ROSCOMMON, MI – Nathan and Beth Hill have a lifelong relationship with the Bambi Lake Conference Center. It’s not unlike the relationship that many Michigan Baptist church members and leaders have with the camp in Roscommon.
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Beth was just 10 years old when she came to Bambi for the first time, and every year after that she and her friends looked forward to each summer. She says, “You couldn’t wait to go. We would get together and talk about which summer camp we were going to go to and who would be there.” Nathan’s first camp was 17 years ago when he came to a Centrifuge Camp hosted by Lifeway.
Those first camps were just the beginning for both of them as they continued to come back year after year. When there were spiritual decisions to be made, Bambi was the place that offered guidance. Nathan says, “There were many countless walks around the lake to the cross at Bambi, and that’s really where I figured out my call to youth ministry.”
Beth would eventually go to work at Bambi Lake as a part of the camp staff, and Nathan served as a chaperone. It was two years ago that the pair first noticed each other, and last year that they were married. Beth says, “It’s a pretty big deal to go from being a student, to an adult, and getting married. You bring Bambi along with you.”
The Baptist State Convention of Michigan’s (BSCM) Director of Spiritual Enrichment and Retreats, Michael Schatz, says, “There is an amazing heritage here at Bambi. A heritage of life change, a heritage of friendships, and relationships that are continuing to this day. “
Nathan and Beth are now the middle school youth ministers at Warren Woods Baptist Church in Warren. They are bringing their students to Bambi Lake to share the kind of experience that they had. Beth says, “We as leaders get to take a step back to see this next generation coming and taking leadership positions.” Nathan adds, “They’re now in the shoes that we were in a few years ago.”
This year a portion of the Frances Brown State Mission Offering will go to the Bambi Lake Conference Center to increase it’s impact of starting, strengthening, and sending the churches of Michigan Baptists. If you would like to promote the offering in your church, there are resources to help at www.bscm.org/smo.
