the camp hammer blog

Hey Friends!  I hope this blog finds you well!  As I have been saying for the last few weeks, Camp is busily preparing for what promises to be the best summer in Camp Hammer history.  Amongst all of the things going on around here, there are some exciting transitions coming up!  This blog will give you a glimpse of who is leaving and who is coming in!

First off, as I, Andrew, write this, my mind is flooded with all of the incredible memories my wife Lori and I have made at Camp Hammer.  I say that because this summer will be our final summer at the place we love.  Last fall Lori and I felt that God was calling us to step out in faith and leave the place that we have called home for nearly 5 years, as well as 2 summers before that.  In August, the Bradford’s are headed to Portland, Oregon.  It will be a crazy transition to say the least, but an exciting one as well.   Lori and I are expecting a new addition to our family this summer, and that is a big reason we decided to move.  We want to be near family as we start this new chapter of our lives, and Portland will allow us to do just that.  Please pray for us as we pack and plan over the next few months.  We are confident in what God is doing, and feel unbelievably blessed by the time we have been able to spend in the redwoods.  Also, we are so excited for one final full summer here at Camp.  We are determined to make it the best ever!

Ok, so enough about me.  Let me tell you about three amazing people who will be joining us in the next few weeks!  First, coming back for his seventh summer of service at Camp, and his 2nd summer as the Apostle Director is Will Witt aka “Noobie.”  Will is going to be running our Apostle program which is our two week discipleship program designed for high schoolers.  We are incredibly blessed to have him back for another amazing summer in the redwoods.  Apostle will continue to foster authentic growth in our campers with Will heading up the program!

Working alongside Will beginning in May is Rosemary Conn aka “Okra.”  Rosemary is joining us as the Apostle Female Lead.  This summer will be Rosemary’s 5th summer on staff at Camp.  Last summer she served as an Apostle Counselor, and we are so glad she will be coming on board to work with Will to make this the best summer of Apostle ever!

Finally, I wanted to let you guys know who will be taking over for yours truly.  Starting next Tuesday, Jeff Neckers will be coming on full time at Camp to train in as the new Program Director.  Jeff is a dear friend and will be an amazing person to fill the Program Director position.  Jeff has spent the last few years working for Twin Lakes Church, more specifically 2701, the High School group at TLC.  It is always a scary thing turning over something you love to someone else, but I am confident that Jeff will do an amazing job and that Camp will flourish with him serving here!

So, needless to say there is a lot of transition happening!  With all of that in mind, please take time to pray for all of the people coming and going!  We are excited for what God is doing, and hope you will share in that by praying for camp!  Thanks for reading.  Check back next week!

Peace.

Andrew aka “Liger”

Tags: 2011, 2701, Apostle, camp, camp hammer, God, hammer, liger, noobie, okra, pray, program, Summer, transition
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Hey Friends!  I hope all is well and that you are doing well on this beautiful February day.  Camp has been busy lately, and there are some amazing things going on right now!  This blog will hopefully bring you up to speed on many of the highlights from the last several weeks!

The first piece of news, and in my opinion, the most exciting is that registration is up 700% from where we were at this time last year!  Camps are already filling up and it is only February!  Needless to say, the energy here at Camp is amazing in light of this great news.  A big reason why registrations are up has to due with our 2011 Early Bird Discount.  We offered $50.00 off the cost of registration to anyone registered before February 15th.  Because we had such a positive response we have decided to extend an Early Bird discount of $25.00 off to campers registered before March 1st!  Take full advantage of these discounts!  We would love to see our registrations continue to grow over the coming months! And don’t forget, scholarships are available on a first come first serve basis, so register today!

Speaking of scholarships, we have another amazing praise story.  At a meeting yesterday morning, our book keeper let us know that an amazing organization has just gifted Camp Hammer with a sizable donation to our scholarship fund!  What does that mean?  It means that 2011 is looking like it will be a year similar to 2009 and 2010 where we were able to give scholarships to all of the campers who needed them.  We still could use the help of those who would be willing to donate, but what an amazing blessing this gift is!  God is good, and this is an incredible answer to prayer!

This past weekend we had an amazing time hosting The Well Student Ministries from Fresno, California.  We had all sorts of former employees and campers on the grounds and it was an amazing time of reconnecting and growing together!  Some of the old staff gathered together on Saturday night and watched lots of old Cabaret videos from previous summers.  Amazing memories were remembered and it truly was an incredible weekend!  One last highlight from the weekend was that it SNOWED!  Yes, you read right, it snowed here at Camp.  What an amazing sight it was.  For about an hour on Saturday morning we had sporatic snow showers, and I think the flakes were the size of  golf balls!  It was truly incredible.

Thanks so much for your support!  We look forward to seeing you in the near future!  Check back next Wednesday for the a new post!

Peace and Love.

Andrew, aka Liger

It snowed on Saturday! So much fun!

Tags: 2011, camp, camp hammer, hammer, registration, scholarships, snow, Summer, summer camp, support, the well student ministries
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Hey Friends!  Hope this entry finds you well!  Camp is buzzing right along with winter retreats and summer preparations.  Our new employees are doing an amazing job, and we are so excited to have them on board!

Eric and myself (Andrew), will be traveling to the Northwest next week to begin our first recruiting trip.  We will be visiting George Fox on January 18th, and will be at Seattle Pacific University on January 19th, and 20th.  If you will be in the area, stop by and say hey!  We’d love to see you.  If you live in either of those areas, and are hoping to interview, make sure you get your applications in!  Also, we have already recieved an amazing amount of summer applicants for this summer!  What a blessing!  We are excited to see who will be here in the summer of 2011.  We will be accepting summer applications until March 15th, so if you haven’t applied yet, and are hoping to, the sooner you can get it in, the better!  We will also be traveling to Southern California before too long, and will be visiting: Azusa Pacific, Cal Baptist, Point Loma, and Biola.  I will provide dates when they get closer!  In addition, we are hoping to be able to spend a day at William Jessup, and Simpson College in a few weeks!  It is going to be a fun year for recruiting!

Also, I know we have posted a lot about this, but don’t forget to register for camp before February 15th!  You get the great early bird discount, and won’t have to worry about registering in the spring!  It is a very sweet deal!  Alright, well, that is all for now.  Have a great week!  Hope to see you all soon!

Camp Staff.

Tags: azusa pacific, biola, cal baptist, camp, camp hammer, early bird, february 15, george fox, hammer, point loma, recruiting, register, seattle pacific, simpson college, spring, Summer, william jessup, winter
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Hey Friends!  I hope this long overdue blog finds you well!  We are officially in our off-season for the next few weeks, and it is nice to take a short break!  We are all still working up at Camp, but in different ways.  The best part of December is that it means we start planning for next summer in just a little while!  We are already in the midst of putting out brochures and postcards, doing some advertising for some of our deals for next summer, but that is just the tip of the iceberg!  Soon we will begin recruiting summer staff and planning all of the amazing activities for Summer 2011.

The air is cold and fresh at camp, and it is not uncommon to see a group of wild turkeys or deer roaming the field trying to soak up some sunlight!  What an amazing place Camp Hammer is!  It is almost as if December is a month where not only camp’s employees, but camp itself gets a bit of a breather.  Don’t get me wrong, we all enjoy it much more when the forest is filled with kids laughing and playing, but it is nice to allow things to slow down and recuperate from an amazing year filled with the work of God!  We are currently working on some new ideas for the blog, so whether you are a parent, camper, or just a lover of Camp Hammer, let us know what you would want to read about!  We would be more than willing to have multiple feeds for different topics if people were interested!  Some examples are (Apostle, General Camps, Facilities, Daily Bible Verse/discussion, Projects, etc.).  You are our audience, and we want to write about things that you would love to read about!  So let us know!

Ready for Summer 2011,

Liger.

Tags: Apostle, break, camp, camp hammer, december, deer, hammer, off season, recruit, Summer, turkeys, weeks
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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 Friends and Family.  I have to apologize for how long it has been since our last post!  Things have been crazy around here, and the whole staff just finished spending the week at a Conference for Camps!  Anyway, I hope everyone is doing wonderfully!  Today is a beautiful day in the Redwoods!  So, whats going on at Camp?  Well, let me tell you!

The Apostle (Cedar) Deck is in the works.  We are still raising money for it, but we have started the initial work to make the project happen!  It is going to be amazing, seriously amazing!  MC (Dennis) and Auger (Josh), as well as the Twin Lakes Church Men’s Ministry are working so hard to make this an incredible blessing to Camp.  It is a much needed improvement, and will benefit all of our weekend groups as well as our Apostle Campers from this summer on.  It is a really exciting project!

Registration has been open for several months, and Camps are filling up like crazy.  It is always exciting around this time of year to see new and familiar names on our registration list!  As the numbers get higher, it reminds us that summer is just around the corner, and we are more excited than ever!  Our Ride and Ropes Course inspection is happening this week which is just one more indicator that Summer 2010 is quickly approaching.

We are also in the process of re-stocking the Camp Store with fan favorite merchandise as well as some great new products.  This summer we will be introducing a new stainless steel water bottle in 6 different colors, authentic Camp Hammer sunglasses, some new t-shirts, and a new style of sweatshirt!  We are also looking into bringing back Camp Hammer trucker hats!  They won’t be camo this time around, but they will be even more awesome!  And of course we will have the famous Camp Hammer sweatpants!

Ok, so Camp is preparing tirelessly for Summer 2010.  What does that mean for you?  REGISTER TODAY.  Don’t miss out on an incredible opportunity to hang with old and new friends, ride the rides, laugh at the cab, go nuts during night games, and find out what the crazy new camp names are.  From Junior Camp to Apostle, you don’t want to miss camp this summer!

Lastly, if you feel like you would be interested in donating financially to the ministry of Camp Hammer, be sure to check out our “Give” tab on the homepage!

Love.  Camp Hammer Staff

Tags: 2010, Apostle, Auger, beautiful, camp, camp hammer, Cedar, conference, fun, hammer, hope, merchandise, ministry, project, redwoods, staff, Summer, summer 2010
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