The beauty, peace, and renewal people find at Luther Point is typified in this photo.
Eagles, foxes, rabbits, geese, loons, turtles, deer, and many other creatures of God
call this sacred ground home.

Family Cabin Renewal: For Families and Friends
Family cabins are available on a year -round basis for you, your family and close friends to enjoy. Please consider some time away from the everyday routine. What better place to experience some rest and renewal than at your Bible Camp.

The decision has been made to remodel two family cabins this fall rather than only one. The two that are currently under renewal are Nazareth and Zion cabins. Part of the reason we decided to move ahead with remodeling two instead of one is that our cost is less for these two cabins.

One of the other reasons we are moving ahead with two cabins is because we are operating under some restrictions from DNR and county zoning setback laws. Because Nazareth and Zion cabins do not meet required setbacks we are limited in what we are able to do with the cabins with regard to foundation work.

We are not permitted to lay new footings and foundation block under these cabins. This allowed for considerable savings on costs. We were however able to raise the cabins and add additional concrete block which made it possible for us to create more crawl space under the cabins. The crawl space under the cabin will be skirted with styrofoam insulation board which will encapsulate and weather-proof the space.

Several volunteers have already come to assist with the project. We encourage you to give consideration to coming out and helping us. There is still much to do such as insulation, sheetrock, electrical and plumbing. Finish work will come later on this winter so keep us in mind during those cold winter months.

Funding has been moderate for this work. We still need at least another $20,000 to finalize all the family cabin remodeling. We are very thankful to all the individuals, congregations and Women of the ELCA groups who have contributed so far towards this important project.

Thank you to the following individuals, families, churches and church women who have contributed towards the Family Cabin Renewal:

Over $2,000
Anonymous I
Bethany, Siren, WI
Bethlehem, Bay City, WI
Ezekiel, River Falls, WI
Faith, Grantsburg, WI
Louis and Dorothy Neste, Spooner, WI
Our Savior's, Beldenville, WI
West Immanuel, Osceola, WI
Chris and Melody Witzany, Grantsburg, WI

$500 - $1,999
Bone Lake, Luck, WI
Bone Lake W/ELCA, Luck, WI
Fristad, Centuria, WI
Luck, Luck, WI

$100 - $499
Albert Arndt, Milltown, WI
Randy and Yvonne Cudd, River Falls, WI
Elim, Amery, WI
Dan and Cynthia Evenson, Stockholm, WI
Faith, Clayton, WI
First, Cushing, WI
Ervin Golson, Saint Paul, MN
Grace, Frederic, WI
Dr. Arne and Miriam Lagus, St. Croix Falls, WI
Glenn and Shari Matz, Frederic, WI
Moe, Clayton, WI
North Valley W/ELCA, Centuria, WI
Elaine Marian Olson, Amery, WI
Milo and Betty Lou Oppegard, River Falls, WI
Rev Carol Anne and Thomas Peterson, Bay City, WI
Redeemer, Hudson, WI

up to $99
Brian and Rachel Ferguson, Hudson, WI
Louise and Richard Klawitter, Grantsburg, WI
Evelyn Mueller, Moundsview, MN
Brad and Julie Samuelson, Pine City, MN
St. Peter's, Luck, WI
Sandra Webb, River Falls, WI

FOND FAREWELL AND WARM WELCOME
God Be With You, Trish
Trish Remus, Program Coordinator for Luther Point for almost five years is moving on to a new chapter in her life. Trish has been a dedicated and faithful staff member during her tenure with us. Trish first came to Luther Point in the summer of 1999 and worked as a summer counselor. She returned to camp in the summer of 2000 and served as a program assistant. When the program coordinator position became available in the fall of 2000 Trish was one of several applicants who applied for the position. Trish joined the year-round staff in January of 2001.

During her time with the camp, Trish has blessed this ministry with solid programming and excellent recruiting work. One of the most challenging parts of this position is recruiting and training the 40 plus staff it takes to run the summer program each year. Trish has done a very good job of maintaining and building a quality Christian camping program.

Luther Point has been a very special place in Trish’s life over the past several years. The camp surroundings and natural beauty have been an inspiration to her. I know she will take a multitude of memories and blessings with her as she moves on in her new chapter. Trish will be getting married on December 31, 2005 and will be moving to live with her new husband in Illinois.

A sincere and heartfelt thank you to Trish for her faithful service and dedication to this ministry here at Luther Point Bible Camp. Thank you for your faithful witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ. God be with you and your new family!!

--Craig Corbin

Dear Friends,
Almost eight years ago my dad asked me if I had a summer job lined up. Like any college student who was knee deep in midterms, a summer job was not top on my to do list. My dad told me about this guy who had come to my parent’s new church. This guy talked about the Bible camp the church supported and how they needed campers and staff for the coming summer. A summer at camp? Great! Sun, new friends and who knew what else. Sign me up. After spending two summers at Luther Point, I applied to work here full-time as the Program Coordinator.

So that’s how my life at Luther Point started. And as I currently know it, it is now ending. But, does it really ever end?

No. It can’t. Whether you have spent a weekend, a week or a summer. You may have been here three summers or five years or fifteen years. It doesn’t matter. Camp is a part of who you are. It is a part of you. It helps you live like the blood that flows inside you. Like Christ’s blood that flowed for you. Camp changes your life in ways that sometimes can take years to understand. It shows up in the moments when memories alter how you react to life. The camp song that sticks in your head one morning for some unknown reason or the old camp friend you run into in the store. You go away from camp having encountered God in the simple and in the breathtaking. It opens your eyes so you can see Him more clearly everyday. Camp can change a life. It has changed mine. My life is better because of this place and the ministry that we are a part of here on this Holy Ground.

It is hard to say goodbye to life at camp. For the last seven summers, this Holy Ground we call Luther Point has been my home, my work and my place of refuge. When the world has turned crazy, a few moments near the shore surrounded by God’s creation and God’s peace has refreshed my soul. The waves come almost like the breath of God. In. Out. In. Out. “Peace, Be still.” I have loved being a part of the ministry here. The five years I have spent as Program Coordinator have been a blessing in my life. The people and lives that have been changed have in turn changed me. I am a better person because of my time here at Luther Point.

Leaving Luther Point is both hard and easy. It is hard to leave the people and the ministry here. The people that come year after year and the chance to see campers and staff grow are what shows you that this is a thriving, vital ministry. It is a ministry that has been truly blessed. The easy part of leaving comes from where I am headed. On December 31, I marry a great man and become a mother all on the same day. After the wedding our new family will be living in Northern Illinois and the six hour commute would be a bit too much, especially in the summer. I am excited to enter this next stage of life. But will miss all of you.

I remember my first summer here and how I cried as I loaded up my little red car and drove home after the most amazing summer I had ever experienced. It was hard to say goodbye to friends and campers and this place. Now I have seven summers of campers, staff, pastors, families, memories and blessings. Chances are I will be crying as I drive away this time too.

I would like to say thank you to each and every person that is involved here at camp: from the people who help sew quilts to the campers; from the people who volunteer to the board members; from those of you who gave camperships to the people who drive campers here even though all of your own kids have grown and moved away from home. You are Luther Point. You are the memories I will take with me. You have blessed my life. Thank you.

God’s Peace to you always,
Trish

Warm Welcome To Bethany Walker
Starting in December 2005
Hello, I am Bethany Walker and I am looking forward to beginning a new ministry as Program Coordinator at Luther Point Bible Camp. I have a deep passion for working with young people of all ages and for faith formation. Both are achieved in a wonderful way through outdoor ministries.

My feeling of being called into ministry began during three summers of serving as a counselor at Luther Park Bible Camp in Chetek, WI. This call was further nurtured over the past four years during my time serving as the Director of Youth and Learning at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Eau Claire, WI.

A time of discerning began for me while I recently worked through Wartburg Seminary’s Center for Youth Ministries Certification School as part of the Bishops’ Initiative. I graduated from that program in March of this year with a renewed sense of call to relationally based, faith formation ministry and the question of where best to fulfill that call. I found that answer in this ministry opportunity at Luther Point. I am excited to begin using my training in this outdoor ministry setting where God has led me and equipped me to serve.

This decision to serve at Luther Point came after sharing much prayer and caring conversation with my husband of four years, Nathan. He is very supportive of this new adventure and equally excited about this unique ministry opportunity.

I look forward to meeting each of you in the coming months. It will be a blessing to be in ministry with everyone who is part of and touched by Luther Point’s ministry. Together we will faithfully and joyfully respond to God’s amazing grace.

God Bless, Bethany

Church Pledges Gift
Augustana Lutheran Church, Cumberland, Wisconsin has pledged a gift to Luther Point. Augustana Lutheran has voted to embark on a building improvement project for their church in Cumberland. As part of their commitment to first fruits giving, the congregation voted to pledge 3% of all pledged funds received to be given to Luther Point Bible Camp. The intended use of the funds is for the renovation of the Koinonia Cabin. This cabin has been the adopted cabin of Augustana Lutheran Church for many years. Historically, this cabin has been known as the “cooks cabin”, however over the past several years it has served as a summer support staff living quarters.

Augustana Lutheran has maintained this cabin for many years. Each spring a group of individuals come and clean the cabin and make minor improvements. Noticing that the cabin is in significant need of more than minor improvements, the congregation took action. This is where the 3% pledge will be utilized. The camp is entertaining the idea of converting half of the building into a shower facility for the women’s half of camp. The remaining half of the building would probably remain as support staff housing.

The Augustana Building Project will begin its fundraising efforts soon. The overall amount pledged and received for this project will greatly affect the amount pledged to Luther Point. The pledge from Augustana could be equivalent to several thousand dollars of support for the Koinonia Cabin.
Thank You Very Much Augustana !!!

CAMPER CABIN REVIVAL
Our final report has been submitted to Thrivent Financial for Lutherans for the Outdoor Ministry Challenge Grant. Thank you to everyone who participated to make this grant possible. The Outdoor Ministry Challenge Grant will result in a total grant offering of $5,000 to Luther Point Bible Camp. This was all made possible because our association churches responded enthusiastically to our request to volunteer over 825 hours. Those hours included a variety of activities and fundraisers. Some of the hours were accumulated through bake sales, car washes, special fundraising meals and much more. Several hours were also accumulated through on site volunteer work right here at Luther Point.

Total funds raised from the various fundraising events in our congregations added up to over $7,100 dollars. When you add the $5,000 grant to the total, we have a little over $12,100 to begin making some improv ments for our Camper Cabin Revival. Right now our focus for improvements to the cabins is on window replacement and bathroom countertops and sinks. These funds will give us a good start on some much needed improvements. The camper cabin revival will need additional funding in order to make all the improvements necessary. We are confident that in time more funding will become available.

Joan Bartz, Thrivent Financial Associate is presenting half of the $5,000 grant at the Quilt Auction to Craig Corbin, Director in the picture on the right.

Thank you very much to all the congregations and individuals who helped to make this funding possible. You have blessed this ministry so it can continue to be a blessing to all who come here.

Phone-a-thon for Camperships
In the Spring of 2006, either in February or March, Luther Point will be conducting a phone-a-thon. We will probably be doing another two-night event and we will be seeking volunteers to make phone calls.

The one thing that distinguishes our phone calling from other phone solicitation is that we contact each person or family in advance with a letter informing them that we will be calling them. We ask each individual or family to pray for and determine their response before we call.

We will also be seeking additional people to make the telephone calls. If you have a desire to assist us with this important fundraising event, please contact us and let us know of your interest in helping out.

THANK YOU VOLUNTEERS
We couldn’t do it without you!!
So far this year the camp has been very blessed with a number of volunteers doing literally hundreds of hours.

They have come from youth groups, men’s groups, women’s groups, churches, and summer staff. They have come by indivduals. They have come with friends and with famlies.
These volunteers have done a labor of love. They have cleaned, raked, quilted, crafted, built Family Cabins, chopped wood, painted, stained, put in windows, planted grass, welded chairs, stuffed envelopes, collated, and so many other chores that are small and big. Each hour, each individual, each labor of love is precious and treasured.

A staff person was overheard saying that the camp had never looked so good this spring and summer. Thank you for your labor of love. Thank you for your time. Thank you for investing in your Bible Camp.

From the Luther Point Mailbag
From a Luther Point Retreater,

Dear Friends of Luther Point,
You will never regret renting a cabin for several days or a week (if you want to have a wonderful relaxing time) at Luther Point Bible Camp on beautiful Wood Lake.

I must admit that even though I’ve always known and even attended various women’s meetings at Luther Point, I still didn’t realize that we as individuals or small groups could rent cabins and enjoy the absolutely beautiful setting, as I thought it was for big groups.

Three of my Catholic lady friends and I rented the Trinity family cabin for several days; and words just don’t describe the fun we had (our ages ranged from the 50s – 80s!)

One of our various highlights was catching large bass and sun fish so one of our evening dinners was a big “fish dinner.” Another special bonus was watching two beautiful bald eagles sitting on top of a large, tall tree while we were fishing.

I really want to encourage you all to make your reservations for your family or friends to enjoy the cabins the same way we did. There are pontoons, canoes, and paddle boats for your use also. The staff at Luther Point were most helpful and made us feel so welcome.

After getting back to Amery, I told various other Lutheran members and they too did not understand that the cabins are waiting for any of you and we encourage you to call Luther Point and make your reservations for year around enjoyment like we did.

Verneil Johnson and friends (Mary, Barb and Betty)

17th Annual Quilt and Craft Auction
The camp was blessed to have another picture perfect day for our 17th Annual Quilt and Craft Auction. A very nice crowd gathered for the festivities on August 14.

Once again, we want to express our sincere thanks and appreciation to all the women and men who worked so hard to make all the items for this event. The camp dining hall really looks fantastic when you drape all those wonderful items for display. All your hard work blesses this ministry beyond measure.

The auctioneering was provided by Gary Erickson this year. Gary and his wife Rhonda have been providing this service to the camp for several years now. We are very appreciative of their commitment to this event. Rhonda was at a family reunion this year, so Gary handled all the auctioneering by himself. Great job Gary!!

The bidding was a bit slow at times this year which means that many of the items seemed to sell for less this year. The overall total revenue for this event was down only about $2,500 from 2004.

We continued our new tradition with the “People’s Choice Awards”. The Most Creative Quilt Award this year went to one of the quilts made by the folks from Ezekiel Lutheran, River Falls. It was an artistic use of fabric that featured flowing trees. The Best Baby Quilt Award was made by Ruth Engdahl and the Deborah Circle from Gethsemene Lutheran, Hopkins, MN. It had a ruffled pinwheel appliqué with a scalloped edge.

The quilt voted as Best Traditional Pattern went to Beulah Lindberg, from First Lutheran, Taylors Falls, MN. It was a 90 x 80 size quilt described as a tiscit, a taskit, a hand quilted basket.

Marge Johnson from West Immanuel, Osceola took dual honors this year with both Best Use of Colors and Best of Show awards. It was also the top bid quilt with a $600 final price tag.

A special word of thanks to all our business sponsors who help defray the costs of this important event. The camp staff are also an important part of this day. They are to be commended for the inspiring worship service and for their great hospitality through the entire day. We also have a lot of volunteers who help out behind the scenes during this entire event. A special word of thanks and appreciation to all those folks who helped make this event a great day! Thank you to the following individuals and businesses for their donations and other support during the 17th Annual Quilt Auction.

Bass Lake Lumber, Grantsburg,WI
Bernick's Pepsi Cola, Dresser, WI
Burnett County Flying Service, Inc., Siren, WI
Community Bank of Grantsburg, Grantsburg, WI
Eagle Valley Bank, St.Croix Falls, WI
Grantsburg Family Foods, Grantsburg, WI
Johnson Lumber Company, Siren, WI
Marge's Therapeutic Massage, Amery, WI
Rauchbauer Sales & Service, Frederic, WI
Rural American Bank, Luck, WI
Schmidt Sheet Metal, Grantsburg, WI
US Bank, Frederic, WI
US Bank, Grantsburg, WI
Wood River Pharmacy, Grantsburg, WI

Special Thanks to Rhonda and Gary Erickson, Auctioneers!

We look forward to another fantastic event next summer.
Mark your calendars now for August 13, 2006.
See you next summer!!

Bible Camp Changes Lives
Luther Point is committed to making it possible for every young person to have a Bible camp experience. That means the camp is committed to providing camperships for youth who need financial assistance in order to come to camp.

This year alone over $24,000 was raised for the LPBC Campership Fund to help those in need of registration assistance. Funds were raised through a Spring Phone-a-thon, the 3rd Annual Golf Scramble, and through special gifts given by individual donors.

We had another year of high demand for campership assistance. Luther Point gave out more than $26,000 for camperships and incentives for the 2005 camping season. We are pleased to have this opportunity to provide these camperships and incentives because we know how transforming Bible camp can be in the life of a young person.

Luther Point has every intent of continuing to ask for additional campership support in the months and years ahead. We want every child who has a desire to come to Bible camp to be able to do so regardless of financial ability. If you are inspired to give to the campership fund, we encourage you to give generously.

Only 85 more needed!
We only need 85 more Thrivent members to send us a gift along with a matching GivingPlus gift form by December 1, 2005. We will then qualify for a portion of an $800,000 challenge grant from Thrivent.

Thrivent Financial has a wonderful way of helping you support Luther Point. They will match any gift you give to Luther Point 50¢ on the dollar up to $600. All you have to do is fill out a GivingPlus form and send it in along with your donation.

Please consider making a gift to Luther Point and having it matched through Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ GivingPlus Program. Help us make our goal of 216 members so we can share a part of the $800,000 challenge grant.

Former Director Celebrates
50th Wedding Anniversary

Former Camp Director Ted Berklund and his wife Carolyn
celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary
on August 28th at LPBC with about
110 of their close friends and family.

LPBC Summer Ministry Team 2005
Front row (L to R): Heather Carufel, Liz Lampman, Jess Bondhus, Laura Meixell, Abigail Hoffman, Kelsey Anderson, Megan Anderson, Jamie Holmberg, Katie Ryan, Allison Beebe, Ellie Tripp, Lara Schlies, and Katie Dupre.
Row 2 (L to R) : Susie Swyter, Stella Denbrook, Erik Hall, Liz Menter, Becca Brandt, John Anderson, Jake Seuntjens, Hunter Seuntjens, Stephanie Brown, Elizabeth Bartz, Hanna Kolzow, Sarah Tellin, and Anikka Wattnem.
Row 3 (L to R): Trish Remus, Kathryn Dahlberg, Jesse Weiss, Sally McClintock, Danielle Hischer, Stephanie Zwald, Carla Hugill, Marcia Evenson, Martha Leisch, Sarah Nesheim, Anna Winter, and Gabriel Einhardt.
Back Row (L to R): Jordan VanProosdy, Jordan Gades, Jason Johnson, James Hagstrom, Joel Menk, Chris Roos, Marshall Johnson, and Don Hokanson.

"The mission of the Luther Point Foundation is to strengthen and expand the Christian ministries of Luther Point Bible Camp now and into the future by providing funding for:
• Facilities enhancement and expansion
• Staff Education and Scholarships
• Program Development
• Other needs as they arise."

Press HERE for list of donors and other Foundation information