August 22, 2024
Your NovusWay Board of Trustees had its regular Board meeting at Lutheridge on August 1-3, 2024. It was the last week of camp. There was great joy in participating in the Thursday night cookout at the Lake with the campers and staff and sharing meals with everyone in Lineberger on Friday. At our formal meetings, we covered a variety of items, and there is much to celebrate even as we continue to deal with the changing dynamics of church camp.
First, we welcomed three new Board members: Brian Lewis, Pastor Amanda Highben, and Pastor Steve Troisi. We are grateful for their gifts as they join us in helping to grow and strengthen this vital ministry. We were also grateful to welcome Bishop Tim Smith, the designated bishop for this meeting. On behalf of all four of our synodical bishops, he led us in devotions Saturday morning and provided insight into the state of the church.
The Board recently approved the addition of the new Property and Facilities Committee to help us better steward the many facilities at our four camps. Given the current capital campaign and other projects we have going on at all four camps, we agreed we needed a more organized way to support our camp staff by providing knowledgeable assistance and oversight for the maintenance and repair management of our buildings and other resources. Because we have this fourth standing committee to join our three long-standing committees, Finance, Governance, and Planning and Review, we reorganized our committee assignments at this meeting.
In expanding to four standing committees, we continue to rely upon non-board member volunteers to participate as members of our committees and share their expertise and experience. If you are interested in serving on a committee, please contact any Board member or our co-CEOs. We are especially interested in those with financial backgrounds serving on our Finance Committee, and those with construction, architecture, land management, environmental, and property management experience to serve on our new Property and Facilities Committee.
Our co-CEOs, Mitzie Schafer and Mike Ward, updated us on a successful summer camp season. Overall, we did not make our expected camper numbers. However, feedback from attendees was positive, and there were bright spots in attendance, such as our grandparent and family camper programs, which exceeded expectations. Your Board understands that church camps continue to change, reflecting changes within our church and overall societal changes. Our CEOs and program staff are already working to plan for next summer, considering how we can best meet the needs of our campers and families while also finding ways to grow participation.
Meanwhile, our registrations for hosted ministry programs for this fall are on track with our goals. To further support our ministry, we continue to look for ways to grow and expand the use of our camps. One recent development is we are actively marketing our camps as wedding venues. We will continue to seek out new opportunities for use of our camps that are consistent with our Mission so that revenue from these ventures can support our infrastructure and ongoing mission.
Interim co-CEOs Mitzie Schafer and Mike Ward outlined what they have learned thus far in their tenure as co-CEOs to help inform us in selecting a permanent CEO. After an honest and positive discussion, the Board decided to better solidify our financial and operational situation before beginning the search process. The Board expressed their gratitude to Mitzie and Mike for the great energy, enthusiasm, and leadership they provide to our staff and ministry each day. We have accomplished a lot this year. At our November meeting, which will also be at Lutheridge, we expect to have a more detailed discussion about how we move forward. We hope to have the permanent CEO in place in 2026.
Our Finance Committee reported that lower-than-expected summer registrations resulted in a negative budgeted variance as we received 90% of budgeted income versus spending 98% of budgeted expenses. However, the continued work of our co-CEOs to manage costs has offset some of those lost revenues. Mike and Mitzie shared that the generosity of individuals giving to our annual fund, the daily operations of camp, particularly summer camp, is growing. The Lutheridge 75th Birthday Campaign has gained 51 new donors, with many more returning contributors; we are closing in on securing the first million dollars in pledges, with plans to reach the increased $3.6 million goal. The Board approved a prioritized list of projects from the Lutheridge Master Planning Team. We will only begin construction on a project once the money is in hand. Several projects, such as the new roofs and mattresses at Lutheridge, have already been completed. We anticipate starting a targeted campaign for Lutherock this fall, given the North Carolina Synod’s authorization for an approved capital campaign for the Synod’s congregations. Projects for the other camps include a bridge at Lutherock, a director’s house at Lutheranch, and the possibility of adding solar panels at Luther Springs. We are also expanding a volunteer program at Lutheridge to help with routine maintenance and repairs, and we are looking for similar programs at the other camps.
The Board approved a plan to move the NovusWay offices into Efird Hall and for NovusWay to pay the expenses for the necessary buildout/remodeling costs from the Board Designated Fund and not from the Lutheridge 75th Campaign. This move and remodel will better utilize the space in Efird, allow for better customer service, and reconfigure Mission Hall as new housing for guests.
The Board approved the creation of an informal advisory committee to provide high-level generative discussion and collaboration on strategic ideas for the overall benefit of NovusWay. Generally, the group would meet once a year and coordinate with the Board President and the current CEO. This is an opportunity for high-level, strategic thinkers who care deeply for our camps to help provide big-picture ideas, serve as a sounding board to the Board, and share insights and guidance on concepts like improving our new camper pipeline and growing our endowment.
The Board will continue to meet monthly on the first Wednesday of the month, as necessary, via Zoom, which we have been doing since 2021. The Executive Committee also meets every other week with the co-CEOs to get updates and discuss other items that need to be handled between Board meetings.
The Board concluded the meeting feeling very positive about the ministry’s overall direction. Some serious challenges remain for us, both financially and operationally, but we are confident we have the right management structure and team to succeed. At our November meeting, we will work on the 2025 budget, which will build on the more realistic foundation and staffing we have in place now.
We appreciate the faithful service of our entire staff and the wonderful support of all our stakeholders and contributors. If you have not yet pledged or contributed to our programs or campaigns this year, we hope you will join us in the coming days. Thank you.
President Floyd Self, on behalf of The NovusWay Board
