Our mission at Covenant Pines Ministries is to encourage campers to take a next step in Christian faith. Every summer, we make a commitment to pray and observe closely so we can witness our mission in action. We recently gathered as a staff to share and celebrate the ways we saw next steps around our four ministry centers this past summer.
Adventurous Christians: There is a group of high school boys that have attended our open enrollment trips since they were in middle school and we look forward to seeing them each year. Now that they are going into their senior year, this was the last year they were eligible to attend the trip. While up at AC, they expressed interest in serving on staff in future years and made the conscious effort to ask to be added to our mailing list AND our Portage Partners list. Though we are sad to see these canoers “graduate on” from attending this canoe trip, it is exciting to see them be thinking about ways they can still be involved as they move on to the next chapter in their lives. Hopefully, they’ll be able to guide you on a canoe trip sometime in the future!
Covenant Pines Bible Camp: There is a family who is very supportive of Covenant Pines who attends often. They have two kids – the older one being very enthusiastic, vocal and involved at camp. Their younger child is a little quieter, more subdued and has been a little more hesitant to participate – until she discovered the SWEAT program. While serving behind the scenes as a SWEAT, she found her niche. At the beginning of the summer, she was signed up for two weeks of SWEAT and by the end of the summer she had attended five. She even emailed our staff asking what the process was to work on summer staff in the future. We love helping campers find the best way for them to experience God while at camp!
Covenant Pines Off Site: In probably the first year in camp history, there was not a single overly anxious, crying camper getting on the bus as it left for camp this summer. There were actually more crying parents than campers…ha! But this actually showed how much of a next step it is for parents to send their children to Covenant Pines. We are grateful for the trust parents place in us to assist in the spiritual formation of their children. We recognize how big of a deal that is, and we’re thankful to help parents take their own next step of the faith journey of their own families. \
Silver Beach Family Camp: This summer, we had a few rotating Silver Beach Directors. Some of them were past staff members or past Silver Beach Directors, and some were Silver Beach families who had an extra week to help out and minister to the families that were up for the week. It was so fun to see families take the next step from attenders to helping other families experience the community of Christ!
Summer is always such a good reminder to us of what a unique ministry we have at Adventurous Christians. As our staff spends weeks leading canoe groups through the BWCAW, lives are being transformed. Living in Minnesota, we can often forget how lucky we are to have such close access to something like the Boundary Waters – but it really is a destination for many groups across the country. This summer, we are serving groups from Indiana, Illinois and Iowa and are offering a Clergy trip at the end of the summer, where Covenant Pastors will be joining us from all across the country.
Southport Presbyterian Church traveled from Indianapolis, Indiana to AC earlier this summer to return for another canoe trip after going on one three years ago. This group of fathers and sons traveled nearly 12 hours to have this experience that brought challenges, rewards and great spiritual growth. Here are some reflections from their trip,
“This trip helped me let go of comforts and instant gratification and caused me to rely on God for his providence. I realized through this I have more mental strength, grit and drive than I thought.”
“Thank you Adventurous Christians for providing an experience focused on God through physical challenge and adventure. This was tremendous for my son and I, and the whole group.”
We just finished leading a canoe trip for Decorah Covenant Church in Decorah, Iowa and are currently out on trail with Hinsdale Covenant Church from Hinsdale, Illinois. These groups travel long distances for this unique ministry experience and we are grateful to be able to provide that for them! We work hard to provide an experience that is rooted in the wonder of Christ through leadership, hard work, and spiritual renewal that makes it a destination trip worth taking.
We encourage groups from all over the country to join us on a guided canoe trip through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. If you’re interested in planning your canoe trip, we’d love to work with you. You can start by checking our website, here or emailing us.
Big Chapel was a beloved space to many at Covenant Pines Bible Camp. A holy place where lives were transformed. It was hard to say goodbye at the end of 2024, but we knew that due to the structural issues of the building it wouldn’t last forever. Though the building won’t last forever – we’ve always had plans to keep the space sacred and let the memory of Big Chapel live on. We are excited to share these plans with you!
Later this month, we will begin construction on Chapel Point. In the architect rendering, you will notice the A-Frame – we will be using original Big Chapel beams for this. This space is a patio with a fire pit that we hope can be a place for solitude, cabin conversations, retreat reflections and more. Though the purpose for this space is different, we hope that the same birch trees, look over the lake and long walk around camp provides campers with a rich spiritual connection.
We are thankful for the many years we were able to use Big Chapel. We also know the Worship Center will serve us for years and years to come, allowing us to encourage campers to take a next step in Christian faith. We are looking forward to honoring and utilizing the Chapel Point space in this new way, only adding to our ministry impact and the camper experience. We hope you can check it out the next time you are at camp.
We have four pillars of our program ministry at Covenant Pines Ministries: Safe, Fun, Gospel and Experience. We take that first pillar very seriously and implement many practices to ensure campers have a safe week at camp. One those practices is having trained medical staff on site every week at camp caring for the safety and well being of our campers!
Our medical staff at CPBC is a group of volunteer, licensed medical professionals. Every week we have two “Camp Nurses” on site who provide care for campers. We have ER Doctors, night shift nurses, pediatric specialty nurses, school nurses, NPs and PAs throughout the summer who spend a week at Covenant Pines as the camp nurse. We have 2-3 medical staff at camp at all times to provide everyone with a break and to manage all the tasks. The team spends time getting to know each camper and spends the week administering medications, helping campers when they get hurt or aren’t feeling well, and often providing some emotional support to campers who are homesick or need some extra TLC.
One of our lead nurses, Jen Good describes a day as a nurse like this, “Grabbing a cup of coffee or tea and heading off for breakfast to pass morning medications to campers. Between meals we hang around the health center or watch camp activities to be available for any injured or ill campers. Heath center staff is welcome to participate in chapels and other camp activities during the day and that’s a fun way to get to know the campers. In the evening we reset all the medications for the next day, help prepare for the following week of camp, and often get a little time to relax before campers head off for bed. Sometimes there’s time for a little relaxing in a hammock, reading a book, or having a nice chat with campers.”
Being a camp nurse is a rewarding experience, as you get the unique opportunity to get to know and engage with every camper. You also get time to experience camp, enjoy the outdoors and witness campers taking their next step in Christian faith. It is a great way to spend a week of your summer! Not to mention, if you volunteer as a camp nurse, you get a credit for a free week of camp for a camper of your own. Jen adds this,
“The best perk is no cooking or doing dishes for an entire week (unless you enjoy it and want to pitch in to help the kitchen crew, which some of us do, but it’s never expected)! Just being at camp and enjoying the beauty and connections with God is a perk. Camp also gives one free camper registration for volunteers in the health center. If you have a child anxious about going to camp alone, this is a great way to “be there” and also give them a sense of independence in their camp experience. They love knowing their parent or grandparent is there if they need them. I also love coaching a camper who’s really missing home, or is away for the first time, through their fears and seeing the joy in their face when they make it through the week. I also LOVE connecting with the high school students and having some “real” life conversations. We are there to support the whole camper, and that often means caring for their minds and souls, as much as their bodies. We have a unique connection with campers, and a freezie pop or a hug always deepens it even more.”
We are looking for licensed medical professionals to join our 2025 medical staff at Covenant Pines. We’d love to have you join us! If you are interested or have questions, email Jen Good. She can be reached at nurse@covenantpines.org!
Youth camp has always felt like the bread and butter of what we do here at CPM. We love having youth campers up for summer camp and retreats as we encourage them to take their next step in Christian faith. In recent years, we noticed that some of our programmed retreats were decreasing in attendance. With guest groups eager to rent space at camp, we ended up putting some of those youth retreats on the back burner for now, but that doesn’t mean youth ministry hasn’t still been happening. Over the past few years, we’ve noticed an exciting trend in some of our church youth retreats at both Covenant Pines and Adventurous Christians – youth groups, especially ones from smaller churches, collaborating on retreats to experience together.
We love offering program retreats, but have learned that we don’t always need to be the ones running the show. We have talented youth pastors and volunteers in churches who can plan and execute a retreat beautifully, while we offer the space, activities and staff to assist. We’ve been able to shift our relationship with youth retreats and it has felt like a win-win.
Emmanuel Covenant in Shoreview makes their way up to Covenant Pines multiple times a year. Their Junior High Retreat in the fall was joined by Salem Covenant, Roseville Covenant and Plymouth Covenant. Arctic Blast is a winter retreat for middle school and high school students that started in 2023 by Faith Covenant and this year had 81 students and six different churches. Up at AC – Linwood Covenant, Karmel Covenant and Community Covenant in Upsala join together over President’s Day to retreat together.
We chatted with Chris Kelly from Linwood Covenant and Paula Herko from Restoration along with Davey Neubauer from Faith Covenant about their experiences with collaborating with other churches to on youth retreats – see what they had to say below:
What made you want to do a retreat with other youth groups?
Paula + Davey: In 2022, we saw an opportunity to create something meaningful for smaller youth groups. It started when Davey Neubauer from Faith Covenant wanted to take his new youth group on a fall retreat, but at the time, there wasn’t a middle school camp available. After learning that Covenant Pines could be rented, the gears started turning—what if we invited other churches with smaller youth ministries to join? A few phone calls later, the vision was born: to create a retreat specifically designed for smaller youth groups, giving them an experience they might not be able to provide on their own.
From the very beginning, this retreat has been about more than just coming together for a weekend—it’s about reminding students that they’re part of something bigger. Worshiping, learning, and growing alongside students from other churches creates a unique atmosphere of energy and encouragement that deepens their faith and helps them see the broader body of Christ in action.
Chris: Honestly, a big part of it is that we youth pastors like each other and enjoy doing ministry together. When you find people who share your heart for students and discipleship, it just makes sense to team up. Beyond that, we wanted to give our students a retreat experience that helps them see they’re part of something bigger than just their own youth group. It’s powerful for them to worship, learn, and grow alongside other students who are also following Jesus.
What is the advantage of collaborating with other churches to provide a youth retreat experience?
Paula + Davey: Collaboration allows us to create a more dynamic and impactful retreat experience. With multiple churches involved, we can pool our strengths—whether that’s speakers, worship teams, or leaders—offering students a well-rounded weekend. It also gives students a chance to build connections with other believers that are their age, helping them see that faith isn’t just something they walk alone.
Chris: There are so many benefits. First, it builds relationships—not just between youth pastors, but between students who might not have crossed paths otherwise. It also creates a richer retreat environment because we can bring different strengths to the table. Some of us are stronger in teaching, others in worship, others in organizing logistics, and when we combine those gifts, the experience is even better. Plus, it’s just more fun!
What is a highlight of one of your youth retreats?
Paula + Davey: One of the biggest highlights was seeing students open up about their faith. Whether it was during worship, small group discussions, or even late-night conversations in the cabins, you could see God moving in their hearts. A powerful moment was when students took time to reflect and pray on Saturday night during worship, really leaning into what God was revealing to them and asking their leaders to listen and pray with them. Plus, the “Where’s Waldo?” theme made for some hilarious and memorable moments throughout the weekend!
Chris: One moment that really stands out from last year was a late-night worship time in the lodge. After the planned session wrapped up, no one wanted to leave. Students kept singing, praying for each other, and sharing what God was doing in their hearts. It was completely unprompted but ended up being one of the most meaningful moments of the weekend. Seeing students take ownership of their faith in that way—that’s what it’s all about.
Can other churches join your youth retreat in the future?
Paula + Davey: Absolutely! We love partnering with other churches to create opportunities for students to grow in their faith. If a church with a youth ministry of 25 students or less is interested in joining us in the future, we’d love to connect and explore how we can make that happen!
Chris: Potentially! Right now, the size works well for what we do at Adventurous Christians, but we’re always open to talking with others who share a similar vision for this kind of retreat.
Anything else you want to share about your retreat?
Paula + Davey: Arctic Blast wasn’t just a weekend away—it was a time for students to reset, refocus, and take steps forward in their faith. The mix of high-energy games, powerful messages, and intentional small group time created an environment where students felt both challenged and encouraged. We’re incredibly grateful for Covenant Pines and all they do to create a space where students can encounter Jesus in a meaningful way!
Chris: Even though this is just our second year doing this retreat at AC, we already see it becoming a tradition we hope to continue for many years to come. What makes it so special is its simplicity. There’s something about being in the northwoods—away from distractions, under the stars, in deep conversations with God and each other—that sticks with students long after they leave. They come back refreshed, challenged, and more connected to their faith, and that’s what keeps us coming back.
If you are a church that is interested in joining one of these retreats – don’t hesitate! You can reach out to the following people to get the conversation started.
Middle School Fall Retreat: Dan Schwarz, Emmanuel Covenant
Arctic Blast Winter Retreat: Davey Neubauer, Faith Covenant
Chris Kelly, Linwood Covenant