News
Fall/Winter Edition of Woodbox Newsletter!
“I scream, you scream, we all scream for……..green beans?”
This summer three camp staff, Barrett Bender, Nick Read and Dan Good, designed, planted and cared for SLMC’s kitchen garden. The garden is approximately 35 x 80 ft and is tucked away in the field adjacent to initiatives.
The idea of a garden was volleyed around among staff the previous summer. Together they discussed how it could contribute to camp life and voted to go ahead. They prepared the soil in advance of this season.
The garden was beautiful and bountiful. The kitchen was floating in zucchini and the freezer is jammed with squash. Food was sold to parents at pickup and in September there was enough remaining to can!
Tending a garden is a skill. For many of us it’s part of our heritage. However for many we’ve lost the knowledge and are ill equipped to mentor our children in this skill. Consequently, our children not only miss out on some of the most nutritious food, but perhaps also on a simple activity of the soul.
Working in a garden allows us to interact with nature as a co-creator, not just a bystander. It requires us to listen deeply to what is needed: a trim, a watering or a change of location. Gardening demands hope, faith, patience and always results in humility.
In the garden we become keen observers, scientists and artists. We plant seeds and if all goes well, we experience abundance. Yet we know rain and sunshine alone are not enough. Soil is the key ingredient. Caring for your soil and making it as fertile as possible is the foundation of gardening. In Mark 4:8, The Parable of the Sower tells us seed sown into fertile soil will sprout, grow and produce a bountiful crop. I suppose that as staff, volunteers, donors and parents we are all gardeners. We open children up to the wonders of our faith. We plant the seeds of curiosity. We quench their thirst for spiritual nourishment and we patiently watch, wait and pray. Our hope is to grow strong, resilient children, better equipped to face the world that often has soil and conditions that are difficult for growing.
So…tend the soil, plant ……
As gardeners, our work is never finished, it is always a work in progress.
The lessons are endless in the garden and we could all benefit from spending more time there. I hope Silver Lake’s garden will provide an abundance of food as well as an abundance of opportunity for personal and spiritual growth for campers and staff and that we will all be receptive and fertile soil for whatever seeds God sows in us.
Leanne has WORMS!
This year we processed ALL of our compost using our worm bins. Using 2 8ft by 4ft bins the worms processed 40-50 Litres of kitchen scraps per day! Way to go Red Wigglers!
This is all thanks to Bentley from Redwormcomposting.ca in Elmira who generously donated us the worms 3 years ago and continually provides us with guidance on caring for and over wintering our worm friends.
We can’t wait for Spring to spread all those wonderful worm castings on our new and old gardens and start the whole process again next season. Nature is amazing!
Silver Lake Lip Dub 2.0
Since we had so much fun with our Lip Dub last year, we decided to do it all over again! This amazing video features all the campers and staff from Camp 6 2012. Thanks for all your hard work everyone, we couldn’t have done it without ya!
Teen Camp Photography Session Photos
Check out all the awesome pictures the campers in the photography session took this week! Photo credit goes to: Tian, Marta, Anthony, Kate, Julia, Claire, and Emma!
Camp 2 Photos
Take a look at some of the great photos from Camp 2!
Hanging Out with Nick!
On Wednesday, Camp 1 campers had a unique opportunity to spend time with NHL hockey player Nick Spaling who attends Community Mennonite Church in Drayton. Nick spent time with each cabin as they went about their regular camp schedule; crafts, Quest, nature, swimming etc. Nick’s visit was part of a larger initiative by Mennonite Church Canada called “Mennonites Everywhere” (for more information visit http://www.mennonitechurch.ca ). One of the highlights was Nick’s campfire appearance on SLMC’s Hockey Night in Canada! Thank you Nick!!!
Mini Camp & Camp 1 Photos
Have you seen the photos from Mini Camp and Camp 1 yet?!
SLMC staffer recognized
Congratulations to SLMC staff member Joel Becker who was recently recognized in The KW Record as one of the top students in Waterloo Region. Way to go Joel!
Notre Dame School – Owen Sound
Thursday June 7, 2012 was a beautiful day at Silver Lake, made even better by the students, teachers and parents from Notre Dame School, Owen Sound. Here are some pictures from the day!