At the end of their rope

"You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule. "

- Matthew 5:3 from the Message translation

This is Seth. Actually, Seth is the guy in the harness. The other guy is Tim from Experiential systems. Seth and his school, Mountain Lake Christian School of Mountain Lake MN, came down over spring break and helped build a brand new High Elements Ropes Course at
South Side Mission's Camp Kearney for inner city and rural poor kids. And Tim is one of the mad scientists at Experiential Systems, a ropes course contractor out of Lansing, IL, who supervised our construction and handled the really complicated pieces.

Seth is our very first participant on the ropes course. He's also the answer to the trivia question, "who was the first person ever talked about in the South Side Mission blog?"

Why this is important...

Camp Kearney accommodates around 400 kids who are at the end of their rope annually at our 155-acres of timber and prairie in Glasford. These children from the most troubled of backgrounds come to Camp Kearney over the course of 10 weeks this summer for a free week of summer camp. Camp Kearney is a place where inner-city and rural poor children can enjoy a traditional Summer Camp experience like we all remember. Fishing, hiking, wildlife viewing, wall-climbing, swimming, as well as challenging Bible teaching await kids who come to Camp Kearney.

Inner-city and rural poor kids need a bright spot in their lives. They need to get out of their difficult living environment and enjoy the wonders of nature while hearing that God loves them. In an atmosphere like Camp Kearney, kids from troubled backgrounds discover that there’s hope for a better life while having fun. The ropes course we just installed supports this discovery process as participants learn team-building and self-reliance while having an absolute blast.

As fun as a ropes course is, however, it also helps accomplish some specific goals, including building confidence, self-esteem, and trust in kids within a group environment. As you might expect, inner-city and rural poor kids often lack self-esteem and confidence. Their lives are characterized by absent fathers, moving from place to place, never enough food on the table, and gangs and drugs never far away. A ropes course cannot change their circumstances, but it can change how they cope with their plight and how they approach the challenges in their lives.

Thank you to the great people who underwrote this exciting new addition to South Side Mission's Camp Kearney:

Ronald McDonald House Charities of central Illinois
Community Foundation of central Illinois
Ruby K. Worner Charitable Trust
G&D Integrated
Gamma Phi Beta at Valparaiso University
Jimmy and Marty Carr