Bible Based Christian Holiday Camp
If God can make the heaven and the earth, he can surely help you – pray!
Have faith, Jesus will return… no matter what we feel right now, good will triumph!
Got friends who don’t know Jesus? – pray for them!
God is with us, He is mighty, He is what we need… Where ever you are, spread the word this week!
Let God’s will be your will!
There is still time to book on to Warrior or Teen for the 2018 season…
Get in touch with the office today or use our online booking system to secure your place for possibly the best summer camp of all time!
We also need adults to come and be part of the team. There are all sorts of roles available, including tent leading, helping with set up & pack down, cooking, maintenance, life guarding, leading worship and pastoral support. Why not give the office a call for a chat about how you may be able to get involved?
If you are planning on coming to Warrior or Teen Camp to help this summer in any capacity, you need to come to one of our super awesome training days!
This year you can choose between one of two venues…
Please contact the office to book your place today!
It is with great sadness we share the news that Brian Bancroft passed away in February of this year. Please hold his family and friends in your prayers.
A tribute to Brian, written by Paul Round….
Imagine a field bathed in warmth by the early morning sun.
Rows of white round tents, set in groups sit peacefully – then we hear the sound of a bell, a gentle clanging and then a voice bursts into song. “All things bright and beautiful, all
campers great and small, Leaders wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all”. “He gave us beds to sleep on and tents in which to dwell and early in the morning you hear this little bell”.
Thousands of campers and adult leaders and helpers have woken to those sounds at WEC Teen Camp over many years as Brian brought the camp to life and started the day. At Teen Camp the daily routine of meals, meetings and activities were all announced by Brian, with his floppy hat, his fluorescent and often odd socks and his bell. This is how many of us will remember Brian.
It was back in 1971 when Brian first took young people to camp, first to Warriors and then as the group got older, to Teen Camp. For a time each summer he did a week at each. In the 1980s when there was no WEC Youth dept, Brian was part of a group who met to pray and plan for the summer and organise the Camp programme for Warriors and Teens. He has been part of the Camp Staff Team for around 35 years and for many of those years he, with Jean, has
been there when camp was set up and there when tents were packed away. He was a strong advocate for Warrior Camp and Teen Camp over many years.
With his jokes, his stories to keep everyone occupied if the kitchen team needed a few more minutes to get the meal ready and those phrases … regarding food ‘if it is going to go to waste, it might as well go to my waist’ ‘the battle for the morning is won the night before’ as he tried to hurry campers back to their tents … with those jokes, stories and
phrases Brian became a legend – and was described as such by many. He was as part of Camp as the tents, tables and benches. His end to every meal has become part of Teen Camp liturgy. “The water’s out “, Brian declares, to which the response is given, “you may wash up”.
Personally, I was privileged to have Brian as my right man for many years. A good friend, loyal, reliable, totally committed, faithful and with a servant heart. My memories are not just from the summer. Like guard dogs, at a camp reunion we’d position our beds between the boys’ and girls’ dorms to ensure no midnight meetings. At camp and through the year we enjoyed real deep fellowship together.
So why did Brian, (and Jean), spend their summer holidays on Camp? Why did they do this for so many years? One email I received just after Brian died described Brian as ‘a someone whose fervour for young people meeting Jesus was inspirational’. Brian loved Jesus and he wanted other people to know Jesus too.
WEC Camps has a strong discipleship and mission focus. Learning from God’s word, the Bible, is central and Brian was totally committed to seeing young people become, then grow as Christians. Brian was an encourager at many levels too, not least in helping the campers think about those serving God around the world. “Can your missionary afford to buy an ice cream? he would ask, perhaps before we took up the weekly offering. Over the years you would find Brian up front leading meetings, speaking, bringing truth from the Bible, but he was also someone who would work behind the scenes, getting on with those jobs no-one sees, checking this, servicing that, fixing something else.
We are all going to miss him. I’m going to miss his practical skill on set up week too. In recent years others have taken on up front roles, yet with his servant heart Brian was there again as usual last summer, just getting on with what needed to be done, from set up to pack up. We know he did love the old hymns – any excuse to sing Bread of Heaven as grace before a meal, particularly if it was hot rolls for breakfast but he also maintained that ability to engage with young people and encourage them on in their Christian faith.
He often described his role as that of a sheep dog – ensuring those wayward campers got to the right place at the right time. I don’t think we’ll ever know how many young people, wayward in a spiritual sense, have been gently directed into that pen, the Kingdom of God, through Brian’s work, both in word and deed over so many years. Brian would be the first to say it is all of God. He must have the praise and the glory and that is true, but it is also true that God recognises the ‘faithful servant’ who perseveres, even when life is tough, sticks at the task, is in it for the long haul, faithful to the end.
Brian was also a strong WEC supporter in other areas too, attending prayer and regional meetings, sending out A4 papers with testimonies. (WEC’s broadsheet ministry) and going down to help prepare Bulstrode (WEC HQ), for big events, including cleaning the windows and supervising car parking.
I’m sure you’ve heard the quotation ‘well done, good and faithful servant’ many times before. I’m sure that as Brian met his Lord, that is what was said.
Brian died on the morning of Tuesday 13 th February. He is now with his Lord Jesus. We give thanks for his life and all that he did to enrich WEC Camps, Warrior and Teen, over so many years.
Paul Round. March 2018.
The Teen Camp set list for 2018 has been revealed! You can get the tracks on Spotify and YouTube – head over to the Teen Camp Playlist page for more details and past tracks.
You are invited to the WEC Camp Taster Day!
Saturday 10th March 2018, 10am to 2pm at St John’s Church, Main Road, Southbourne, West Sussex, PO10 8LB.
Come and see what camp is like, meet others who are going and chat to some of the leaders. All welcome, ages 9+ (including 18+ who are interested in being on team). We will provide lunch & snacks, games, teaching and fun in true WEC Camp style. We hope to see you there – the taster day is all free!
Why not bring along a friend who might like to come to camp this summer?
If you come to the taster day and want to book on to camp brochures and forms will be available. You can take advantage of the early bird discount!
Parents: There will be a short consent form to fill in on arrival. It would also be helpful to know of any specific dietary needs in advance. If you are traveling to the area to bring your young person, there is plenty to do locally. There are some great costal walks around Southbourne, Prinsted and Thorney, and the village of Emsworth is just down the road. The City of Chichester is a short drive away with plenty of history, shopping, culture and places to eat.
Please contact Jon Robinson to confirm your place at the taster day, or for more information: 07969 230066 / jonny.robinson@gmail.com
Download the poster: WEC-Camp-Taster-2018.pdf
Church Website (for directions): www.stjohnssouthbourne.com
If you would like free daily Bible reading notes, have a look at the UCB ‘Word for you’ website. They publish a short daily verse and reflection to keep you rooted in God’s awesome word…
Have a look at: www.ucb.co.uk/wordforyou
We have put together a YouTube playlist of all the songs from WEC Camps 2017! See the Warrior Camp and Teen Camp menus above, or click below…
A huge thank you to all the campers, leaders, helpers, suppliers and prayers who made camp so good this year!
Watch this space for all the pictures, songs and stories from this years camp. If you have something awesome you would like to share, please get in touch with the office…
