April 10, 2007

Ladies Retreat at Iguatu

Over Easter weekend I had my debut/baptism by fire as the director of the Iguatu Baptist Camp.  It was hard work, stressful, challenging--in short, a lot of fun!

Camp is definitely going "high tech".  The ladies set up a little studio, complete with computers and sound equipment.  Dubbed "USAF FM", it provided a musical background for the event--including 5 am (!) rise-and-shine.



There were casualties during the week.  I was awakened at 3 am on Saturday to take this lady to the hospital.  She had twisted her ankle while navigating the trails by the cabins late at night.  It was very swollen and needed attention.  Thankfully, there was no break in the bone.



In all there were two hospital runs--not too bad considering that there were 270+ ladies in attendance.

Of course no camp would be operational without an effective kitchen staff.  We are grateful for the ladies God has provided to work in this capacity.  They do a tremendous job. 



As you can see from the picture, one of our more urgent needs at the camp is a revamping of kitchen facilities.  Pray that God would supply these funds as He sees fit.

Feeding 270 people is no picnic, but from the smiles on the ladies' faces, we pulled it off!




Betânia, wife of a beloved pastor who passed away some years ago, brought the devotionals with the theme "Loving In Times of Crisis".  By all accounts, she did a tremendous job.




There was a good representation of ladies from Peace Baptist Church. 



Itacyara was not there for that picture, but she is very much in evidence in the one below--taken during one of the competitions. 




The Coke(tm) cans were filled with small stones and used as noisemakers to rally the team cheers.

On Saturday evening the women dressed up for a banquet. 




The dining hall was decorated, and a special meal was prepared.



Apparently, it was wildly successful!



On Sunday morning the everybody woke up early to have a sunrise service.  It was a very special time. 

Itacyara and I came away from the week very exhausted, but pleased at the results of the week--as well as excited about potential for the Iguatu camp.  You will be hearing much more about it as time goes on.  The next big events are the junior and teen weeks in July, for which preparations are well underway.

Posted by Andrew on April 10, 2007 1:35 PM.