The number of campers at Lake Geneva Christian Center (LGCC) is growing year after year, and there are no signs that it’s slowing down. With the completion of the Dining and Event Center and other updates, LGCC has quickly become one of the premiere campgrounds in the state of Minnesota. In the past 5 years alone, we’ve seen a 20% overall increase in year-round campground usage. Family Camp continues to reach full capacity every year, and we saw record attendance in age-graded camps in 2019. Kids Camp had 1,054 campers attend in 2009 and reached 1,978 in 2019. Youth Camps had 1,755 in 2009 and 2,935 in 2019.
Our hope is not only to see more students come to our campground, but also to see more students come to Christ and experience the presence of the Lord. This past summer during age-graded camps, 266 students gave their lives to Christ for the first time, 692 renewed their faith, and 388 were baptized in the Holy Spirit. We hear story after story of people who can point to the very spot at the altars where they surrendered their lives to Christ, were healed and were called to missions.
We are taking steps to increase our capacity at the camp so more people can have an encounter with God. We believe this new initiative will not only impact generations, but eternity as well. In the featured images, (which are an artist’s concept, not the final plans), our dream is to build a new mixed-use housing structure with sleeping accommodations for 320 people. It will be a hybrid of dormitory-style rooms like the Lakeview Center and smaller units like the ones in the Kingsriter Retreat Center, with an enclosed swimming pool and hot tub that can be utilized throughout the year.
This new structure will be located on the lakefront south of the Dining and Event Center and the hope is to have in indoor passageway that connects the two buildings.
As good stewards, we’ve aggressively paid down debt on the camp property. What was $1.67 million indebtedness three years ago is now less than $300,000. With God’s help that balance will be paid in the near future.
Pastor Clarence St. John and Supt. Mark Dean have been meeting with church leaders around the state and asking for 3-year giving commitments. Already $2.9 million of the $6 million has been promised to the project. Personal and church gifts range from $1,000 to $1,000,000, and the average 3-year church commitments range between $15,000 and $60,000. The goal is to break ground on the new building in the spring of 2021 and be debt-free by its completion.
Will you consider being a part of what God is doing at LGCC with this new endeavor?
