The Encourager Fall 2025

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NCOURAGER

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FALL 2025

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The Bulletin - Summer 2021

The Encouragement Circle (TEC) seeks to unite individuals who have demonstrated leadership, a high level of involvement, and a passion for the ministry of the Christian Camp and Conference Association. We aim to offer fellowship and updates to its participants and provide opportunities to help support and encourage the current leaders of the Christian Camp and Conference Association.

Twice a year TEC sends The Encourager to keep everyone updated on events in the world of CCCA and beyond. We also hope to provide insights into a few of the members and fun facts about our shared heritage.

These newsletters are designed to keep the TEC community connected between Zoom calls which we plan for January and September each year.

Thanks for your years of service and for continuing to support the great work of CCCA. If you have a story to tell, a little-known fact to share, or an encouraging word to offer, please feel free to send submissions to Lori Price or post to our new Facebook Group Page (more details below)

Preview Zoom November 13

Preview our next Zoom Gathering

by Dan Bolin

The wise old attorney on our camp board looked at the beautiful summer camp brochure and then looked at me. He pulled his reading glasses back down on his nose and reread the brochure’s copy and then pushed the glasses onto his large forehead and said, “I sure hope you can deliver on your promise!”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Well, he replied, “The brochure says that we will provide a fun, safe, and Christ-centered week of camp. I have no doubt about the fun and Christ-centered parts. And I expect you will try to be safe. But promising that campers will be safe can get you into a lot of trouble.”

As our conversation unfolded, I learned a valuable lesson. Even when we strive for safety, put emergency plans in place, comb through our program plans to weed our excessive danger, we can never eradicate accidents and tragedies completely. We work for safety, pray for safety, but we prepare for accidents.

Some summers there are fires, sometimes sexual abuse rears its ugly head, at times sickness runs through camps, other times the danger is a heavy snow load, but this summer it was floodwater. The tragedy of July 4th in the Texas Hill Country took lives at Camp Mystic and Heart of the Hills.

This November 13th, during the Encouragement Circle Zoom Gathering, we will learn more about camps that have faced tragedies. Robert Monahan, whose company, Hibbs-Hallmark has insured camps for many years, will share an update on the situation in the Hill Country of Texas. He will provide a broader look at threats facing camps, give first-hand information on the legislative and legal realities associated with these disasters. Robert will provide insights into how people might respond to help camps facing tragic events.

Mark your calendar now and join the Zoom call for this and many other industry updates. The call will be at 9:00 Pacific, 10:00 Mountain, 11:00 Central, and noon Eastern. RSVP for this Zoom Gathering.

RSVP for Nov 13 Zoom Meeting

Welcome New Council Members

Welcome Our New Council Members

This fall, our Encouragement Circle Council welcomed four new members

Bedford Holmes operates his own firm via Bedford Holmes Consulting LLC based in Tyler Texas. He is an experienced former CEO with a successful history of working in the conference center, camp and education world. He’s known as a strong business development professional with over 50 years of experience in leading nonprofit organizations. He currently services on the board of the CCCA Texas Section.

Bedford was previously Executive Director of Zephyr Point Conference Center in Nevada for 12 years and Tilikum Center for Retreats in Oregon for eight years. Prior to this over a ten-year period, he was the Associate Director of Pine Cove Christian Conference Center then Dean of Students at All Saints Episcopal School and finally the Director of the Pine Cove Institute of Wilderness Studies – all in the Tyler, Texas area.

Bedford has been married to his wife Sara for 47 years and they have three grown daughters, three sons-in-law and eight grandchildren.

Nancy Nelson has been in Christian camping for 49 years, 2 years at Hartland Christian Camp in CA, and the last 47 years at Warm Beach Camp and Conference in WA. She has held the following positions: Food Service Director, Food Service Management Internship Director/Adjunct Professor at SPU, Grantsmanship Director, Administrative Assistant to CEO, Administrative Services Director, and HR Director. For the last 27 years, she has been a part of the development team raising resources. Currently, Nancy serves as the Director of Donor Relations. But her all-time favorite job titles are GRANDMA and QUEEN OF HOOPLA!

Beginning in 1976, Nancy taught seminars at international, national, and sectional conferences for CCI and later CCCA. The most requested one was “How to Manage Up.” She served on the faculty of CCCA’s Thriving Boards program since its beginning until last year.

Since 2010, Nancy has been on the faculty of the M.J. Murdock Trust’s Essentials of Development program to help nonprofits better fund their organizations.

At age 18, she met Stan while traveling on a team that ministered at camps throughout the Midwest. They married 54 years ago and have been traveling in Christian camping ever since. Stan retired from Warm Beach Camp after 36 years and is now a volunteer. They have two children and seven grandchildren, ranging from 2 months to 21 years of age.

Nancy holds a B.S. degree in Dietetics and Nutrition from UC Davis and a Master’s Degree in Public Health from UCLA. She published Stories of Sheer Pure Grace in 2017.

Bob Strodel served as the Executive Director of Christian Camps and Conferences, Inc., the largest Christian camping organization in the Northeast, overseeing Camp Brookwoods, Camp Deer Run, Moose River Outpost, and The Brookwoods Conference Center in New Hampshire and Maine.

A second-generation camp director, Bob spent 12 years in the aerospace industry before returning to his true calling—Christian camping—where he invested the final 30 years of his career. He holds a Master’s Degree in Systems Management as well as an MBA. During his tenure, Bob also served two terms as Treasurer/Secretary for the Christian Camp and Conference Association (CCCA) under Bob Kobielush and Gregg Hunter.

Bob married his high school sweetheart, Debbie—the same girl he took to his senior prom. Together, they enjoy their growing family, which now includes eight grandchildren in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

A lifelong Red Sox fan, Bob and Debbie live in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, where he serves on the boards of several Christian schools and provides consulting services to churches, schools, and camps. In his spare time, Bob enjoys hands-on building projects, launching model rockets, and waterskiing.

Betty Swintz It’s truly an “ACT OF GOD” to provide me the opportunity to begin working at CCI/USA in 1995. Born in Lubbock, Texas, I was the sixth and final child. Our family did go to church and at the age ten the Holy Spirit walked me down the aisle at church to profess Jesus Christ as my Savior. It’s been very evident throughout my life that my Father/MY ABBA has protected and guided me through green pastures and turbulent waters.

Growing up I had ZERO experience or knowledge of Christian camps and there was no additional funds to attend. At the age of 33, married with three kids, our church in Billings, Montana ran a camp called Clydehurst Christian Ranch. This began my love for this ministry.

In 1992, I became a single parent, moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado and needed a job! I worked three years for Focus on the Family and then landed a job at CCI/USA. I experienced fifteen years of ABUNDANT JOY, AMAZING GRACE and GOD’S REVELATION THAT HE HAD ASSIGNED THE MEMBER RELATIONS POSITION FOR ME. I remarried in 1998 and we moved from Colorado to Wickenburg Ranch, Arizona in October, 2025. Living in Arizona is a place I didn’t imagine living but that is how my life has been - always new adventures, challenges and discoveries.

The verse the Lord has sustained me for this journey is Isaiah 58:11, “The Lord will guide you always, He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”

George and I have 6 adult children all married. We are blessed with 13 GRANDBLESSINGS!

CCI Update

Update from Christian Camping International

by Bill Fernald

God is on the move through Christian Camping International (CCI). From new associations being born, to global partnerships gaining recognition, to leaders gathering across continents, this has been a year of remarkable momentum for camp ministry worldwide. What follows is a glimpse of how the Lord is using camp as a vital tool for evangelism and discipleship, connecting leaders and strengthening the Church across cultures and nations.

Growing Family of Associations
This year, we celebrated Armenia becoming a new national association in the CCI family—a testimony to faithful leaders who see the power of camp to reach their nation with the Gospel. Ghana is also in the final stages of becoming an association, representing another exciting step forward on the African continent. Additionally, there has been significant progress in conversations and steps toward a gathering in Sri Lanka, where a network is starting to take shape. Looking ahead, 2026 appears to be a year when the next steps will be taken with camp leader contacts in Egypt who are prayerfully exploring the establishment of a network there. Each new association or emerging network strengthens the CCI family, multiplying the reach of camp ministry for years to come.

Global Leadership Program
As these new associations and networks take root, they will only flourish if led by Christ-like and Spirit-led leaders. That is why the current cohort of the Global Leadership Program (GLP) is so vital. Currently, more than 50 emerging and executive leaders from over 20 countries are participating in online training, which begins with deep soul work. The program emphasizes that authentic Christian leaders must first be like Christ—marked by a servant heart, humility, integrity, and dependence on God’s Spirit. This foundation is shaping leaders who can sustain and multiply the impact of camp ministry in their nations and beyond.

Global Partnerships
In September, CCI was featured at the Lausanne 4 Congress Virtual Reunion through interviews with me and Rob Ribbe that highlighted the strategic role of camp in global mission. In those conversations, we emphasized both what camps bring to the global missions table—unique spaces for evangelism, discipleship, and leadership development—and our shared need to work alongside other international movements to strengthen the worldwide camp movement. This collaboration with the Lausanne Movement signals growing recognition of camp as a vital methodology for evangelism and discipleship. Together, we believe camp is uniquely positioned to help close some of the most significant gaps identified by the Lausanne Movement in the pursuit of fulfilling the Great Commission.

Gatherings Around the World
This has also been a year of significant in-person connections. In March, Anthony Scott (Glorieta) and I traveled to China, where we were able to encourage camp leaders and explore opportunities for future training. In July, I joined our partners in South Africa for the Christian Camping Southern Africa Conference, a vibrant time of fellowship and vision, marked by the beauty of unity among diversity as leaders from across cultures and backgrounds came together in Christ. This September, I was with Christian Camping New Zealand for their national gathering, which reflected both strong local leadership and a global heart for mission. Next, in October, our CCI Board and Association Leaders will gather in Kenya for a time of prayer, connecting, and vision casting together. We believe this meeting will be a key step in discerning the Spirit-led future of this movement.

Looking Ahead
In December, CCI will be present as an exhibitor at the CCCA National Conference in New Orleans. We are especially excited that CCI representatives from Kenya, New Zealand, and Russia will join us there, offering U.S. leaders a first-hand glimpse of the global movement they are part of through camp. We are eager to connect with friends across the U.S. camping movement and share the ways God is using camps globally as places where people of all ages meet Christ and grow as His disciples.

Why This Matters
Each of these highlights represents more than events or milestones—they are reminders that camp is a global movement of God’s people, committed to the Gospel and to the next generation. At its core, we stand on the Great Commandment—to love God and love others; we live out the Great Commission—to make disciples of all nations; and we look forward to the Great Multitude—a day when every tribe, tongue, and nation will worship before the throne. From Armenia to Ghana, from Sri Lanka to Egypt, from New Zealand to Kenya, God is uniting leaders through camp ministry in ways that bring both encouragement and fresh vision.

Together, we press on toward the vision of every generation, every nation, encountering Jesus through camp.

In Memoria

Sadly, from time to time, we lose friends who have made significant contributions to Christian camping. The Encouragement Circle would like to commemorate their lives. If you know of friends who have passed away in the past year who you would like to remember, please send us a brief statement of their life and link to their obituary. This issue we remember Cliff Miller and Jane Ragsdale.

In Memoria

Cliff Miller

by Dan Bolin

Cliff Miller passed away in early August. He led three significant CCCA camping ministries, SAMBICA, Black Lake, and Michindoh.

I have so many memories of Cliff, but this one is my favorite.

Cliff had hosted a CCCA Leadership Development Institute at Camp Michindoh. At the conclusion, Cliff was driving several of us to Detroit to catch our flights home.

The camp van was stuck behind a slow-moving garbage truck, so Cliff pulled around the truck on a long, straight, uphill grade. The van gained on the truck but it didn’t have great acceleration. By the time we passed the truck, the van was beyond the lawful passing zone.

Lights flashed behind us and Cliff, embarrassed, pulled the van to the shoulder and rolled down the window. The officer was professional but not friendly. “License and registration” he said, and Cliff handed them to him. “Any reason you are in such a hurry that you had to pass in a no-passing zone?” he asked.

“Well, officer”, Cliff began, “these gentlemen are on their way to the Detroit airport and I’m trying to get them to their flights on time.”

“Where are they from?” he asked.

“One is going to LA, one to San Jose, and this one,” pointing to me in the front seat next to him, “is headed to Tyler, Texas.”

The policeman looked at me and asked, “Do you know Larry so-and-so?” I raced through my mental rolodex and couldn’t come up with anything. Then something clicked. “Is he a little, left-handed guard? I play basketball on Wednesday afternoons with a guy named Larry, but I haven’t seen him for a while, I hear he has cancer.”

“That’s my brother,” said the officer. He handed Cliff his license and registration and said, “get these guys to the airport – but drive carefully!”

Cliff’s wisdom, smile, and dedication to serving the Lord and the people around him have influenced many of us. He will be missed.

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For more details on Cliff’s life, please see the obituary taken from the Colorado Springs Gazette.

Jane Ragsdale

by Bedford Holmes

The Christian Camp & Conference Association in Texas morns the loss of veteran camp director, Jane Ragsdale. She was an inspirational leader and role model at her camp “Heart of the Hills” for decades. She was tragically swept away in the Guadalupe River floods this past 4th of July in the Texas Hill County. A lifelong Presbyterian Christian, she was committed to influencing young people in ways of Christ all her life. She will be greatly missed by the Christian camping community.

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For more details on Jane's life, please see the obituary.