The Perfect Plan

My story with Birch Bay Ranch begins when I was eleven years old. I had only been to one other summer camp before, but when my aunt showed my mom a picture in the newspaper of a giant climbing wall, my cousin and I decided that we would love to try the place out. Birch Bay Ranch was amazing as a camper. I don't remember a whole lot of specifics about the activities and whatnot that we did during those weeks at camp (I do remember riding Fernando!), but it was always so fun that we kept wanting to come back.

When I was 14, my cousin and I went to teen camp and I will never forget this moment:

There was one camper there that week who had a mental disability, but the staff all showed him the love of Christ and, through their examples, my fellow campers had been trying to show this same love as well. Although he hadn't come with any friends, we all made sure to say hi or ask him how his day was going or just hang out with him for even just a few minutes every day. One evening we had campfire in Cedar Lodge, as it must have been raining outside or something, and the band was playing some worship songs. This young man all of the sudden got up and went straight to the stage and grabbed the microphone. The room went silent while all of us waited to see what the staff would do -- if maybe he would get in trouble for interrupting or for touching the equipment, but instead everyone was very still and very silent. The boy took the mic and, with all of us listening, said...

"Jesus made you all my friends"

It was such a powerful moment and a memory that will forever stay with me. I renewed my commitment to following Jesus that night, and I know many of the other campers did as well. Birch Bay Ranch, like many people before me have said, is a place where everyone is welcome. God's love is abundant and the staff allow His love to be poured through them onto the campers and visitors every day. I have been absolutely blessed to call Birch Bay Ranch my "home" for 13 years (on and off) and if I could do everything over again, I'd do it exactly the same.

I honestly think that, without Birch Bay Ranch, I would no longer be walking with God despite being raised in a Christian home. It is because of the teachings and examples of the staff at Birch Bay Ranch that I have been able to overcome some of the deepest, darkest, saddest struggles in my life and know that no matter how bad it gets, God ALWAYS loves me.

This spring, I was again blessed with the opportunity to work at camp, even though it was definitely not in the plans I had made for my own life. I am so thankful that no matter what, God is good and God has perfect plans for us to prosper us and not to harm us and perfect timing for those plans. This spring, I was again able to resolidify my decision to follow Jesus and become more rooted in my faith which was perfectly what I needed. I pray that whatever happens with these upcoming decisions, we can feel comforted and at peace knowing that God is good and God has a perfect plan for us if we lean on Him.

Annette Wagers


Jeremiah 29:11

Hey! It's Kiwi Aimee!

I have worked most of my life at a camp in New Zealand. A few years ago, I was looking for something to do for a few months between seasonal contracts. When a Canadian volunteer (from Birch Bay Ranch) who was at my camp in NZ suggested this place in Canada I thought it was a great idea. Little did I know how profoundly my time at Birch Bay Ranch would impact my life, character and journey.

The ministry of Christian Camping is important in today's world. Kids are leading such screen based lives that they often have no idea how to have a conversation face to face. Having a chat with their cabin leader on the way to camp fire might be the first time a kid has ever had a real conversation with anyone outside of their family. These moments are so important in the lives of all kids who have ever been to summer camp. Birch Bay isn't about creating jobs in a tough climate, or giving kids a chance to ride a horse or climb a wall. It's about the relationships formed and bonds strengthened in ways that can only happen in that kind of environment.

My experience at Birch Bay Ranch was such that I booked tickets a couple years later and went back for round two. Were it not for my time at Birch Bay Ranch, I wouldn't be in the place that I am spiritually today. BBR has a way of shaping people and sneaking it's way into their hearts in a very short amount of time. I've been to many, many Christian camps, and there really is something special and unique about Birch Bay. 

I recently got married, some friends from Birch Bay Ranch came to my wedding in New Zealand, and the Fraess family came to visit us a month or so later. My dream is to share what has been such a huge part of my life with my husband, and to have him meet the rest of the BBR family!

As you have no doubt already read, this camp has been part of so many people's lives for so many years. Everyone who has ever been on staff has stood on the shoulders of those before them. All we can hope for that we can honor the efforts of those who have come before us and served God at Birch Bay Ranch. 

Ours is a huge responsibility, to care for this legacy and pass it on to the next generation of staff and campers. 

Aimee Fawcett (Jones)

My Best Friends and Family

My name is Melveena and I am 25 years old. I started going to Birch Bay Ranch (BBR) when I was 8 years old. I went to BBR day camps and this was the first time that I started getting involved in summer camp. I continued to go to BBR as a camper until I was 16 years old.

Throughout this time I made some friends at BBR and these friends turned into meeting every summer at BBR friends. We not only were campers at BBR but then also became counselors. These people whom I met throughout my BBR summers were not just co-counselors but we became friends outside of BBR as well, doing activities like going to K-days. Not only were we friends outside BBR but we became best friends, having kids at the same time then watching our kids grown up and play together.

I also had the pleasure of having the opportunity to be the program coordinator at BBR when I was 19 years old. I created the “Amazing Race” (Birch Bay Ranch Version) and enjoyed watching the campers work as teammates. At BBR your not singled out, your not a loser, your not made fun of, your apart of a Christian Family with people who will always love you.

Birch Bay Ranch is my home away from home. It is a safe place and a rescuing place. BBR gave me my best friends-they gave me a family. I still go out to BBR and volunteer. I woke up one morning this past summer and had a desire to go out to BBR and clean toilets- to serve. Jesus washed the disciples feet and so I find myself like Jesus and wished to clean toilets at Birch Bay Ranch. I’m encouraged to have Birch Bay Ranch apart of my life and apart of this community. Kids need to hear about the love and power of Jesus Christ and I so much look forward to sending my children and future children to Birch Bay Ranch. It is a place of love and kindness, fun and excitement, a place where I learned how to canoe, horseback ride, rock climb, and be in love with Jesus with those around me.

Thank you.

Melveena Borgstrom-Garden

Unforgetable Night

I remember the best parts of my childhood summers being getting to go to Birch Bay Ranch for a week.

Birch Bay was always such a fun, safe, loving atmosphere. Every summer I'd make so many friends, and come home filled with the love of Jesus and bursting with so many stories to tell of all the awesome things I learnt and got to do that week at BBR. I think my favorite part of BBR was the atmosphere. Everyone (campers and staff) was always so happy to be there...and the best part was that BBR created that nice safe little bubble where you could really grow in your faith. At camp we all had the same faith and love for Jesus, so you didn't have to be shy or scared to talk about it or feel awkward sharing your beliefs with your new friends as I know I always felt (and sometimes still do!) in "the real world".

There is one summer at BBR that specifically stands out. It was nearing the end of the week, and everyone was at campfire (although this particular night it was inside as it was raining and miserable out). There was one camper, we'll call him M. M had Down Syndrome. I'm sure that week at camp there were campers who may have felt sorry for him, or pitied him and I'm sure there were probably some campers that may have even teased him or got frustrated with him (hey, nobody's perfect...especially not at that age). Despite everything I'm sure life had thrown at him, M had unrelenting faith in God. It was absolutely amazing to witness. M was a friend to everybody, always willing to help out, the first to volunteer for anything, the one singing the loudest and dancing the hardest and the only person who was 100% unafraid to show his love for God in every single action he made.

Honestly I can't even remember the campfire topic, or what brought everything about...I just remember how powerful that night was for not only myself, but for everybody in that room. M showed so many of us the love of God. That one particular night something happened. Campfire went on WAY past lights-out time. There were so many tears, and I think a lot of us invited Jesus into our hearts that night...all because of M.

He was such a beacon of light, such an amazing example of the wonders of having the Lord in your life, his joy and love for life and God were just so infectious. I think M was an example to all of us of what great we can bring into this world by asking Jesus into our hearts, and sharing that love with others.

I am so thankful for BBR and the summers I got to spend there. I honestly think that places, such as BBR, can have such a huge impact on peoples lives - I know it certainly has in mine. BBR has brought me closer to Jesus, helped me grow in my faith, and has helped me be less closed off and scared to share the love of Christ. I hope that BBR will continue to be around for many years to come, and that one day my children can grow to have the life changing experiences I had at such a wonderful place!

Nicole

It's a Part of Us

Hello , my name is Mary Meckley. My heart if heavy for BBR to think that it could every possibly be closed.  The connection with the ranch does not die when you move on.  I suppose that is what it prepares and equips you for, moving on.  The ranch is much more than a retreat centre, much more then a riding stable, means much more than what meets the eye when you drive onto the premises.

The ranch comes alive in all seasons but perhaps the most special is when summer camp happens and you witness hundreds of kids each week , come…unload their luggage, get settled with their cabin mates , meet their new counsellor and start to engage in activities. The kids not only get to try so many different types of activities, but they build relationships and some of those relationships have proven to go on for a lifetime. These kids experience peace, happiness, healthy meals, love and most essential, they meet Jesus. The lives that have been touched, I'm not sure could ever really be "documented". 

When I came on at the ranch, I had just moved to Alberta, leaving all my family and friends in Nova Scotia…spent one semester in NBC (at the time). and then , the first summer, moved out to the ranch, not sure what to expect…a little frightened and a lot excited. 

What I experienced… how do you put to paper…how can I relay how crucial that time was for me. I guess while IN it, I didn't realize what an impact the ranch was having on my life…I had little life experience at the time and a huge part of my heart missed home. 

BBR, in turn, became my home. The staff that I grew so close to, became my family. We spent long busy summers together, learning, helping each other. We spent many cold snowy days and nights together, talking, laughing, having adventures and with all the groups and people and organizations that passed through those gates, into our lives….we were changed.  

We learned how to work together, we learned how to serve, how to work hard, how to laugh, how to honour the directors, how to respect others, respect ourselves, we were taught about Jesus and His love for us and for others. 

A lot was expected of us, there were high standards to achieve and those lessons, those are the things that have made me the woman I am today…those same things I now pass onto my own children. 

I arrived at BBR , alone, missing everything that was home for me and what I found, was priceless…I had a second home.  . After I left the ranch after the first "round", I was , at another point in time, years later, needing a place to stay and I was invited back with open arms, invited to come home. 

The most important thing that changed my life is that I met my husband at BBR, he has his own personal story about BBR. The 15years he spent growing up at the ranch are irreplaceable.

His mom was the cook at BBR for all of that time and he and his sisters grew up , playing in the woods, walking the road, riding the horses, canoeing the lake, climbing the wall, they had a dream childhood. The times they spent making friends, being counsellors, working in the kitchen, those are memories we often sit around and talk about. Those memories, those years…wow…what can I say…we treasure them, we thank God for them, no dollar amount could ever be placed on what some might consider a piece of land with some buildings on them. There is no price tag high enough to take the place of how the ranch is able to dig down deep into the hearts of the people who go there,work there, grow up there, meet their spouse there and have the chance to experience God's touch and favour on a place.

Hunter Meckley is my husband, he is the best man I know, the hardest worker, best dad to our 2 children, and I have no doubt in my mind that this is due to the fact of how the ranch  poured into his early years shaped him into the man he is today. 

Hunter and I will always stand by and stand up for Birch Bay Ranch. We will always and often give thanks for it. And for the future…. our son and daughter will experience Birch Bay Ranch.  It is part of us. Once it's your home, it will always be home, always be a place to return to. 

Thank you

Mary Meckley