East Tennessee Episcopalian: Grace Point Camp News

By the Rev. Pat Cahill
Member, Camp and Retreat Center Board of Managers

By virtue of our baptismal promises, we are to be stewards of the earth. What better place to exercise that duty than through the beautiful gift that is Grace Point!

While the camp and retreat center’s major commitment to environmental stewardship has been seen in the construction of the tree house dormitories to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, insofar as possible, many other activities are planned and being undertaken:

The addition to the Commons Building of a screened porch and insulated-glass sliding doors has helped with warm-weather energy costs; the porch’s eaves and its ceiling fans have reduced the use of air conditioning in the building.
Recycling bins for aluminum and paper have been placed in the tree houses and in the Commons Building.
Trash is being sorted into cardboard, metal and household garbage before it is taken to the recycling center and the dump.
Volunteers from among the campers are joining with others to maintain existing walking trails by clearing trash, cutting brush and implementing soil erosion practices.
With technical supervision from local and state agencies, new nature trails will be constructed.
Tree and plant species are being identified and labeled.
The forest is being culled of diseased trees to maintain its health and vigor.
Deadwood and brush have been piled in some locations to create areas where wildlife may take refuge.
Discarded Christmas trees were secured under the dock as aquatic life habitat.
Kudzu, that weedy exotic plant that is so difficult to control, is being contained by allowing a neighboring farmer’s cows to graze the land.
Efforts will be made to eradicate privet and to re-introduce native plants that will attract birds and butterflies.
Campers will continue to be encouraged to build bird houses that will be placed around the property.
Winter wheat has been sown to provide food for birds, and it will also prevent soil erosion.
The deer population is being controlled by permitting very limited hunting.
Table scraps are being composted in an earthworm bed behind the shop building.
w A vegetable garden has been cultivated both as a teaching tool and for food production.
Each year during summer camps, campers are taught good health and environmental awareness techniques, from plant identification to pest control, with special concern for preventing and treating tick bites and for identifying poisonous plants on the property.
Campers have suggested getting more self-propelled paddle boats, which provide exercise and a means to explore the lake in a relatively noiseless way.

Environmental stewardship will continue to be a major concern in programs for both the summer campers and adults who visit Grace Point.

OPPORTUNITY INVENTORY

You have an opportunity to help Grace Point continue to be a place where you can safely try on other parts of yourself!

Recruit summer campers from your parish
Make a contribution to the Grace Point scholarship fund
Schedule a retreat
Host the director for a Grace Point Sunday morning or Wednesday night at your parish

THE WISH LIST

$24 would restock paper products used in the Commons, Retreat House and tree house dormitories
$71 would help to purchase needed kitchen utensils and supplies
$105 would help to maintain the grounds, purchase landscape materials and buy fuel for equipment
$277 would help to replace or repair broken, bent or busted furnishings
$350 would send a young person to camp for an entire session
$411 would help establish new program areas (archery) at camp
$759 would buy a canoe or kayak
$1000+ would help purchase an all-terrain vehicle for maintenance of buildings and grounds and in the event of an emergency

Thank you for thinking of Grace Point! Please contact Christopher Turner at 865-376-0589 for more info.

On Point ...

Too often camps and retreat centers are thought of only as places – scenic plots of land in the mountains or picturesque acreage by a lake. These sites, Grace Point included, are more than destinations. Yes, our camp and retreat center is holy ground, but the dirt, trees, water and buildings that make up the place are only the beginning.

I spoke of St. Dorothy’s Rest, a camp of the Diocese of California, during my report to the diocesan convention.

At St. Dorothy’s, campers and other visitors are from time to time encouraged to visit the enormous costume closet located in the dining hall and dress up for a meal. Although we have always been encouraged to take off our own personal masks in a camp or retreat setting, the director of St. Dorothy’s tells me that dressing up like this gives individuals an opportunity to try on another part of themselves.

Other visitors to other camps and retreat centers may experience different opportunities. Maybe they don’t get to hike or swim or rock (in the chairs, not to the music) very often. Perhaps they crave time just to be quiet, or to listen to an inspirational speaker or to learn how to tie a knot. Possibly they want to get to know their neighbors a little better, or to sing or to finish a project.

Grace Point, too, is an opportunity – an opportunity to re-create and be re-created, an opportunity to teach and be taught, an opportunity to give and be given and, yes, an opportunity to try on other parts of yourself.

You might not be able to get out to Grace Point as often as you would like. You may not have ever been to Grace Point. Know, however, that the opportunity for you is here and that you are part of making that opportunity for others possible.

Christopher Turner is the executive director of Grace Point, the Diocese of East Tennessee’s camp and retreat center. Call him at 865-376-0589 or 865-803-8921 (cell), or send an e-mail message to gracepoint@etdiocese.net.

Grace Point offers summer camp sessions throughout June and July. Each session is one week, except for 5a and 5b, which are shorter sessions for very young campers with a parent. Rates, applications, scholarship and other essential camp info are posted to the web at gracepointcamp.org.

Camp Fees: The fee for camps 1-4 is $325 per camper before May 1. After May 1, the fee is $350. The fee for each participant in Camp 5 is $90 before May 1, $95 after May 1.

To support a camper through the diocesan scholarship fund, make your check payable to Diocese of East Tennessee with the notation, “Grace Point camp scholarship fund,” and send it to:

Did you know anyone may reserve facilities for their use at Grace Point, the camp and retreat center of the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee?

In addition to events such as vestry and youth group retreats, Grace Point has hosted study and hobby groups, family weekends and day meetings.

Grace Point overlooks Watts Bar Lake near Kingston, Tenn. Nearly 270 acres of woods, hills, fields and two miles of shoreline offer plenty of space for activities including boating, fishing, swimming, hiking, camping, picnicking, games, sports, reflection, meditation and worship.

To make your reservation or to arrange arrival and departure times for your visit, please contact Christopher Turner, Grace Point executive director, at 865.376.0589 or 865.803.8921 (cell), or gracepoint@etdiocese.net .

A $100 deposit is required within 10 business days of making a reservation. The balance is due in full upon departure from Grace Point.

To make your reservation, contact Christopher Turner, executive director of Grace Point, at gracepoint@etdiocese.net, 865.376.0589 (camp) or 865.803.8921 (cell).