Balance and Vision
Though there have been some bright spots, the economic recovery in this country continues to be painfully slow, and budget matters remain a constant source of heated debate for both State and Federal governents, businesses, and non-profit organizations.
Here at CAMP Rehoboth, we have a wonderful base of supporters, but like organizations everywhere we are still struggling to keep our budget in line with the reality of today’s financial situations.
Last week I heard Delaware Governor Jack Markell speaking about the economy. “This is a time to tighten budgets,” he said, “everyone must. But more importantly, we need to create jobs.” That’s a “catch 22” isn’t it? We need to create jobs we can’t afford to create in order to jumpstart the economy and get things really moving again.
To do that we need a clear vision for the future.
I once had a Magic Eight Ball, but that’s about as close as I can come to being able to predict the future. Predicting the future is not the same thing, however, as having a clear vision for what lies ahead. Vision is about creating something new—about being able to see where we would like to be, and then finding the road that will take us there.
In a well balanced world, budget and vision support one another. In tough economic times it is all too easy to sacrifice vision for budget. It seems to me, however, to be the creative vision itself that will provide the way to a more stable and balanced future.
America was built on an inventive, visionary spirit; so was CAMP Rehoboth. We had a vision of what we wanted to build, and we have grown into something that looks very like the original ideas set forth more than two decades ago.
The world is a rapidly changing place, and I’m not particularly qualified to talk about the state of our nation; I have been, however, and remain, deeply connected to CAMP Rehoboth. Its history is my history, and its vision has been very close to my heart. From the beginning we found the courage to live into the vision of the organization, even when those around us swore it would never work.
Building CAMP Rehoboth has been a passion of mine over the years, and continues to be. Looking ahead, however, I’m convinced that we have two choices. The first is to let the economic issues we face dictate the direction we take in the future; the second is to make our decisions from a visionary perspective—and by that, I in no way mean to imply a fiscally irresponsible one. I think it’s just two different styles of leadership—two different ways of approaching the same problem—but with potentially very different outcomes.
Over the last 21 years, our goal of “creating a more positive” Rehoboth Beach has seen great success. Our vision “to be the heart of the community” has directed our efforts to grow into the full service Community Center we are today.
And yet, I continue to think about a new vision for the future of CAMP Rehoboth. How do we embrace who we are as an organization and as a community, and at the same time rise to the challenges of the changing world around us? How do we see the role of CAMP Rehoboth in 10 years? In 20 years?
Later this month, the Board of Directors of CAMP Rehoboth will gather for our annual summer retreat, and there will be many issues affecting our future on the agenda, including both budgetary and visionary ones. I hope that even as we work to address the budgetary ones, that it is our vision that will set our tone and our direction.
One of the big changes here at CAMP Rehoboth over the last few years was the development of our Membership Program. As can be seen from the membership list on pages 32 and 33 of this magazine, it has been successful, and our budget depends on the income from it. The interesting thing about the Membership Program is that if enough people become members and pledge their support for the work of CAMP Rehoboth, we will never be forced to make our decisions from a strictly monetary perspective. We can then operate in a fully balanced state between budget and vision.
That puts the Membership Program in a different light doesn’t it? With each of us giving a little every month, we have the power to change the world around us and to provide financial security for the Community Center and for the future.
Murray Archibald, Founder and President of the Board of Directors of CAMP Rehoboth, is an artist in Rehoboth Beach.