The Impact of Camp Hebron through the Generations

My first experience at Camp Hebron was as a "First-Timers", now known as "Pioneers", camper in the late 90's. I enjoyed the cabin camp experience so much that I attended them all up through Sojourners Camp for 10 consecutive years. In 2008, I joined summer staff as a Kitchen Assistant and continued to serve in this role, both on summer staff and year-round staff, until 2012. I believe my work in food ministry at Camp Hebron is what inspired me to commit my career to furthering God’s Kingdom through my current work with The Salvation Army. 
 

Lauren Sheeler with husband, Ben Sheeler and their son.

In 2009, I began dating a fellow summer staff lifeguard who would later become my husband. His father has served as the full-time Director of Maintenance for Camp Hebron for over 32 years. I am in awe of the hard work and sacrifice my father-in-law has tirelessly poured into the ministry at Camp Hebron for over three decades.  
 

Over this past summer, my 18-month old son got his first taste of Camp Hebron, enjoying the swimming pool, snack shack, and playgrounds. It is a surreal experience to spend time with my son enjoying the same activities I enjoyed as a child at Camp Hebron. Recently, we enjoyed Camp Hebron's Homecoming celebration, so appropriately named since Camp Hebron embodies the term "home" for me in so many ways. It is the place I dedicated my life to Christ as a camper, the place I met my husband, and now the place my son most enjoys traveling to visit his grandparents. I look forward to many more years enjoying Camp Hebron and hope my children will be able to take advantage of the life-changing experiences I have been so fortunate to have on the Camp Hebron grounds. 

Lauren Sheeler

This is the power of camp! There countless stories like the Sheeler’s that come out of Camp Hebron. Will you be part of something extraordinary and help us close the gap to meet our year-end goal? We need your help on Friday, November 20th beginning at midnight. Join Camp Hebron in the Extraordinary Give - One BIG 24 hour day of giving! Your dollars will be part of a S-T-R-E-T-C-H pool and random financial prizes are chosen throughout the day so your money with stretch even further to help camp. Just click Here to share our page, be a fundraising champion and to donate.

Learning to Listen to God's Voice : Welcoming Matt Fasick!

Camp Hebron has been a constant in my life for as long as I can remember. Alongside family and church, camp has shaped me through my childhood into the Christian I am today. I was born into a wonderful, loving, Christian family. I was raised, for all my memorable life, at Slate Hill Mennonite Church. I attended various youth programs there, and I hope to continue to actively participate in the ministry of Slate Hill. I grew up attending Camp Hebron in several different capacities; including church retreats, campground stays, Moms and Tots, Junior and Senior High retreats, and many, many summers of cabin camps.  

Matt participating in a time honored Camp Hebron tradition: Crayfish Earrings.

My personal favorite summer experience was at Bacon, Bibles, and Brothers (3B’s), an overnight cabin camp for high school boys that focused on how to be Biblical men of God - and how to eat bacon. The summer of 2019, I was excited to participate in 3B’s for another year, but I was disappointed to find that after graduating High School, I was too old to participate as a camper. Megan McMaster asked me if I wanted to be on staff here at Camp, and I felt a nudging from God that working as a counselor was the right thing for me to do this summer. 

However, I had plans of my own for that summer. So I told Camp Hebron - and God - to wait. My friends and I were preparing for camping and beach trips, and I wanted to hang out with them at home before we all went our separate ways to college. Nevertheless, in the months leading up to that summer, God made it clearer and clearer to me that Camp Hebron was where I was created to work. Eventually, Slate Hill attended a spring retreat at Camp Hebron. During our church service on Sunday, I broke into tears (something I don’t do often) because I realized that God was calling me to camp not to do a chore, but because it was actually what would be best for me! So within the span of just a couple days, I applied, interviewed, and got hired. I threw my plans out the window and with them, the last “normal summer” of my life. I will never regret doing so. 

God had a heavy hand in guiding me through my time on staff at camp. During my first summer working as a counselor, I had the opportunity to walk among God’s beautiful creation every day. I learned that prayer was more than just asking God for favors, but an actual 2-way conversation between God and myself, which required a lot of patience and listening. I also got to experience, - alongside my campers-  the childlike wonder that comes with seeing God in action. That summer I learned to live by our theme verse: 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and self-control.” Camp helped me go from being apprehensive about doing what God wanted, to fully embracing His plan over mine.  

This past summer was an excellent lesson for me to rely on God’s strength above my own. Camp operated in the face of a Global Pandemic, and it would be an understatement to say that I needed God’s help to operate as well. What it would take to deal with the ever-changing mask requirements, hyperactive campers and a slew of unexpected challenges, was to fully rely on God every hour of every day. 

It took a lot of consideration, no small amount of prayer, and eventually a leap of faith to finally decide that I wanted to intern at Camp Hebron. I had an inkling at the beginning of June that God might want me to stick around camp even after the summer was over. Over the course of the summer, it became more and more clear that my calling here at camp is not just limited to summer. Now I have the privilege of serving God and Camp Hebron as an intern. I’ve learned a lot of new skills I never expected to, and I’ve been challenged to continue relying on God even when there are less immediate stressors (campers). I look forward to seeing what Camp is like over the rest of the off-season, and I can’t wait for this summer and the summers to come! 

Meet Megan, Adventure Program Manager

Camp Hebron is excited to introduce Megan McMaster to the Camp Hebron team. Megan is passionate about camping ministry and loves having the opportunity to provide a hospitable space for people to rest and enjoy their communities in an intentional space. She came with a heart ready to serve people and loves to make guests & campers feel welcomed and loved. 

"I love the adventure program because it gets people out of their comfort zones and experience things they never would have the opportunity to otherwise, which ultimately allows them to learn about themselves, how they need community, and how vital their relationship with the Lord truly is," stated Megan.

"I grew up in the outdoors. My dad is an avid outdoorsman and my older brother was always playing outside while we were growing so of course I followed suit. After working for a year in inner city Wilmington, I was excited to return to an outdoor setting, as a place where I personally find rest, peace and can best connect with the Lord," stated McMaster.

Megan's previous experiences shaped her into someone that has learned first hand the value of hard work and what it takes to create intentional communities. She worked with Messiah's LOFT team (an outdoor leadership team), the staff communities at Ligonier and UrbanPromise. "I loved being a part of those communities and I was excited to be able to help cultivate that among the summer staff here at Camp Hebron.  I also discovered a passion and talent for experiential design--using hands on learning to help others engage the world in new ways. Experiential learning, especially through adventure activities, can have so much value for others' lives and it's a joy to be able to purposefully design experiences from which others are able to learn," said Megan.

Some of Megan's Life verses come from Exodus 14:13-14. Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
It's Moses' encouragement to the Israelites right in the middle of the Red Sea story. I love the idea of being still before the Lord and letting Him show up in big ways!

Megan enjoys Hiking/ Backpacking; Hammocking and Reading; Playing my guitar; Playing games with friends; Cooking & Playing sports.  Be sure to be on the lookout for Megan around camp and if you would like to book an adventure activity or weekend email Megan at meganm@camphebron.org