From the Desk of Joel Hamernick: The Process with Sunshine Cove

In the latest edition of the Streetlight and Flashlight (Sunshine’s newsletter and e-mail newsletters) I shared with many of you that our board of directors has made a decision to pursue a change of ownership with our camp facility in Michigan, Sunshine Cove. I think it may be helpful to share more specifically what has been decided and why along with a little more background than we have room for in the normal newsletter.

History.

In 1997-98 Sunshine’s board was at a key decision point at which they needed to decide whether to seek large investment into the facility at camp or sell the camp. Ultimately the decision was made to bring in new staff, invest in the property and develop new programs. My family along with Daryl and Laura Woods and soon after John and Pam Rees were the initial team that followed the board’s direction and God’s calling to develop camp.

During the following decade we immensely enjoyed seeing God at work through hundreds of camp experiences. As a ministry we have invested heartily in the facility and the operation of camp – always with a long term vision that the income from camp would one day balance its own expenses through a combination of localized fundraising specific to camp, Sunshine camper sponsorships, missionary support and guest group fees.

While this vision for balancing the budget at camp was important to the overall plan it was something that God gave us time to work on. Over the years God has blessed us with an ability to “carry” an imbalance in the operational expenses. The ministry that continued has been transformational in the lives of our staff and campers and thus while there has always been financial pressures and considerations about camp’s overall costs, the board and staff worked for nearly 10 years toward the goals of increasing camp’s spiritual fruit and at the same time the goal of balancing income and expenditures related to camp.

Mission.

This past year our board and staff spent time together working carefully on re-wording our mission statement to reflect those aspects of our ministry that continue from the past (specifically a focus on the gospel, the city, and the poor) with those that are new:

1. a new community (Woodlawn and Bronzeville)
2. a commitment to incarnational ministry (living in and being a part of our neighborhood)
3. a new emphasis on teaching the church about God’s heart for the city (through our missions program: Bridge Builders)
4. a broadened notion of serving our community (e.g. We now reach more than 400 people of all ages through our community technology center).

The new mission statement has been adopted as: Sunshine Gospel Ministries exists to seek the renewal of the city through ministries of discipleship, mercy and justice.

This mission focus increases our focus on the center of what God has called Sunshine to do for over 100 years: minister to the city for His namesake. It doesn’t change our desire to take kids to camp but does lessen the focus on that activity in terms of year round focus and how much of our overall resources should be directed there.

Finances.

The net expense over income for camp has now exceeded $100,000 annually for 3 years. The board has looked carefully at our finances and has come to the conclusion that Sunshine cannot sustain this deficit for another year.

Furthermore, when you consider our core campers – those coming from direct connection with Sunshine’s neighborhood ministries and not as rental groups, partnering ministries, etc… the cost per camper when averaged over the annual budget exceeds $1000 per camper. Our camper sponsorships are set at $300. This simply can’t come close to covering this actual cost. Alternatively, the cost of working with other quality Christian camp ministries would allow us to send our children to camp for anywhere from $200 to $300 including all actual costs.

Decisions.

With the previous process and considerations in mind, the board made the decision to cease operations of camp and pursue a change of ownership. The specific reasons highlighted for the decision are (a) mission and (b) finances. The Mission of Sunshine is focused primarily on the city and the overall demands of owning and operating our camp are diverting the ministry from focusing on our core calling. The financial costs of camp simply can’t justify continuing operations.

Decisions yet to be made.

Our board has expressed a clear desire to see the facility at Sunshine Cove remain a Christian camp that serves youth from the city. To this end the board has established as it highest preference to work with an organization that would purchase the facility for this purpose. As of this stage we do not know to whom the facility will be sold, nor when exactly this process will happen. Please be in prayer for the board, staff, campers and supporters of the ministry as we pursue God’s will for the ministry.

It is important for me to stress that Sunshine remains passionate that our youth need Christian camp experiences and that this will remain a key part of what Sunshine does. Yet we want to steward the resources given and focus on the core elements of our calling in a way that are a true expression of wisdom.

I will be adding another article on my own blog that touches on this process from a more personal perspective for those who would like to read further. http://www.joelhamernick.blogspot.com/

Yours in Christ,
Joel Hamernick, Executive Director