LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth                             

On the inside cover of this magazine, there is a box which contains the CAMP Rehoboth Mission Statement and Purpose. It was written back in 1991 when CAMP Rehoboth was created, and has not been changed over the years. It still provides the base for all that we do, and should not be confused with the vision statement written for the Community Center Project a few years ago, and which I wrote about in the last issue. The vision "to be the heart of the community" defines the spirit of CAMP Rehoboth, the Mission Statement is our law, our constitution, the base upon which we operate and upon which our decisions are made.

By comparing what we do each year with our Mission Statement, we know where we are succeeding and where we are failing. It shows us our strengths and our weaknesses, and provides a kind of gauge for us to judge how well we are doing. It also tells others who we are, though I know from conversations over the years that many people skim right over it and don’t take the time to really think about what it means.

Take the Film Festival for example. CAMP Rehoboth is a big supporter of the Festival, and that support will most likely increase in the coming years because it stands up so well to the mission of CAMP Rehoboth. Certainly it creates a more positive environment, not just for gays and lesbians, but for all of us in the Rehoboth Beach area. The diverse selection of films from around the world brings our community together in ways that very few other things are capable of doing. It sparks discussions about a vast range of concepts, visions, and ways of life important to us as human beings. Our Mission Statement calls us to promote artistic expression and creative thinking—what better ground than the Film Festival. Our Mission Statement calls us to be a networking organization, connecting wherever we can—what better way than the Film Festival. Examined in the light of our Mission Statement, the Film Festival is an easy choice to make.

Not all our choices are that easy, but both the Board of Directors and the staff of CAMP Rehoboth are committed to making as many connections as possible. In the process of doing that, we’ve seen the lines that separate our community into tidy little compartments become blurred—and that’s a good thing because it shows us growing as a community. Following this article is a list of many of the activities and events in which we participated during the last year, as well as organizations with whom we partnered in some way or another. Upon examination, this list reveals the many ways that we move through the community and in the process live up to the challenge of our Mission Statement.

The list was compiled by CAMP Rehoboth’s Administrative Coordinator Kathy Weir, who is herself one of our great community treasures, and one of the reasons why CAMP Rehoboth is able to connect in so many ways to so many people. She called it "some of the many, many, many things we do," and it provides a great overview of 2003.

As the year comes to a close, I’m a little relieved because it has been so busy—but I’m also excited. In the months ahead we will be working on a strategic plan for CAMP Rehoboth, as well as on identity issues. The Founders’ Circle has passed the $600,000 mark on its way to raising a million dollars, and plans for the design and building of the new Community Center are well under way. We are delighted that Andrea Andrus has become a full-time employee of CAMP Rehoboth, her position expanding from Founders’ Circle Director to CAMP Rehoboth Development Director.

2004 will be the 14th year of CAMP Rehoboth. As we continue to grow—and learn—the Mission Statement and Purpose will remain our guide. My thanks to all who have worked this past year to make all the many, many, many things on Kathy’s list a reality.

Kathy Weir’s List of Some of the Many, Many, Many Things We Do

• Publish Letters From CAMP Rehoboth
• Publish The Beach Book
• Act as an informal Tourist Bureau/Chamber of Commerce
• Provide referrals for just about anything (Doctors, Caterers, Lawyers, etc.)
• Sell tickets for an assortment of organizations and events (AIDS Delaware, SCAC, Wilmington Avenue Block Party, Concerts, Bingo, plus anything remotely associated with CAMP Rehoboth)
• Assist in the production and execution of the Beach House Rush Party in Washington, DC
• Provide Sensitivity Training for both the Rehoboth Beach Police Department, and the Delaware State Park Police
• Support of other organizations/events through donation of Auction Items and/or Advertising (HERO, HRC (2x year), Mautner Project, Miss Gay Delaware, AIDS Delaware, Beebe Medical Center, Gay & Lesbian Community Center of Baltimore, Project Renewal Charity Auction
• Donate advertising space to non-profit agencies and events. In 2003 we donated 160.5 pages of ad space valued at $63,397.50)
• Love 2003 and Love 2003 Retro Dance with Martha Wash/4th of July Dance Benefit for SCAC, CAMP Rehoboth (promotion, production)
• Bachelor Auction (promotion, production assistance)
• Follies 2003/Amateur Skit Competition (promotion, production)
• Sundance 2003/Auction/Dance Labor Day Weekend Benefit for SCAC and CAMP Rehoboth (entire event/150 volunteers, 504 Sponsors, Supporters, Hosts)
• CAMPsafe/State Funded AIDS Prevention Program (outreach at beaches, bars, guesthouses in Rehoboth area and in straight bars in Dewey Beach)
• GMHP (Gay Men’s Health Project) Testing & Counseling, CAMPchats, Social Group, Web Intervention for Gay Men
•CAMPsafe Condom Packaging Parties/Condom Distribution
• Women’s Project Annual Conference/12 workshops (entire event)
• Women’s Project Conference Concerts Suzanne Westenhoefer/ Barbara Higbie and Teresa Trull (production, promotion)
• Women’s Project Seminars (blood pressure, smoking cessation, bone density screening)
• Official collection site for Call to Protect (old cell phones donated to Motorola for re-programming and distribution to domestic violence victims)
• Support Groups (promotion, space and/or support) Gay Men’s Support Group, Gay Women’s Support Group, Youth Group, Transgender Group, Mental Health Project
• World AIDS Day Candlelight Walk and Service of Remembrance and Hope/The Rehoboth Ribbon Project/December 1 (with SCAC, promotion, production, organization)
• Founders’ Circle Capital Building Campaign for the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center ($600,000 pledged)
• Reception for the Mautner Project
• Friday Morning Yoga Class
• Showing of No Secret Anymore (collaboration between the Women’s Project and Rehoboth Beach Film Society)
• Founder’s Circle Open House with DPK&A Architect Bob Hotes
• Black & White Beach Ball/Founders’ Circle Event (entire event)
• HeART of the Community Art Project and Auction

• Beach House Rush Party
• Bear Hugs for Babies Diaper Drive
• Delaware Guidance Coloring Book Collection
• Distribution of Candy from Snyders Candy to SCAC, Meals on Wheels
• DestinationArt
• Dolphin Project
• Dolphin Auction
• Wilmington Avenue Block Party
• Chef’s Best Brunch for Meals on Wheels
• Book Signing for Sarah Aldridge/Anyda Marchant
• Delaware Pride Celebration at North Shores
• Salisbury University Pride Day Information Table
Agencies we support through participation, donation, advertising...
• CHEER Centers Sussex County Senior Services (mailings)
• Sussex County AIDS Committee (fundraising, advertising, ticket sales, ornament sales, support whenever needed, referral of item donations from individuals)
• Rehoboth Beach Film Society and the Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival (advertising, production, sponsorship, donation of van, volunteers, set of 8 prints for silent auction)
• Human Rights Campaign (advertising, auction donations twice a year)
• HERO (advertising, auction donation)
• Beebe Medical Center and the Beebe Medical Foundation (auction donation, Thanksgiving Ball decorations)
• Rehoboth Beach Main Street (advertising, donation, Dolphin Auction decor assistance)
• Meals on Wheels (advertising, food donations, Steve Elkins on planning committee for Chef’s Brunch)
• AIDS Delaware (advertising, ticket sales)
• Rainbow Chorale (advertising, ticket sales)
• Metropolitan Community Church (advertising, ticket sales)
• Rehoboth Beach Fireworks (advertising, donation)
• Rehoboth Day Care (food donations)
• Rehoboth Beach Public Library (book sale set-up, volunteers)
• Rehoboth Art League (advertising)
• Rehoboth Homeowners Association (mailing)
• Henlopen Theater Project (mailings, yard sale set up, advertising)
• Greyhound Reach the Beach Weekend (loan of easels to the Greyhounds for Art show)

Awards in 2003

LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 13, No. 15  November 26, 2003

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Website updated December 2003. Email us at editor@camprehoboth.com.