August 2024: LAMP trips, music, camp fun, and family!!

 The month of August began with me travelling from Thompson, Manitoba to Flin Flon, Manitoba and then to Deschambault Lake, Saskatchewan. I met one of our newest LAMP teams there in Deschambault and we spent some time together as they connected with the community via children's ministry. We stayed at the elementary school and hosted the Vacation Bible School program there as well. We also showed some movies in the evening to those who were interested. Karen and her talented teammates did a great job and I look forward to their future years of ministry there in Deschambault! Here are some pictures...




From Deschambault Lake I headed home to Sherwood Park so I could volunteer at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival. I've been volunteering for this festival for many years and currently serve as one of the coordinators for the Music and Merchandise - Performer Product crew. What we do, in essence, is try to run a music store with a crew of volunteers that sells lots of tshirts and CDs and LPs in a tent at the bottom of the hill for four days. It is both fun and also busy...and a great way to support the artists who play at the festival. When I wasn't working at the tent, I caught some great music at stage 7. My friend Dwayne A (wearing a ballcap in photo below) from my church was helping with the sound at stage 7 and even served as the MC, introducing the performers. I managed to buy a nice hat to add to my festival gear...and to protect my head from the sun. 




After a wonderful weekend on the hill, I hopped on a plane and headed out to Winnipeg, Manitoba. From there, I rented a vehicle and drove up to Cormorant, Manitoba. I met a LAMP team there from Nassau Street Church in Winnipeg. They were hosting a program for kids at the local school. The team included pastoral staff from the church as well as older and younger adults. They had great energy and made things both fun and very engaging for the kids. It was good to be with them and get to know some of them a little better. It was also a great way to wrap up my summer travel for LAMP. Some pictures...Bible story time, crafts, games, and a message time.





I flew home from Winnipeg and had a chance to celebrate our anniversary with my wife Lynne. We missed each other this summer and so it was good to connect. Lynne was able to travel down to see her parents and some friends for a few days. I headed off to Hastings Lake Bible Camp to serve as a resource person (sharing a short message in chapel each morning and a brief devotion for campfire each night). It was great to spend some time with the teenagers there (Senior High Youth) including some familiar faces from my church. The staff and youth had amazing energy all week long and I was happy to be there. One of the youth in attendance asked to be baptized and it was very special to see his pastor and youth pastor come to camp to baptize him. It was also great to spend some time with my friend Andrew (Camp Director at Hastings Lake) and his wonderful family during the week. Here's some photos including photos of Lincoln's baptism and a photo of Andrew and his three kids...






August ended with a quieter week at home that ended with me doing a presentation at the opening retreat for staff and students at Concordia Lutheran Seminary. I talked about my experiences as a deacon in Lutheran Church - Canada...both the blessings and also some of the challenges. It was fun to go through old photos and try to tell some old stories...it was also fun to try to say some encouraging words to the pastoral and diaconal students who are just getting started on their fall term classes. We ended the month of August with a trip to Castle Mountain Resorts near Banff, Alberta. The mountains were beautiful, the weather was great, and I even managed to do a bit of hiking in and around Banff with Lynne. Thanks to my mom and Clay for hosting the weekend...it was great to be together with family! For fun, I'll finish here with some photos from my presentation at the seminary, including some pictures of dear coworkers and amazing youth from the past. God has been good to me!! 






















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