Our Building and Grounds department, headed by the venerable Paul Clark, has been laboring intensely on projects in every far-flung corner of our expansive grounds, from the construction of the all-new Hilltop 2 to the remodeling of our Frontier Village girls’ bathroom. Paul, our paragon of plywood, has been aided by an unprecedented number of volunteers, including dozens of SOWERS. Projects are being accomplished at an astonishing rate, and we are further along in our preparations for summer than we have ever been at this point in the year.

My summer staff recruiting has also proceeded at a record pace. We currently have nearly every spot filled, an occurrence I have not seen since my first summer as summer staff! Included in our roster are both battle-scarred veterans like Johnny Ringo, and fresh recruits, many from Arizona Christian University. Our recruiting program at ACU was a great success this year, and 6 of our counselors are ACU students.

This summer, our Frontier Village Program is entitled “Showdown: Will You be Able to Stand Up?” When a mysterious stranger comes to town with an offer that seems too good to pass up, will the townsfolk be able to do the right thing? This exciting week-long story will use the setting of our Old West  town, Serenity, to teach campers about temptation and how to defeat it. Parents will get a chance at a sneak preview this year, as we hold our first annual Frontier Village open house on May 26. Parents and future campers can come visit Frontier Village and meet the staff, play games, see the town, and enjoy a BBQ lunch, all for free!

Youth Camp this year will be held on two separate weeks, both in July. We’ll be revisiting the X-Men theme from Winter Camp, although the situation for our Characters Oracle and Pneuma has become more dire. Titled, “X-Men: Avengers – Fighting to save a world that hates us,” Youth Camp 2012 will tackle the issue of persecution and the Great Commission.  How should we, as followers of Christ, approach a world that wants to see our downfall and destruction? How do we show them Christ? Speakers Craig Barrack and Stephen Tunnicliff will lead the discussion each night, then we will split into church groups for youth pastors and leaders to go deeper with their campers. It will be awesome! Besides the teaching, we’ll have spectacular games, live-action skits, and the annual Summer Camp Great Race! It looks to be a great year.

On another note, many of you may realize that the cost of our camps, while much more affordable than other camps nearby, can still be prohibitive for the families of less-fortunate campers. This is why we established our Heart Partners Scholarship fund many years ago. It has been a blessing to hundreds of campers since it began, and this year, it will continue to be such. We have had several large donations to the fund this year, which will help bring to camp kids who may never have had the chance otherwise, and give them an opportunity to hear the Word of God, some for the first time. To those of you who support our Heart Partners fund, thank you! (If you are interested in contributing to this fund, you can contact our Director Jim Trail at jim@prescottpines.org)

You can see how greatly God has blessed us this year, and I’m only speaking for the Program Department! I know that He will use this camp for great things this summer,  so please be praying along with me, for all the children and youth who will be attending our camps. Pray for our Summer Staff, both returning and new, and give thanks for the gifts He has given us.

Danny Barreras

Here at camp, many churches come for retreats, to revive their spirits, renew their commitments and feed their souls. In between sessions, they venture to the dinner hall. This is often viewed as a break but perhaps this is where the depth of it all begins. In community, the heart and soul, the body and mind is feed.  Prescott Pines was recently able to purchase round tables thanks to the benevolence of many donors. The tables make such a difference in the meal time atmosphere. Communion happens around them. It is natural and beautiful, not to mention tasty. Our cooks spend a lot of time considering meals and make great effort in providing food that speaks not only to the body but to the soul. We here at Prescott Pines do believe that a way to the heart is through the stomach. Come take and eat with us and let us remember Christ together. I highly recommend the French toast casserole.

What is one of your favorite meals that you have had at camp? Please share in a comment below!

Campers and counselors alike enjoyed the games and activities we played, but it seems the greatest triumph of the weekends came from our speakers, Bob Hoyt and Scott Mitchell, and from our band, the Heights Church Praise band. All of them connected with and spoke to the hearts of our campers. The band held a contest that allowed campers to submit name proposals for something more fun than “Heights Praise Band,” and the campers jumped all over it. Both Bob and Scott, though limited to only 4 sessions, really got to the core of who the Holy Spirit is, what He does in our lives, and how we can have His presence. I heard from many different campers and counselors that they appreciated this year’s music and lessons more than they have in many years!

Though winter camp is now over, the fun doesn’t stop here. Now it’s time to focus on summer camps, with Frontier Village beginning on June 1^st and Youth camps in July! We’ll be here for you and your kids, and we know you’re there for us, keeping us in your prayers. Well, it’s time to get to work!

 Danny Barreras

Check out the pictures from Winter Camp

Nearly two years after the Hilltop #2 cabin burned down, in the aftermath of severe winter storms, we are praising God that the new foundation has been poured, and the rebuilding process is beginning.  For the past two years, we have shuffled guests around, trying to make the best use of the space we had available.  As our groups grew in size, we had to come up with some creative housing arrangements, including, adding extra beds in breakout rooms, and using former staff housing, to house our guests.  But God has been faithful, our guests have been patient, and our staff has been committed to see this building project through to the end.

The new building will accommodate 18 guests, and will be handicap accessible.  We will be installing in-floor heating (like we did in the Dining Hall); to conserve energy, and make better use of the resources we have been given.  The foundation work is being completed by a construction company owned by a longtime friend of the camp, and the finish work will be done by TLC, a faithful group of volunteers who show up every spring in their RV’s to help restore the camp.

With a lot of hard work, and prayer, we hope to have the building ready to house our guests this summer.  Check out our photo page to see the progress as we build.

This Christmas feels a little different than Christmases in the past. There’s a little more excitement, a little more anticipation of what I’ll be getting than there has been for a long time. It’s not because I have no idea what my wife is getting for me or how many presents will be under the tree. Whatever it is will be will be less than $30 and probably add up to approximately four gifts—all of this stipulated by the Maki Family gift exchange list and budgetary requirements. Christmas hasn’t held much anticipation for me since my teen years when I learned to play it cool like my parents. That and the evolution of family gift giving policies designed to hold back the materialism of our culture have helped to make Christmas happy, joyful, family-oriented and fattening but have severely limited the anticipation of what’s to come. But this year is different because this year I’m anticipating a newborn son.

I can’t help but feel that this puts me in a somewhat unique position when it comes to considering what Christmas means. After all, the anticipation of a coming baby was basically what the Christmas story is about. Almost. There’s something that Mary and Joseph knew about their baby that ups their anticipation to heights I’m not sure I will ever relate to. Jesus wasn’t just the next piece of their family, a continuation of their family lines, a step up in society and economic status, a child who would grow up to be someone they could be proud of. Mary and Joseph knew that their newborn son was going to be the Messiah. The Savior. Of the World.

Mary and Joseph spent the first Christmas wondering about what was to come. What kind of man would this Messiah be? How would he save them? Would his people finally be free of Roman oppression? Would he make their fields more productive, their armies stronger, their people more respected in the world? Would there be war or would he conquer peacefully? Would they all become rulers or would there be no one else left to rule? What will the world be like when he is done?

I am sure the anticipation of all these things kept Joseph and Mary, the shepherd and the wise men awake with excitement for many nights that first Christmas. But in these days of corporation-driven celebrations and adult sensibilities we don’t find ourselves anticipating Christmas very often. For us Christmas is a time of remembrance, a time of looking back and being thankful for what God did that day. Maybe that’s why God orchestrated for Christmas to be so close to our New Year. Because the New Year still brings that sense of wonder of what’s to come. It’s the end of the old and the beginning of something else. Something that may be more of the same, but just might be gloriously different as well.

I know there are those whose collars ruffle when others wish them a “Happy Holidays” instead of a “Merry Christmas”, but maybe the two holidays together come close to what the first Christmas was really like. Christmas wasn’t a memorial, it was the day everything changed and the world became a new place. What hopes will be fulfilled this next year because of Christmas? What wars will cease, what sorrows will be quenched, what pain will be soothed because of Christmas?

As for me, I will be laying awake at night during the holidays wondering what kind of person my son will become and what kind of father I will be. May your nights be more restful than mine but may you also experience a sense of wonder at what kind of person you will become this year and what kind of Father our God has always been. And may you have a merry Christmas—and a Happy New Year.

Saturday night hundreds gathered around the square to participate in the event.  With the grassy grounds and majestic elms covered in winter white this year, the moment of anticipation seemed even more brilliant as the choir sang “Joy to the World.”  Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett read the Christmas Story and how the Light of the World came to dwell among us was again proclaimed in the public square.   The beloved Prescott tradition ended as it always does with the crowd together merrily singing “Jingle Bells.”  In previous years, thrity-seven decorated trees illuminated the downtown square throughout the season. This year, in honor of Arizona’s Centennial and due largely in part to the memorial fund on behalf of Edwin Anderson, one hundred trees will glow every evening from five o’clock until midnight ending January 10^th.  Check out Prescott’s City Event Calendar for other seasonal moments you won’t want to miss out on like this Friday’s Acker Night. The streets will be closed off for thousands of people who will patronize  80 downtown businesses, restaurants, galleries, and coffee houses showcasing local musicians in order to fund raise for performing arts scholarships for local youth.  Come see the lights, enjoy the music, and visit us up here at camp where you can help yourself to a little frolic in the snow!

A fun little stocking stuffer. Think of all the possibilities with the can! Google “survival kit” and have fun shopping for the serious outdoors  person or the interested imaginer.

#9 Camp for Gamers

Can’t get your camper outside? Bring camp inside with Cabella’s Adventure video game.

#8 S’More Jewerly

Not eatable but sure tasty looking!

#7 Coffee Table Collectable Book

A funny collection of true camp stories and actual letters written by campers

#6 For the Camper who loves Tech – iLog for an iPad

Or better yet, just ask Prescott Pines. We will make one from our very own Pondersoa Pines. We can even put a camp logo on it.

#5 Nothing like Nostalgia – Parent Trap on DVD

A classic movie where the quintessential plot point – the separated twins reunite– happens at camp of course!  Keep this original alive in your home!

#4 Goldfish + S’Mores = Happiness

For a fun stocking stuffer, does it get any better than this combination?

#3  Campfire Songs by Bob and Larry

Silly camp tunes sung by vegetables.  Will it ever get old?

#2 Give Camp to a Child in Need

Donate to our Heart to Heart partnership, our scholarship fund! This spring our Outdoor Ed Program is hosting a camp for Sports Kids Arizona, a ministry for homeless children. Would you give a gift to a loved one in their name to this cause? Call us to find out how!

#1 The Ultimate Camp Gift for the Camp Lover – CAMP!

Prescott Pines is offering $32 off of the summer price tag. When registered as a gift, we will send you a Prescott Pines Camp water bottle and a certificate to place under the tree or in a stocking. Check it out!

Leave a comment with your suggestions for gifts for the camp lover!

Tristan Quesinberry, Camp Intern, is thankful for  reconciliation with his family, a trip together with his sisters, brother-in-law, and mom to Disneyland, this job, and all the people here at camp.

Cassie Durbin, Guest Service Coordinator,  is thankful for her amazing and wonderful husband, a job she loves, the chance to be on stage again and to meet new people, and of course, pumpkin pie.

Chris Durbin, Part-Time All-Around-Guy, is thankful for the chance to be a firefighter and to perform in a play with his wife. “And Christmas. I’m always thankful for Christmas,” he says.

Paul Clark, Operations Manager, is thankful for the freedom to study.

Eileen Clark, Food Manager, is thankful for family and a great place to work.

Laura Brown, Accounts Manager, is thankful for family, friends, health, and life but especially thankful this season for her new oven and stove.

Tori Barrett, Accommodations, is thankful for family, friends and every day she is alive. Also she is grateful that her car still runs!

Danny Barreras, Program Coordinator, is thankful for his growing family, a great past year, a vacation to Disneyland, and getting to see family over Christmas.

Juil Washburn, Accommodations, is thankful for her family. “They’re nuts, “she says, “but I love ‘em!”

Jim Prell, Kitchen Cook, is thankful for salvation. Amen!

Ben Maki, Outdoor Education Coordinator, is thankful for a successful ODE season and his growing healthy baby son to arrive soon. “And that my wife’s body will go back to normal size!”  he jokes.

Sandra Maki, Communications Coordinator, is thankful for God’s amazing narrative, the baby boy in her belly, and the love and support of family and friends as the nursery gets decorated and baby-stuff piles up.

Rob Snyder, Maintenance, is thankful for his dad’s healthy recovery, his job, and the new kittens. “Anyone want one?” he wonders.

Heather Trail, Guest Services, is thankful that we serve a God who is full of compassion, slow to anger, and abounding in love.

Jim Trail, Camp Director, is thankful for this time of life in his family as Aaron was accepted at Arizona Christian University, Brian is doing well in the nursing program, and Laurel will graduate from high school with direction.

From Prescott Pines Camp, Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Leave a comment with what you are especially thankful for.

Pictures of Staff Halloween Murder Mystery Party 2011 (Can you guess who we are?)

Prescott Pines Staff 2011

Sandra and Ben Maki, Cassie and Chris Durbin

Tristan Quesinberry and Danny Barreras

Laura and Doug Brown