Parents, Students, and Volunteers,

The daffodils have popped out, the trees are budding, and it’s already time to start thinking summer activities!

Christ Community Student Ministry is pleased to announce further information for our week-long summer conferences coming up in June.  Both conferences are helmed by Christian Education Ministries, the education board of the ARP church.  Each week, we will join over 350 ARP students from all over the country at Bonclarken Conference Center in Flat Rock, NC.

The two conferences are as follows:

HORIZON – High School Conference – June 13-18, 2011

QUEST – Middle School Conference – June 20-25, 2011

(each week involves a 1pm departure on Monday, and a lunchtime return on Saturday)

Having been involved in these conferences for over a decade now, the last three years on the Conference Planning Committee, I can confidently say that the line-up of speakers, musicians, and seminar opportunities is one of the best ever.  Here are a few details…

Speakers

Horizon – Britton Wood, RUF Campus Minister at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC.

Quest – Andy Lewis, Pastor of Mitchell Road Presbyterian Church in Greenville, SC, and founder of Crieff Fellowship in America, a national conference for youth workers.

Music

Josh Bales will lead worship in music both weeks.  Josh is a singer/songwriter passionately dedicated to leading and teaching Biblical worship.  Beyond just leading songs, Josh infuses our music time with the liturgy of Creation, Fall, Redemption through Scripture, responsive reading, prayer, and confession, all the while teaching students why they say what they say, and sing what they sing.  Josh led music at our recent High School retreat, and was excellent, as always.

Seminars

Horizon offers the opportunity to Biblically explore specific topics through seminars led by seminary students, youth leaders, and pastors from local churches.

Recreation

Bonclarken’s facilities and location offer a week packed with fun.  The two weeks will feature outdoor ropes course, zip line, and climbing tower; crafts; a waterfront with canoes, kayaks, etc.; pool; gym and game room; a host of sports tournaments; disc golf, pamper pole, Nibble Nook, and tons of activities that leave no time for boredom.  Wednesday of each week offers a “day away” when we will head out to one of the countless opportunities in the Blue Ridge mountains.  Tubing, hiking, exploring, are all possibilities.

Need More?

Check out the short promotional videos at: www.arpcem.com.  Click on “Horizon” or “Quest” to watch.  NOTE: The “register now” buttons are for church leaders and should be ignored, please register through CCC.

We hope you will consider joining us for these weeks of fellowship and growth.  The cost for the trip is $350 per student, which covers all room and board.  Students will want a bit of additional money for snacks, souvenirs, etc.   Let me know any questions you have.  If you think you may be interested, give me a heads up (a firm commitment is not necessary), as I need to begin planning for transportation and housing, etc.  The hard deadline for registration is MAY 1st.

Registration materials will be available soon.  We hope you’ll join us!