CA-435 Wolf Mountain Camp and Conference Center is an older ministry being revised under a new administration. It is a sister camp of CA-464 Ironwood Christian Camp. Just a few years back it was scheduled to be closed and sold off. Through a set of circumstances only our loving God could put in place, the camp was brought back to life. This is a big 640 acre plot of land in the hills of Nevada County, California, in the town of Grass Valley. The camp staff are all dedicated to making this place a comfortable, Spirit filled haven for campers and conference teams to come and get closer to God.

The road in from Marysville or Grass Valley is beautiful. It wanders through the lovely California hills at a slow pace for our big RVs. The grade can be a bit steep at times but nothing we have not seen before. It may seem a bit intimidating for the inexperienced but I can assure you that it is a good road if you stick to what the PLS gives for directions. There is about a mile of dirt road but it is in good condition and very passable. Once at the camp you will be in one of the best RV sites I have seen in my many years with SOWERS.

The camp is in a rebuilding phase. Many of the structures suffer from years of neglect. As of this writing I am working with a couple of staff members to refurbish a cabin to become staff housing. It is a challenge but fun and rewarding knowing a couple wholeheartedly serving the Lord will soon call this the home.

The staff is in great need for our assistance. Please consider coming to this camp for one of your project choices. You will be blessed by the very location and entertained by the many turkeys, black tail deer and other critters of the woods. The folks here are so endearing and accepting of us. We will not hesitate to return one day.

 

Happy and blessed trails to all,

Rick and Melissa Young
#2784

We were working at Pilgrim Pines in Swanzey, (NH-400) this fall when we experienced God's hand of protection over us.  It was a 1,200 mile trip from our home in WI.  For any of you who know what kind of roads you encounter in Vermont and NH, they are filled with narrow, curvy, steep hills.  Even the campground in Pilgrim Pines is steep and narrow, with sharp turns.  Our second week here, my brakes failed. Not on any of those 9% downhill grade with truck runaways, not on one of those sharp curves at the bottom. There were no cars in front of me, and we were not towing the RV, all of which could have been a disaster for us or an innocent by stander. My brakes failed while on the main road near the shop on level ground.  Of all the places those brakes could have failed, it was right here at Pilgrim Pines.  The other part of the blessing is that I was able to use the camp's shop to do the repair, which would have been very costly if it had happened while traveling. When all was said and done, it was less than $100.  This wouldn't be our first time God has had his angels watching over us and there's probably many more that we're not aware of.  So, all said, we have much to Praise the Lord for.

Bill and Sandy Ellis (1351)

 The plan was to replant all that pachysandra after we finished putting new soil on the slope.  But plans have a way of being interrupted.  As I was preparing to go to work, I went into the bathroom to change into my work clothes.  Stepping into my jeans, these tired old legs did not lift high enough, causing me to catch my toe on the pant leg.  Like a fool, I was not leaning against the cabinet but standing on one leg like a flamingo AND on the shower rug.  I lost my balance, the rug slid to one side, and I plopped down on my tush, catching myself with my hand.  Needless to say, it didn't feel very good.  My hand and a couple of fingers got the worst of the deal so I put an ice pack on it for awhile;  I did not bother with the ice pack on my tush since that part of my anatomy was 'swollen' enough already.  By dinner time my fingers and hand were swollen and turning blue.  We made the decision to pad the pockets of Allegiance Hospital and off to the ER we went.  After many questions (all the same) at many different stations, much paperwork, and a multitude of x-rays (fingers, hand, wrist, arm, and shoulder) it was determined that I had fractured my hand (metacarpal - between 4th finger and wrist for those interested in medical jargon) - and of course, it had to be my right hand.  I was 'splinted' and sent home for the weekend with an oversized sling that constantly got in my way, my unfamiliar Napoleon stance notwithstanding.  Two days later I was 'casted' in a lovely shade of purple.  The book 'When I Grow Old, I Shall Wear Purple' was the determining factor in my choice of colors.   This has already slowed me down considerably as you can imagine and I'm not looking forward to 4-6 weeks of the same.  However, I sat in the chair and THANKED GOD that I hadn't broken my hip or my leg - or something more drastic. 

SO! The lessons to be learned could be many:

1.  Don't bother with the 'work' clothes

2.  Don't stand on a throw rug on a ceramic floor

3.  Don't buy jeans (they don't sag low enough to insert foot)

4.  Don't aspire to emulate a flamingo

5. Don't fail to lift leg to an uncomfortable height when inserting into pant leg

6.  Don't fall down and, IF you do...

7.  Don't make like a traffic cop in the middle of an intersection

IF/WHEN you fall, DO keep arms to your side like an Irish dancer.  In that way you only have to contend with seeing stars instead of dealing with broken bones.

There you have it.  If you follow my advice perhaps you won't get out of washing the dishes and for the ladies reading this, your husband won't have to use the curling iron on your hair or struggle to find the hole in your earlobe to insert earrings.  Good luck.

Lyn Lehman

#562

 prayer@sowerministry.org