the camp hammer blog

Camp Hammer, Summer 2010.  How does one even begin to describe what happens in a summer spent at Camp Hammer?  There are really no words in the English Dictionary (or any language for that matter), that can fully describe what goes on here from June to August.  Don’t get me wrong, Camp is amazing all year, but something changes in the summertime!  For over 40 years Camp Hammer has changed the lives of young men and women, and Summer 2010 was no exception.  From the moment summer staff arrived, to last Wednesday morning when they drove out of Camp, down the mountain, and back into their everyday lives, God moved through these servants for eight incredible weeks.

Over 700 campers came and spent time with us this summer.  Campers heard from amazing speakers, played crazy team competitions and night games, ate the best cookies on the planet, were loved by an amazing staff, and many met a savior for the first time!  Our Apostle (High School Program) campers learned what it is to serve others, and who they can be when living a life consumed by their creator.  Camp Hammer is this incredible haven in the Redwoods that staff and campers get to come to and experience a little bit of what heaven might be like; a body of believers loving each other because of the love they receive from God.  For a few weeks a year these Redwoods are filled with laughter, and the sounds of people living and loving amongst God’s creation.

I truly wish I could convey just how amazing this place is, and specifically how incredible the Summer of 2010 was, but like I mentioned before, there just aren’t enough words.  If you spent time with us this summer, we miss you already, and look forward to seeing this year, or next summer!  If we didn’t see you this summer, and you just happen to be reading this blog, we hope to see you in the future, but only if your ready for the time of your life!  Praise God for Camp Hammer.

Truly,

Liger.

Tags: 2010, Apostle, august, camp, camp hammer, cookies, hammer, high school, june, love, night games, redwoods, Summer, summer 2010, team competition
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Ok friends and family.   I must begin by sending out an enormous apology because of the scarceness of posts!  We are mere weeks away from summer, and we are incredibly busy!  I hope you’ll forgive me, and in the absence of consistent blogs you will day dream about all of the great stuff we are preparing for the youth that will be arriving in just a weeks!  Anyway, before the day dreaming commences, let me fill you in on some of the great things going on around here!

Skit Set.

As many of you know we are very serious around here about our night games!  With that in mind, we have been working tirelessly to get our set built for this summers skit.  I cannot tell you exactly what it is, but let me tell you that it looks great!  We have had all kinds of help from old and new staff members, as well as high schoolers from Twin Lakes High School group!  From painting to building and everything in between, we are almost done!  Get ready for one of the best summer skits in history!

Bridge Project

We are in the process of putting in a brand new bridge down by the fire circle and it looks amazing!  We had the Mens Ministry from TLC here last week, and they did some incredible work.  It is going to be a great blessing when it is finished!

Other Stuff.

We are ordering all of our summer merchandise, prepping the rest of the grounds, and gearing up.  The pond is full, the sun is shining, the set is nearly finished and we are beyond excited for staff and campers to arrive.  Thank you for all of your support and prayers.  We love and value everyone who supports our ministry!

Love,  Camp Staff.

PS.  If you are interested in supporting Camp financially we are still raising money for scholarships!  We want every child interested in Camp to be able to attend, and you can help that happen by donating financially!  Check out the “Give” Section on our website, our call our front office for more information (831.338.3200 x10)!

Tags: 2010, blog, bridge, build, camp, camp hammer, hammer, high school, kids, love, paint, pond, set, skit, Summer, sun
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Hey Guys.  Sorry for how long this entry has taken.  As I am sure you can imagine, things are only getting busier around here!  That is no excuse though, so I will do my best to keep you guys updated on Camp for the next few weeks, especially because so many incredible things are going on!

The Cedar Deck is finished and looks amazing!  It is so incredible to see what God is capable of doing through some dedicated men and hard work!  Thank you to TLC Men’s Ministry!  We are now in the process of putting in the new bridge from the Fire Circle to the Horserails area!  It will be another incredible addition to our facilities here at Camp Hammer.

Summer is quickly approaching and Camps are filling up!  Don’t miss out on an incredible week (or two) of Camp this summer!  It is going to be the best summer Camp Hammer has ever seen!  We’ve got all kinds of great new stuff, and we are confident you will love it as much as we do!

Just this week we have had two new employees come on board!  Will Witt (Noobie), and Chelsea Fenwick (Nitro) are officially here, and working on this years Apostle program.  It is going to be an amazing year with these two additions!

Camp Hammer will be at Twin Lakes Church in Aptos’, 3rd Annual Mock Rock this evening (Friday April 16th).  We will be giving some information on our High School programs, judging the competition, and raffling off some incredible stuff (Sweatshirt, Sweatpants, Stainless Steal Water Bottle, new Sunglassess, Ipod Shuffle!)!  Don’t miss out.  Come out to the church, bring a dollar for the raffle, and enjoy the show!

Ok, so that is the fly by of what is going on at Camp today!  Stay tuned for more info on all of the incredible things happening at Camp Hammer between now and summer!

Love,

Camp Staff.

Tags: 2010, Apostle, camp, camp hammer, Cedar, fun, hammer, Ipod, love, men, ministry, mock, Mock Rock, rock, Summer, TLC, Twin Lakes Church
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Hey Friends and Family!  It is another wonderful Friday here at Camp Hammer.  Unbelievable to think that it is officially Spring and that April is just around the corner!  In the coming weeks a lot of great things are going on!  We have had the Twin Lakes Church Men’s Ministry up here for the last several weekends working on the Cedar/Apostle Lodge Deck, and it looks incredible.  What an amazing blessing it will be to the generations of campers who will get to enjoy it!  We are still raising funds for the project, but God has been entirely faithful through the project, and his provision is evident!

Now for some really exciting news!  In the coming weeks we are starting all of the Program Projects for this upcoming summer!  We will start with the construction of Camp Hammer’s very first 9-hole Miniature Golf Course.  As of right now we haven’t named the course yet, so if you have suggestions, be sure to comment and let us know what you think the name should be!  It is going to be awesome.  I can’t wait to play put-put with the Campers!  The next project will be the filling of our pond.  We have been so blessed this year with the amount of rain that has come in, and as far as we can see, there should be no problems filling the pond again this year for all to enjoy!  Third, we will be putting together a brand new basketball hoop kindly donated to Camp Hammer!  So for at least a little while we will have a basketball hoop that doesn’t have a terribly flimsy rim!  It will allow for some great basketball games, and knockout competitions this summer!  Lastly, we are going to begin construction of our set for this years skit.  If you haven’t already done the word search puzzle in this years brochure, you better do it now to find out what this years theme is!  So many exciting things going on in these next few months that it is hard to contain my excitement!

Next topic is our scholarships.  Every year Camp offers scholarships to families or students who normally wouldn’t be able to attend camp for financial reasons.  Each summer we are incredibly blessed by men and women who want to support our ministry in this way!  If donating to our scholarship fund is something that you feel led to doing, please check out our “Give” section or call our front office (831.338.3200 x10) for more information!  Our hope is that any camper who wants to attend Camp Hammer, is able to, and that money would never be a hindrance to making that happen.  If you don’t feel led to give financially, or even if you do, please take time to pray for this portion of our ministry here!

Finally, if you haven’t registered yet, take some time in the next few days and register!  All that is required upon registration is a $50.00 deposit!  Camp is such an amazing experience where kids can be kids and grow to know a loving savior!  You can register by clicking on the “Register Now” tab on our home page!  This is going to be an incredible summer of laughing, loving, learning, and playing!  Don’t miss it!

Love. Peace.

Camp Hammer Staff.

Tags: 2010, Apostle, camp, camp hammer, Cedar, deck, donate, golf, hammer, laugh, learn, love, men, mens ministry, mini golf, ministry, play, register, scholarship, skit, Summer, summer 2010
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Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, LETS GET READY FOR SUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMEEEEEEERRRRRRRR!  Ok ok, cheesy I know.  But the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and summer is approaching!  I can’t help but get excited!  It is amazing outside!  I hope you too are enjoying lovely weather, but if you’re not, that’s ok, just come spend some time with us this summer!  We are experiencing some amazing things at Camp!  The new Apostle Lodge Deck is in full swing.  Footings are in the ground, and the wood is delivered (We are still raising funds, so if you are interested in donating, check out our “Give” section for more info!).

Camps are filling up fast, so don’t hesitate to register!  We are making some big changes to Camp for this upcoming summer, and they are things you won’t want to miss!

If you haven’t had a chance to check out any of the “Love Stories” on the home page, take some time and read them over!  It is amazing to hear the different experiences people have had while at Camp Hammer.  And if you are interested, write your own!  We would love to know why you love Camp Hammer!

Lastly, if you have any suggestions about what you would like to see on our Website, let us know!  We would love to use your input to continually be improving our site.  We look forward to hearing from you!  Peace.

Camp Hammer Staff

Tags: 2010, amazing, camp, camp hammer, fun, hammer, love, love stories, staff, stories, Summer, weather, website
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Hey Everyone!  I hope this blog finds you well!  So, the time has finally arrived.  Camp Hammer Love Stories is LIVE!  Our very first letter is up for all to enjoy.  Feel free to read the “about” note to learn a little bit more about the campaign, and then take some time and read the first “Love Story.”  Each week we will be posting a new letter for readers enjoyment!  If you are interested in posting your very own, be sure to read some of the earlier blogs to find out how to submit your “story.”  Well, we will save the Camp Updates for next week so that you can take a minute and check out the Love Stories!  YEAH!  Peace.

Camp Staff.

Tags: camp, camp hammer, hammer, letter, love, love stories, love story, note, story
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Rain

Hey Friends and Family!  Hope all is well in your neck of the woods.  Like many of you, we have had constant, or near constant rain for the past 10 days.  Power has been out twice since last Monday but thankfully it is back on now.  Mini Waterfalls, leaves, and branches litter the mountain roads as you drive to Camp.  It is gray each day, but beautiful.  We are so thankful for the rain!  Our redwood retreat thrives on it, not to mention our pond will appreciate it when we begin to fill it in the Spring.  As you walk through Camp, it is amazing to see just how green it will get!  It’s also incredible how well you can hear our “roaring” creek that runs through the forest!  Needless to say, we are thankful for the rain!

Recruit

Mossi and Liger (Eric and Andrew) just returned from a Northwest recruiting trip.  They visited George Fox University in Newburg, Oregon, and Seattle Pacific University in Seattle, Washington.  They reconnected with old staff, and met many young men and women who could end up at Camp this summer!  In a few weeks, Camp Hammer will head to Southern California to complete the second half of recruiting.  They will be visiting Azusa Pacific (Feb. 8th & 9th), Point Loma (Feb. 10th), and Biola (Feb. 11th & 12th).  If you are in the area be sure to stop by and say hello.  If you are thinking about working at Camp and live in Southern California, be sure to take some time in the next few weeks and get your applications in!  We look forward to seeing you!

Write

Finally, we are just mere days away from launching our “Camp Hammer Love Stories” campaign.  Starting next week we will be posting a new story each week on the website for your viewing pleasure.  To view the posts, all you have to do is check out the camphammer.com main page.  The stories will be there for you to enjoy.  Remember, these stories aren’t reserved for specific people!  In order to submit one, you just need to have your very own story to share.  We want to share the stories of all who love Camp Hammer.  Check out other blog posts to see more specifics!

Farewell for now.  Hope to hear from you all soon!  Summer 2010 is closer than EVER.  And remember, “Today is the day the Lord has made!”

Camp Staff

Tags: 2010, camp, camp hammer, creek, February, forest, hammer, leaves, liger, Lord, love, love story, Monday, mossi, rain, recruit, road, story, Summer, summer 2010, write
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Hey Friends and Family,

I hope all is well on this beautiful winter day.  Camp is busy preparing for the months to come, and we are getting so excited for another incredible summer in 2010!  I mentioned a few months ago that the Camp website will be launching a campaign called “Camp Hammer Love Stories,” in the new year, and the new year has definitely arrived.  We are still finalizing the details, but the campaign should be up on our website starting February 1st.  What is this campaign all about?  Well, let me tell you.  Camp Hammer is the home of millions of memories for thousands of men and women.  We want to share those with you!  From current and former Camp staff and campers, to parents and retreat attendees, we want to hear about your experience.  Over the past few months we have been compiling some stories from “lovers” of Camp Hammer.  Starting February 1st, we will be posting these stories on our website for you to read.  Depending on how many we recieve, we will be posting them either weekly or bi-weekly for your reading pleasure.  Now, that’s not all.  We would love it if you would send us YOUR Camp Hammer Love Story.  Tell people your favorite memory of Camp Hammer, or tell of a life-changing experience you had in the Redwoods tucked up in the Santa Cruz mountains.  There is no limit to how much you can write, and you don’t have to write a lot if you don’t want to!  We just want to know, and to tell others about your story.  You can send your stories to andrew@camphammer.com.  We will edit them, and make sure they are appropriate!  Seriously, take a moment and write down your Camp Hammer Love Story, and be sure to watch out for the campaign to begin in February.

Camp Staff

PS.  If you’re not already, become a fan of our page on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter (CampHammerTime)

Tags: blog, camp, camp hammer, campaign, family, February, friends, hammer, love, love story, New Year, story
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Well Friends and Family.  It seems it is that time of year again.  The Holidays are swiftly approaching, and Camp is quiet.  Our last retreat group of the year was last weekend, and now Camp will rest for a little over a month.  The office will still be buzzing with preparations for the new year, but the grounds will take a break from guests.  The Holidays are such an interesting time of the year.  For some, they bring fond memories of family and friends, and for others there are feelings of frustration and anxiety.  Well, this Holiday season I want to challenge you!  Thanksgiving is often viewed as a time of family, friends, food, football, and Black Friday (that was some great alliteration)!  Thanksgiving is certainly all of those things, but there is so much more.  This Thanksgiving remember all of the incredible things you have been blessed with.  Even though times might be tough, or you just aren’t a fan of the holidays, remember that there is always something worth being thankful for!  As we take a breather here at Camp, know that we are so thankful for the decades of staff and guests that have spent time with us in the Redwoods.  Camp Hammer is an incredible place because of the people that have filled it for over 40 years.  Our hope is that you know just how valued you all are.  So this holiday season, remember that there is always something to be thankful for!

Love,

Camp Hammer Staff

Tags: blessed, break, camp, camp hammer, family, friends, hammer, holidays, love, rest, thankful, thanksgiving
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Hey Camp Friends and Family.  I hope you are well on this Wednesday morning.  Blogging is a very interesting aspect of our website.  Up until this point, our blog has served as another way for people to stay in touch with, and continue hearing about what is going on at Camp.  But I want to ask you what you think!  A blog is something that can be interesting and fun to read, or dull and repetitive.  My question for you is, what do you want to read when you log onto a blog?  Your opinion matters!  We want people to love reading this blog, and eagerly anticipate the next one to be published.  So, if you have things that you would love to hear or read about on this blog, comment on this entry and let us know!  We want to serve our readers to the best of our ability!  Let us know what you want to read on the Camp Hammer blog!

Camp Hammer Staff

Tags: blog, blogging, camp, camp hammer, family, friends, hammer, love
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