LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
The State of CAMP: A report on the CAMP Rehoboth Project Advisory Committee |
by Murray Archibald |
As the tenth year of CAMP Rehoboth comes to a close, we stand on the threshold of not only a new year, but a whole new direction as well. Growth over the last decade has been steady, and the support strong and CAMP Rehoboth has become a vital part of the tapestry that is Rehoboth and her extended communities up and down the east coast. There has been much talk over the last year about the proposed expansion of CAMP Rehoboth to a full service Community Center. In fact, it would be hard to find an issue in this season's Letters that doesn't mention it somewhere, and it was a major topic of conversation at the big November 4 meeting of the CAMP Rehoboth Project Advisory Committee. The Project Advisory Committee, for those of you who don't know, is the creative, working arm of CAMP Rehoboth. It's open to anyone who wishes to participate, and it's "where the action is" as the saying goes. From reports on the various projects and programs of CAMP Rehoboth to discussions on philosophy and direction, the meetings are breathing energy into the work of CAMP and opening the doors for new leaders and volunteers. The meeting began with a reminder of where we've been and what CAMP Rehoboth is all about. As part of that, an "umbrella" chart was used to show how CAMP Rehoboth becomes the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center and all the programs fit within it. Letters, Sundance, the support groups for men and women, a tourist bureau, CAMPsafe, The Women's Project, a resource library, social events, community meeting space and a future youth and health program all fall under the umbrella vision that is CAMP Rehoboth and the Community Center. The CAMP Rehoboth Community Center Project is the means by which we will accomplish that expansion. The first part of the meeting focused on reports. CAMP Rehoboth treasurer Natalie Moss gave an excellent presentation on the year-to-date CAMP Rehoboth financialsincluding Sundance. She was followed by Sal Seeley discussing the state of CAMPsafe, our HIV/AIDS prevention program; a report on The Women's Project by Maggie Shaw; and reports by Peter Robinson and Libby Stiff on the gay men's and women's support groups. Much of the rest of the meeting was devoted to discussion of the Community Center. Com-munity Center Project co-chair Dan Goren began discussions by talking about what works in other gay and lesbian community centers around the country. "We're in great shape," he said, "because CAMP Rehoboth is already doing so much of the work of a community center, and because Letters from CAMP Rehoboth is such a success." The big questions on everyone's mind, of course, are where the Center will be and how much it will cost. It was decided early on to keep the Center in downtown Rehoboth. That means that it will be expensive. Early time lines have set five years to raise money and get established. Natalie Moss began the process by presenting plans for the Capital Building Fund to be kicked off in the springthe centerpiece of which will be The Founder's Circle. The Founder's Circle will offer different levels of support ranging from $100 to $15,000, with donors names being given to tiles, bricks, doors and rooms. A detailed brochure/mailer on The Founder's Circle is scheduled for production over the winter. Maggie Shaw concluded the meeting with a series of break-out sessions that involved discussions about building relationships with other organizations in the area and meeting their needs. "We feel it's important to enroll other organizations at this point," she says, "to have input about their needs from the very beginning." The meeting was both exciting and encouraging for me. It's exciting to see and hear all the ideas and support coming from the community, and it's encouraging to see the incredible people who are getting involved. Some of these discussions began ten years ago when we first started CAMP Rehoboth, but now they are becoming a reality. We are all constantly amazed by the incredible work and support of our community, and the Community Center will depend on a dedicated group of volunteers to make it happen and to keep it running. As I said at the meeting last week, I hope that everyone will get involved in some part of the project. Whether it's fundraising, program development, PR, or volunteering for events, the more people involved, the better the result will be. The vision of the Community Center Project is to be the heart of the community. The mission says: The CAMP Rehoboth Com-munity Center is an inclusive space with and without walls, which creates and nurtures a focal point for connecting people, activities and resourcesembracing diversity as an essential component. The Center is the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community's contribution to creating a home for all." If we really listen and live up to the words contained within our mission statementinclusivecreates and nurturesconnectingembracinga home for allI don't think we can fail. There were 38 people at the November 4 meetinga great turnoutbut there's always room for more. All the meetings of the Advisory Committee and the Community Center are open to anyone interested in participating. We need a diversity of skills to make this happen. If you would like to receive notice about meetings or get involved in any of the programs and projects of CAMP Rehoboth, call or email us. We need you. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 10, No. 15, Nov. 22, 2000. |