Camps and Retreat Board Targets Barnett Lodge Expansion and Renovation as its Top Priority

When it was built in the late 1940's Barnett Lodge was designed to be the central gathering place for young people attending summer camping programs at the Warren W. Willis Camp. Sixty years and several renovations later, it still serves as the living room, dining room and major activity center for the camp.

With upwards of 430 campers a week and 3,500 a summer streaming in and out of the facility, it is easy to see why Camp Director Mike Standifer calls it "Grand Central Station."

"Barnett Lodge is the center of life at the camp," agrees The Rev. Alex Shanks, Chair of the Conference Board of Camps and Retreats Ministries and a former camper, counselor and assistant camp director. "Barnett Lodge impacts almost every facet of the overall camping experience," he said. "It affects the way we experience fellowship, build community and foster strong Christian values."

This year the Board of Camps and Retreats Ministries made the goal of raising an additional $1.7 million to complete the Barnett Lodge expansion its top priority.

"We have been blessed with an initial gift of $2 million, but we need to complete the fundraising and move the project forward," Shanks said. "We need to offer the facilities and services needed by campers today."

According to Shanks, planned capital improvements will give the camp:

• A defined welcome space for groups that use our facilities year round
• Additional meeting space and gathering areas for campers and meeting groups
• More dining room space and an enlarged kitchen and for more effective food service
• A central location for administrative offices, now disbursed among several building on the campus

"The camp draws children and youth by the thousands from every corner of the state," Shanks said. "We have great programs here, but the Barnett Lodge renovations will make us even better. They will help us provide the 'transformational moments' that so many of us have experienced as part camp life over the years."