A Snowy Hill, Lizzie Hill, and more updates from Riverside.
On Easter, my wife (Kelly) and I went on a walk around camp after our delicious lunch in the
snow. Snow?! As we walked around the main loop of camp, we stopped to take a picture of
campfire hill, covered in snow, with the large white cross at the top. I couldn't help but think of the camp being full of campers in just over a month, and hearing the words of 'Jesus Paid it All', "sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow". Our prayer as our staff
and campers begin to arrive in the weeks ahead is that they would not just know the Easter story, but experience the abundant life that Jesus alone brings through the truth of the Gospel. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." Would you join me in continuing to pray for all people who the Lord leads to His camp would be reminded of the Gospel, refreshed by the Gospel, and have a grace-filled encounter with our great and loving God?
A few other updates from around camp!
Welcome Lizzie Hill, our new Associate Program Coordinator! After a long process, we're excited to welcome Lizzie Hill onto our year around program team! Lizzie is graduating from UNI in May and is excited to begin her time with us jumping right into a full summer of ministry! She joins Lute and Cait on our year around program team and will be heading up our Adventure Program, along with many other areas of programming. Welcome, Lizzie!
Riverside welcome more ministry groups for Retreats. We've been blessed to continue to host several ministry retreats over the winter months. From youth ministries to college ministries, men's and women's retreats, and leadership retreats, it's a blessing for us to provide the space for groups year around to have Christ-centered retreats. If you're interested in planning a ministry retreat here at Riverside during the year, our year around team is excited to partner with you in creating an impactful retreat.
"Hay" there. Did you know we have upwards of 30 horses on-site year around for our Ranch Program? And they eat...a lot! We're grateful to our great Ranch team that does a great job in not only taking care of our herd, but they also carry out our mission in so many ways through private lessons, group lessons, trail rides, and programming all year around. To help support this continued ministry, we began leasing a field to the east of our ranch over a year ago and have planted it for hay to supplement our hay supply. And, with the purchase of the new 17 acres of land this past fall, we recently just planted that field for hay to supply some more hay for our horses. While that won't feed them all year around, these fields will help save us money in the long run in ensuring our horses are well fed. We're thankful for the volunteers that have helped to till and plant these fields, and to our great team who tends to the herd 365 days a year!
Thrivent Action Teams. Are you a Thrivent Financial member? If you are, did you know
you can apply for two Thrivent Action Team Cards a year (includes a $250 gift card, free t-shirts, and other supplies)? These action teams are intended to engage volunteers in carrying out a particular project/educational event to benefit non-profits. Would you consider using Riverside for one or both of your cards? Current ideas for use would be: grounds/facility projects, interior/exterior painting projects, staff recruiting events, backyard bonfire events, 5K/Golf outing fundraising events, landscaping projects, and more. Interested in helping Riverside in this way? Contact Chris for more information!
We're so grateful for your continued prayers and support of the Lord's work through His camp! We're excited for another great summer of ministry ahead--to God be the glory!
God bless you,
Chris
