A get away place

We moved to Scott City back in 1986 and began pastoring here. One of the long-standing things that the youth did here was attend a youth retreat at a denomination-owned camp ground up by Sam A. Baker State Park. I don't know how much land the denomination owned, but I'm guessing 5 or 6 acres. There was one long brick building on the property with it being 40 feet wide and maybe 120 feet long. It had a concrete floor. The dining area was right in the middle with girls dorm on the north and boys on the south. There were bathrooms with showers on each end. The other structure on the property was an outdoor worship area that was covered with a roof.

So once a year or however long it took to mow and repair the Camp Lee building, the churches would send volunteers to work. They came from up by St Louis and clear down to Jonesboro, Arkansas. We'd stay in the dorms and mow and clean and paint and carpenter, and, of course, we'd eat and visit. Oh yeah, and we'd pick ticks off pretty much all day and night. Unreal how many ticks there were.

And then for one week, kids would converge on Camp Lee, and we'd have worship services, Bible classes, recreation, free time, sleep times, and we'd gather to eat at least three times daily. Couldn't find a cook one year so yours truly did the cooking. I introduced those kids from St. Louis to Nebraska Sandhills cuisine. One day we even served the kids fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. At that time there were close to 140 kids and adults there. It was an experience.

One day we thought about taking everyone up to Sam A. Baker state park and hiking some of the trails. Sounded good, or at least I thought it was a good idea. At the end of the day everyone showed back up except four or five of the little warts from St. Louis. They decided to go explore and in the process got lost. So we called the Park Rangers and they issued an alert that there were some kids lost. There were guys on mules and horses and in pickups looking for them little turkeys. Found them. I gave them a choice of getting their britches tanned or bed with no supper. It was bed.

I think it was probably 10 p.m. or so that we turned the lights out and everyone in bed. I was usually wore out, so I'd hit the sack with the kids. Beds weren't much. Mine had a set of springs that sagged in the middle so my head and feet were up and my rump was down. But I was tired. Sometime in the night I'd wake up and the dorm was silent as a graveyard. I'd listen and then get suspicious. So I'd check out the boy's dorm and here I am and the other adult men and we are the only suckers in the dorm. It's empty. Girl's dorm was the same way. Only people left are us old-timers. I wore a pair of shorts to bed so I'd slip on my cowboy boots and get my flashlight and head to the cemetery. The whole bunch would be there telling ghost stories.

But considering everything it was an awesome experience. The adults had a blast, and so did the kids. And even today some 35 years later most everyone who went would go back again if they could. Some would go back for the getaway or simply getting away from the everyday rat race and spending a week with the ticks and bats and snakes. Some would go back for the friends and the visiting and the worship services. Some would go back for the clear dark nights and sunny days with no noise except for the birds chirping in the trees.

I miss going to Camp Lee. A good friend of mine and I would load up our lawn mowers and fishing poles and head to Camp Lee for probably two weeks. We'd mow the grounds and trim the trees and get the plumbing to work. We'd build a huge fire out in the front of the building and do some cooking over the fire. Dallas cooked many a pot of ham and beans over that fire. One year we ate deer steaks that a group from up in Michigan brought. Some nights we'd just sit by the fire and enjoy ourselves.

Always had coffee going. Most of the time it left a lot to be desired, but it was coffee. Always had camp the hottest days of the summer, and there was no AC so everyone sweated up a storm. Fans ran 24/7 in the dining room and in the dorms, and it was still hot. We always had some coolers full of iced water and tea. This was before bottled water so everyone had a cup. I miss the people and the getaway.

I kind of think we need an adult version of Camp Lee today where we lay aside our responsibilities and problems and cares and COVID and the rest and just get away and chill. We need to take the time to take a big cast iron pot and set it over a wood fire and fill it with some ham and beans and maybe too many onions. Or maybe another cast iron pot and fill with hamburger and chili beans and more onions. Or burn up some dogs and marshmallows. Or just sit by the fire no matter whether it is daylight or dark and chill. Sit in the darkness at night and stare at the stars.