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The summers I spent there gave me an appreciation for the quiet times with God ...
"Do I remember hunting for salamanders? What about getting stuck in the middle of the lake because my peddle boat broke? What about having flag duty or hiking to the very top of the men's cabins to use the bathroom? It seemed like we were covered in more dust after our shower than before. What about hiking to the Indian camp or having fires in the meadow? I remember Sunset Lake like it was yesterday! I spent a few summers there and they shaped me for the rest of my life.
Sunset Lake had a perfound impact on my life. The joy that was in that place, the windy road to the camp; with every sharp turn the excitement grew as every camper knew that we were about to embark on a week long adventure that was going to change our lives forever. It seems like only yesterday that I was riding horses, shooting bow and arrows and getting in trouble for running through the girl's camp. What summers! What fun times!
Sunset Lake shaped me for my future, though I didn't know it then. The summers I spent there gave me an appreciation for the quiet times with God, the times that He can speak to you when no one else is around. I loved Sunset Lake. Thank you for you having a camp that can impact the lives of campers for the next generation. I spent 4 summers at Sunset Lake, graduated from high school, went to Northwest University in Kirkland, WA (an Assembly of God school) and am now an Assembly of God pastor. Sunset Lake's impact on my life can be thank for this."
Pastor Brian
Kirkland, WA |
Sunset Lake will always hold a special place in my heart...
"I spent three summers at Sunset Lake (either base camp or the canoe trip), as well as doing Pathfinder-related activities during the off-season and what stories I could tell about the time spent there.
• The big waterslide -– I also recall that there was a local show on KING5 (Seattle) in the late 70s and early 80s that had the slide featured in either its opening or closing credits.
• The tower -– how about those wonderful views of Mount Rainier from the top!
• Earning JMV honors (now known as AY honors)
• The old entrance to the camp, where you had to negotiate a tight hairpin turn to get up the hill and the old Auburn Academy buses that came from campmeeting that had to unload everyone to get the bus around the turn and up that hill.
• Ringing the camp bell and flag duty
- “Uncle Jim” Everts (our camp director in 1974 and 1975)
• The camaraderie between the staff and campers.
• Bringing a non-member friend to camp for two summers.
• Getting stuck in the middle of the lake with a somewhat leaky paddleboat.
• The nightly campfires.
• Being scared to death about the horsemanship trail ride, not knowing what was in store; also anticipating my diving test for one of my swimming honors.
Of course, during my second year I was at base camp, due to something that happened during quiet time, our cabin was not allowed to participate in the camp Olympics that afternoon. We had a substitute counselor that told us that if anyone got off her bunk during quiet time that none of the cabin would be participating in the festivities. Unfortunately, one of the girls had to get up for something and that just blew it for the rest of us. Instead of punishing the girl, the whole cabin suffered. What a bummer, because we ended up having to clean out the fireplace in the dining hall, while everyone else was having fun.
The last year I attended summer camp was a canoe trip to the Lower Mainland near Vancouver, BC. I had a wonderful time and felt that I became closer to my Heavenly Father during that trip.
I came back in later years on weekend camp outs with my local Pathfinder club and also attended several Pathfinder leadership conferences at the camp.
I now reside in the Phoenix area, and am currently the associate director of the Mesa Wildcats Pathfinder Club (Mesa Palms SDA, Mesa). Most of our conference Pathfinder activities (leadership conference, Pathfinder camporee) are held at Camp Yavapines (the Arizona Conference youth camp) in Prescott, AZ. However, having grown up in the Washington Conference, Sunset Lake will always hold a special place in my heart."
Lori Mell
Tempe, AZ |