to know Glen and get to know about the great ministry that he and Lauri are heading up there in southern California. The retreat center complex at Luther Glen is totally comfortable, so my evening there was very enjoyable.
Friday, February 5: Oh my goodness! We had arrived at Luther Glen at night in the dark, so I really didn’t see how beautiful this place is. On this morning, the sun was shining and it was a picture perfect clear day. Another mountain landscape! Glen and I had breakfast with Hick Finn, the intern, and Melanie Cornejo, the farm director. And then a tour of the site! The farm they are developing there is amazing. They’re growing lots of vegetables using raised beds. And they have a whole barnyard of goats, sheep, chickens, and sentry dogs! They are doing some interesting work with composting. The whole thing is very fascinating. To say nothing of the election they are going to have at this year’s synod assembly for the farm animal that will be elected bishop of the farm! Luther Glen and El Camino Pines are both beautiful places with beautiful facilities in beautiful settings, but what was most impressive to me was some of the innovative work they are doing with environmental education and the ongoing farm.
I left Luther Glen mid-morning and arrived in Anaheim by noon. Got myself registered and set up the LOM display for the Youth Ministry Extravaganza. The Extravaganza or E, as they call it, is an amazing event. It’s to the network of youth ministry professionals what the Annual Conference of LOM is to outdoor ministry professionals. But much bigger. There were more than 700 persons on hand for the E.
Saturday, February 6: The E presents a terrific opportunity for networking with many of the ministry partners of LOM who are very important to our outdoor ministry network. I’m sure glad I had the opportunity to be there. Some of the folks with whom I got to spend some quality time: Chandler Carriker and Shelly Talcott from Lutheran World Relief; Rebecca Lewis from Camp Noah; Seth Bridger from Trinity Seminary; Josh Graber from ALT Year; Sue Madigan from Thrivent; Mike Ward from GSB; Sam Collins from Lutheran Volunteer Corps; Holly Johnson from Pacific Seminary; and a good long conversation over breakfast with Todd Buegler, executive director of the ELCA Youth Ministry Network. I met, for the first time, Jake Sorenson, who gave a thoroughly compelling presentation at a workshop on the research he is doing. Mark Burkhardt and I had the opportunity to have dinner together and that’s always a good experience. There was a sizable contingent of LOM leaders who were there as exhibitors and participants, and a high point of the E for me was co-sponsoring with the LRCC folks a reception for all the outdoor ministry leaders and friends on Saturday evening. I’m estimating that around 50 persons showed up and we all had a great time.
Sunday, February 7: In the late morning I packed up the LOM display and headed for LAX Airport. Very grateful for the opportunity to be at the E and very grateful for the circumstances that motivated it. The YM Network gave LOM a gold level membership for our auction in November. It included an exhibit table and registration at the E, along with a one year membership in the YM Network. Anthony Briggs, executive director of Cross Roads (NJ) was the high bidder. But he couldn’t go to the E so he donated it back to LOM. The rest is, as they say, history.
My plane took off from LAX at exactly the same time as the kickoff for the Super Bowl. American Airlines had promised that all flights of more than 2 hours would have the Super Bowl on their TV screens for free. On my flight to Boston, technical difficulties meant they couldn’t deliver on their promise. My plane landed at Logan Airport in Boston at 11:15 pm. Waited for my bus to Dover, NH, which left Logan at 12:10 a.m.
Monday, February 8: Bus arrived in Dover 1:30 a.m. Found my car, drove back home to Freedom, arriving 2:30am. Pretty tired. All well worth it!!!
Wednesday, January 27: Flight from Boston to Phoenix. Drove from the airport to stay with friends in Scottsdale.
Thursday, January 28: Spent the day with good friends in Scottsdale – Al and Carol Anderson. Great reunion in their beautiful home. Al and I were camp counselors together and remain best of friends. When Al was in seminary, he and Carol, to whom he was now married, returned to Calumet to serve as wilderness trip leaders. For that matter, they were the founders of Calumet’s wilderness tripping programs (week-long backpacking, canoe camping, and bike hiking).
Friday, January 29: Took the beautiful drive from Scottsdale to Payson. Visited longtime friends from Freedom, NH – Dick and Sally Low. Then visited the site of Lutheran Outdoor Ministries of Northern Arizona (LOMONA). LOMONA is a small retreat center located adjacent to Mount Cross Lutheran Church in downtown Payson. They have a building that is used as a meeting place with a small kitchen, and a bunk cabin with several rooms equipped with bunk beds and bathrooms down the hall. The current executive director, Jo Wright, was not available at that time, but I did have an opportunity to find out a great deal of the history of LOMONA from the former camp director, Maryann Rowe. It was, to say the least, a very interesting visit. From there I made the drive to Prescott, AZ – another very beautiful trip through the mountains of Arizona.
Saturday, January 30: I visited Camp Aloma in the morning. The road from downtown Prescott to Camp Aloma is an absolutely dramatic pass through incredibly majestic mountain views. Camp Aloma is at elevation 6,200’, so there was plenty of snow on the ground and pretty chilly air just to make me feel right at home – quite a contrast from being in shirtsleeves in Phoenix. Camp Aloma is on a very small plot of land surrounded by millions of acres of national forest. Their facilities are simple and rustic, but they are equipped for retreats during all four seasons and the confirmation group that was meeting there at the time seemed to all be having a good time. Leah McKean is the executive director and I had delightful conversation with her in between her dealing with questions for the retreat group, supervising the preparation for the noontime meal, and a variety of other things that were being called to her attention. Yes, Leah pretty much takes care of everything that needs to be taken care of at Aloma – brought me back to my early days as a camp director. This was a very enjoyable visit.
In the afternoon I drove back to Scottsdale. I met with Hank Rausch, a retired LCMS school principal who has a passion for outdoor ministry and is looking for ways to contribute to a more vibrant outdoor ministry program for more Lutherans in Arizona. Then went back to Al and Carol’s for a delicious dinner and one last evening as a guest of theirs.
Sunday, January 31: Visited in late morning with friends CC and Brian Childree, who live in southwestern Phoenix. CC grew up in Freedom and was a camper and counselor at Calumet. It was great to see her and her husband and to see how happy they both are. I then made my way to Mesa and had the great opportunity to visit with Jerry and Linde Manlove at their winter home. Jerry served for many years in a variety of outdoor ministry positions (and also with the YMCA before that). He also served as the director for outdoor ministries in the ALC so I was very excited to have the opportunity to pick his brain about my position with LOM. Linde also has a vast amount of churchwide experience from the many years she had doing youth ministry work in the ALC. Our conversations covered a whole range of subjects, mostly dealing with outdoor ministry. I came away from this valuable time of sharing with a renewed awareness of the importance for outdoor ministry organizations to have competent, skilled leaders who are constantly provided with opportunities to learn the most currently acknowledged best practices, and a renewed enthusiasm for outdoor ministry opportunities to be made available to all people regardless of background or social status. Thank you, Jerry and Linde, for a great afternoon. I then checked into the Carefree Conference Center for the next few days of participation in the CEO Academy of Lutheran Services in America (LSA).
Monday – Wednesday, February 1-3: The CEO Academy is a pretty intense experience of being confronted with some pretty sophisticated theories of management and leadership. I’m glad I took part in this experience and would recommend it to others, especially outdoor ministry CEO’s who have already had the opportunity to participate in both the program track and administrative track of the LOM Leadership Training Event (LTE). In addition to the educational aspects of the CEO Academy, it also provided opportunities to network with CEO’s of LSA who are in charge of organizations that have the potential for collaborative partnerships with LOM organizations. It also provided me the opportunity to have some in depth conversation with the LOM executive directors who were also participating – Keith Johnson of Novus Way (NC); Jeff Bluhm, Lutherdale (WI); Brent Seaks, Badlands Ministries (SD); Janis Sloka, Camp of the Cross (ND); and Dave Coker, Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministries.
Wednesday, February 3: Checked out of Carefree Conference Center at noon. Made my way across town to Spirit in the Desert Lutheran Retreat Center. What a beautiful place. The setting is right there in the desert and the whole place feels like a lush oasis. The lodging rooms, meeting rooms, dining facilities, chapel, swimming pool, lounges, porches – everything is first-class. If you are looking for a great place for a very nice retreat experience for a group of adults in a unique setting – this is the place. The new executive director, Richard Andersen, started in that position at the first of this year. He is eager to get plugged into the activities and opportunities of LOM, and I know he will be an excellent addition to our membership.
In late afternoon I got on a plane bound for Los Angeles. Arrived early evening, Got a car, and drove up to El Camino Pines, elevation 5,200’ and temperature 27 F upon arrival at around 10:00pm. I was greeted by a couple of the year-round staff who were very busy with a school group from LA, there for a few days of environmental education. I had the good fortune of having an A-Frame cabin all to myself.
Thursday, February 4: The day dawned bright and sunny over the beautiful mountainside on which El Camino Pines is located. This place is beautiful! The ponderosa pine forest is beautiful, the bright sunshine on the new white snow is beautiful, and the bacon and eggs in the dining hall for breakfast were beautiful. The place was bubbling with activity with all the school kids excited about another day of environmental education. And Glen and Lauri Egertson, co-executive directors, were bubbling with enthusiasm about the ministry of El Camino Pines and Luther Glen, the camps that are part of the Lutheran Retreats, Camps, and Conferences organization (LRCC).
Because of a mix-up with the UPS delivery of materials for the LOM display table at the YM Extravaganza, Glen and I had to drive to Bakersfield to recover the delivery. We then drove to the other site in their organization, Luther Glen Retreat Center in Yucaipa (formerly known as Yolijwa). We spent about 5 hours in the car that afternoon, but the conversation flowed freely and I’m grateful for the opportunity to get to know Glen and get to know about the great ministry that he and Lauri are heading up there in southern California. The retreat center complex at Luther Glen is totally comfortable, so my evening there was very enjoyable.
Friday, February 5: Oh my goodness! We had arrived at Luther Glen at night in the dark, so I really didn’t see how beautiful this place is. On this morning, the sun was shining and it was a picture perfect clear day. Another mountain landscape! Glen and I had breakfast with Hick Finn, the intern, and Melanie Cornejo, the farm director. And then a tour of the site! The farm they are developing there is amazing. They’re growing lots of vegetables using raised beds. And they have a whole barnyard of goats, sheep, chickens, and sentry dogs! They are doing some interesting work with composting. The whole thing is very fascinating. To say nothing of the election they are going to have at this year’s synod assembly for the farm animal that will be elected bishop of the farm! Luther Glen and El Camino Pines are both beautiful places with beautiful facilities in beautiful settings, but what was most impressive to me was some of the innovative work they are doing with environmental education and the ongoing farm.
I left Luther Glen mid-morning and arrived in Anaheim by noon. Got myself registered and set up the LOM display for the Youth Ministry Extravaganza. The Extravaganza or E, as they call it, is an amazing event. It’s to the network of youth ministry professionals what the Annual Conference of LOM is to outdoor ministry professionals. But much bigger. There were more than 700 persons on hand for the E.
Saturday, February 6: The E presents a terrific opportunity for networking with many of the ministry partners of LOM who are very important to our outdoor ministry network. I’m sure glad I had the opportunity to be there. Some of the folks with whom I got to spend some quality time: Chandler Carriker and Shelly Talcott from Lutheran World Relief; Rebecca Lewis from Camp Noah; Seth Bridger from Trinity Seminary; Josh Graber from ALT Year; Sue Madigan from Thrivent; Mike Ward from GSB; Sam Collins from Lutheran Volunteer Corps; Holly Johnson from Pacific Seminary; and a good long conversation over breakfast with Todd Buegler, executive director of the ELCA Youth Ministry Network. I met, for the first time, Jake Sorenson, who gave a thoroughly compelling presentation at a workshop on the research he is doing. Mark Burkhardt and I had the opportunity to have dinner together and that’s always a good experience. There was a sizable contingent of LOM leaders who were there as exhibitors and participants, and a high point of the E for me was co-sponsoring with the LRCC folks a reception for all the outdoor ministry leaders and friends on Saturday evening. I’m estimating that around 50 persons showed up and we all had a great time.
Sunday, February 7: In the late morning I packed up the LOM display and headed for LAX Airport. Very grateful for the opportunity to be at the E and very grateful for the circumstances that motivated it. The YM Network gave LOM a gold level membership for our auction in November. It included an exhibit table and registration at the E, along with a one year membership in the YM Network. Anthony Briggs, executive director of Cross Roads (NJ) was the high bidder. But he couldn’t go to the E so he donated it back to LOM. The rest is, as they say, history.
My plane took off from LAX at exactly the same time as the kickoff for the Super Bowl. American Airlines had promised that all flights of more than 2 hours would have the Super Bowl on their TV screens for free. On my flight to Boston, technical difficulties meant they couldn’t deliver on their promise. My plane landed at Logan Airport in Boston at 11:15 pm. Waited for my bus to Dover, NH, which left Logan at 12:10 a.m.
Monday, February 8: Bus arrived in Dover 1:30 a.m. Found my car, drove back home to Freedom, arriving 2:30am. Pretty tired. All well worth it!!!