The Need

Two New Lodges

Weekends are booked at the retreat center, and St. Columba’s camps are growing in popularity. We are being called…in ways that will expand and enhance our ministries at St. Columba. Camp Able—St. Columba’s camp for children with special needs—requires an ADA-accessible lodging to convert from a day camp to an overnight camp so that St. Columba can offer its program to serve children with disabilities of any kind. In addition, our inner-city overnight camp needs lodging close to camp programs. We are also being called to provide more retreat space to the nearly 30 retreat groups we turn down annually due to lack of weekend availability.

Through the Called to Grow campaign, we will raise the funds needed to add two new lakeside eight-bedroom lodges. These will provide the right balance of additional camp and retreat space, while preserving St. Columba’s campus by reducing environmental impact and protecting solitude for guest retreats. Located on a grass-covered field on the southern side of St. Columba’s lake, the buildings will be the home for Camp Able, Overnight Outreach Camp (our inner-city camp), and serve an additional 2,000 guests per year—many of whom are already knocking at our door.

The location for this project is ideal for retreat guests to enjoy the lake as a main focal point. The site is located close to all camp programs and drastically reduces any environmental impact since the area is already cleared and is surrounded by a blanket of trees in every direction. The area is also serviced by an existing road, so infrastructure planning and site development costs for support services will be dramatically lower.

Challenge Goal: Refresh Scheibler Lodge

Built in 1981, Scheibler Lodge is St. Columba’s main retreat space and has served hundreds of groups and thousands of adults and young people. Unfortunately, the original carpets, paint, and furnishings are out of date and show signs of heavy use.

By raising an additional $400,000, we can accelerate our plans to give Scheibler Lodge a facelift, making it as inviting, welcoming, and intentionally designed as our new lodges. Through the Called to Grow campaign, we will be replacing original carpets, paint, and fixtures while aligning Scheibler Lodge’s design and upgrades with the new lodges.

We will invest every dollar raised beyond our primary goals to refresh Scheibler Lodge. The extent of the refresh will be dependent on the amount raised beyond our primary goal. This will allow Scheibler Lodge to serve groups for years more and to offer our guests updated facilities, no matter what building they book.