A while back, our Executive Director, Dave Cairns, met with Kevin Farmer. Kevin is the Head of Family Ministry at Hope Academy, a Christian school in Minneapolis. Dave called the meeting because he wanted to explore partnership opportunities with Hope. The conversation was very positive and both left with a desire to think of some good ways to work together.

Last year, Kevin approached the Covenant Pines leadership with an interesting idea. Hope Academy runs 4 weeks of summer school for all students in grades K-8. Their summer school only runs in the morning, but many parents have jobs and are unable to come pick up their kids when the school day is over. Kevin thought that Covenant Pines could help with this need. After a few conversations with Dave and Natalie the decision was made to run a Day Camp during one of the weeks of summer school.

We are very excited to partner with this amazing ministry. The mission of Hope Academy is to “foster hope in God within the inner-city neighborhoods of Minneapolis by providing youth with a remarkable, God-centered education.” Since our inception, Covenant Pines has existed to serve the youth of the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area. We are honored to come alongside the amazing work HA is doing in Minneapolis by bringing a little camp to the city.

God is good. We are so excited for what He has in store for the many groups going up to AC this summer. We have 40 groups scheduled to experience God and His creation in the BWCAW. That’s a 16 year high. Not only that, 35 of those groups were already booked in November. AC used to be referred to as hidden gem. Now it seems that the gem has been found and we are very thankful for that.

The majority of these groups are Covenant groups. These youth leaders work tirelessly all year for their students. They show up time and time again. It’s truly an honor to be a part of the ministry plan for their students. Covenant Pines Ministries is a ministry of the Evangelical Covenant Church. We also have a Father Son trip and a Women’s trip from Covenant churches. It brings us a lot of joy to partner with our churches in such a unique way.

We will be hosting groups from the following Covenant Churches:

• Linwood Covenant Church (MN)
• First Covenant Church of St. Paul (MN)
• Maple Grove Covenant Church (MN)
• Bethlehem Covenant Church (MN)
• Bloomington Covenant Church (MN)
• Roseville Covenant Church (MN)
• Anoka Covenant Church (MN)
• City of Lakes (MN)
• Harbert Covenant Church (MI)
• Libertyville Covenant Church (IL)
• Northwest Covenant (IL)
• Batavia Covenant Church (IL)
• Hinsdale Covenant Church (IL)

In addition to those groups, the Northwest Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church is again utilizing AC for it’s Adventures in Leadership program.

But the Covenant Church is not the only denomination that’s coming to AC. This summer we are also hosting a few non-covenant churches from Wisconsin, North Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota. People are willing to travel from all over the Midwest to experience the unique ministry offered by AC. Join us in prayer for these groups. We pray for safety, deepened relationships, and life changing moments.

Tate Randall has been involved with Covenant Pines Ministries for many years. In 1997, he boarded the bus at Crosstown Covenant Church with his two brothers for his first trip to camp. Tate came back almost every summer and attended several Fall & Winter Retreats. In 2009, he joined the CPBC summer staff as counselor. For the next 6 summers he continued to serve in a variety of roles including Audio Visual Tech. In that role, he gained skills in photography, video production, and social media.

After graduating, Tate was hired to be on the CPBC Ministry Staff team and then was brought on as the CPBC Marketing Director the next year. In 2015 the role expanded to encompass all of Covenant Pines Ministries and Tate was eventually relocated to the Twin Cities. In his time with CPM Tate has: evolved the ministry’s branding, created new relationships with churches, developed our new website, taken thousands of photos, edited hours of video,  interviewed dozens of campers, put on the Egg Man costume a few times, and led an 80s-themed aerobics class for Women’s Retreat. Ultimately, Tate has helped us tell the story of God’s work through our camps.

Tate’s original calling was the classroom. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse with a degree in Social Studies Education. It was toward the end of his college career when he felt God calling him to camping ministry. After 10 summers and 6 retreat seasons, Tate felt a strong tug back to the classroom. He has accepted a position as a 7th & 8th Grade Social Studies Teacher at Hope Academy. We are very sad to see him go, but joyfully celebrate with him as he enters this next chapter.

Below are a few words from Tate about his time with Covenant Pines Ministries.

“I love that the mission of Covenant Pines is to ‘encourage campers to take a next step in Christian faith.’ When I reflect on my own journey with Christ and the steps I’ve taken in my faith, it’s kind of ridiculous how many of those steps have taken place at Covenant Pines. In 7th grade, I remember walking out of Chapel reflecting on the lyrics of the song ‘Sanctuary’ and deciding that I wanted those words to be true about my life. On summer staff, I felt an inexpressible freedom when a time of extended prayer compelled me to surrender parts of my life that were holding me back from all that God had for me. In 2014, I led the Day Camp program and God taught me that servant leadership is not the same as trying to do everything yourself. After the CPM camera drone flew away at AC and I couldn’t find it, God led me right to it after I finally remembered to pray…about 6 hours later. 

I fell in love with scripture at CPBC. I played guitar in front of people for the first time in Chapel. As a counselor, God taught me how to engage with young people and how to be patient with them too. In McGregor I cried about a hundred times and laughed about a hundred times more. It’s where I made life-long friends and it’s where I met my soon-to-be wife.

I would not be the man I am today without the impact of Covenant Pines. I have taken hundred of steps in my faith because of the people who give selflessly and because of the God who gives them the strength to do so. This is not goodbye, this is simply a page turn. I have enjoyed this chapter as a full-time staff member. I look forward to the next chapter as a volunteer, family-camper and whatever else God has in store. I also look forward to what God does through the next Marketing Director. May she or he fully embrace the good works that He has planned for them.”

-Tate Randall 

“I have a child here in tears here that would like to come to the Trailblazer Retreat that starts today.”

Camp received this call from a foster mom, Monica, on the Friday of the Trailblazer Retreat we held the weekend of February 15-17. We were finalizing all the last minute details of the weekend. What a crazy blessing it is for us to have over one hundred 3-6 graders loving winter and worshiping Jesus together! These campers come from all different kinds of places and families.

Monica is an amazing woman from Community Covenant Church. We think the world of her. She cares for kids in such a way that they find Jesus through her love. In the midst of hard circumstances that God only knows, they make their way into Monica’s home. On that Friday, Monica and I had an amazing conversation. She believed it was no accident that this boy arrived at her house Thursday evening, the day before this retreat. He was supposed to attend camp with her kids. God had a plan for him to be at camp and it was truly our gift to welcome him here.

In the midst of the conversation she was able to share how sometimes midst of hard circumstances, God shows up with these sweet reminders of the plans He has for these kids. It was a gift from God that this little boy arrived at her home when he did. We found space for him and worked with Monica to get him on the bus. Throughout the weekend, he seemed to have an amazing time. 

Recently, I had a chance to check in with Monica, as we helped her get her and her kids registered for our August Family Camp. The list of kids in her family account is long and at this time she is unsure who all will join her and what kids might find her way to her home in August. But her heart is so so good and she shared some sweet reminders that were inspiring to me:

“God continues to do amazing things. I shouldn’t be surprised because He continues to show up and He does it all the time!”

“I may not have Silver and Gold but I have love.”

“I might not know their situation but I can help.”

What is it that God is showing you to do? How is he asking you to show up? Over and over again Monica talks about the blessing Covenant Pines is to her but she has also been a blessing to us. Oh the many ways God has used her and her kids to teach us. She’s taught us to look for the amazing ways He is at work and to be open for to the ways He’s asking us to show up!

We’ve been hard at work getting our third Lakeside Cabin ready for summer. Check out some pictures of the progress below.