Soup Buns Camp and Gem

Five in the morning comes very early no matter how you slice it.  (the only exception would be a trip to Disneyland).  Sunday morning Camp Evergreen was on its way to Gem for our first ever soup and buns lunch.  Daniel, Bev, Ken and I (Ranger) packed up the van and were on the road by 6:18!  It was dark and a little blustery but Ken already had about three cups of coffee so there was no need to turn on the radio as we listened to his plethora of songs!

After missing the 16th Ave exit off Stoney Trail and taking a quick tour of Chestermere, we headed east on the Trans Canada Highway.  First stop - Strathmore for breakfast at McDonalds.  Daniel and I were tempted to start drinking coffee because it was free.  That could of been a disaster.  Ken wasn't sure about his McGriddle and Bev needed a bit more water in her oatmeal.  But we needed to push on, so we took our orders to go and jumped back into the van.  (I should mention that I drove very gently as we didn't want the buckets of soup to spill).

I know its hard to get lost going to Gem, so we didn't really get lost - but did end up taking the scenic route through downtown (we use the word "downtown" loosely) Gem before finding the church.  For those of you wondering, it was 266 km from Camp Evergreen to Gem MB - just under three hours.

still trying to get the hang of selfies

We unpacked the van, threw (in a positive sense) the soup on the stove, set up some tables and waited for the service to start.  We even found some of last years summer staff to help us!

 

One of the best things about a soup and buns lunch is that you have a captive audience during the service as the aroma of Ken's soup floats gently through the sanctuary.  Good thing I'm not as long winded when I preach as when I blog!

Lunch was great.  Ken's beef taco soup (made with beef donated by Gem!) and chicken noodle soup both were a hit.  People chose their soup fairly evenly.  The onion buns tasted great as were the chocolate chip cookies for dessert.  Things to remember for next time would be bringing sugar and cream - thanks Gem for helping us out.  And water, who knew you needed to bring your own water! 

After lunch Julia Plett, Daniel and Ken shared about camp's ministry and lives being transformed by the power of Jesus.  It was good to hear about camp from three different perspectives, with the common theme being positive change and growth.  Its both exciting and encouraging that Camp Evergreen continues to be an effective tool for building God's Kingdom here in Alberta.

Gem continues to be one of our strong supporting churches and so it was great to spend a little more time connecting with the congregation.  We hope we were a small blessing as well.  Thanks to everyone who helped set up, take down and clean up!  We look forward to many more years of serving with you!

 

Bob (Ranger) Kroeker
Executive Director