All Are Welcome!

Summer Family Retreats.

Lives Restored has been working with Joni and Friends, International to bring an annual Family Retreat to Western Pennsylvania. The next Family Retreat will be held August 1-5, 2011 at Jumonville Camp and Conference Center. 

Joni and Friends Family Retreats.

In 2010 there were 24 Joni and Friends Family Retreats throughout the United States. These retreats offer families affected by disability the opportunity to have an assisted family vacation. We are pleased to announce that Joni and Friends has decided to start a BRAND NEW CAMP in Western Pennsylvania. Lives Restored is supporting this camp by mobilizing volunteers and family participants from the surrounding geography of Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and the Washington DC area. Read over this page for all sorts of information and resources about the camps. If you need additional information, please contact Calvin Clark at 724-678-6390 or by Email.

Families Affected by Disability.

Family Retreat is designed to give your special family a get-away that will refresh and encourage you. Jumonville Camp and Retreat Center offers comfortable cabins and appealing lodges in the beautiful Southwestern Pennsylvania Laurel Highlands. Add this to the people - the special families and volunteers – who create an atmosphere of acceptance that sets the tone for the week. Families share in zany programs, accessible activities, and times of spiritual nurture. In short order, excitement runs high, laughter is frequent, and bonds of friendship are made. Months of planning and a trained staff assure a safe environment so that the Western Pennsylvania Family Retreat is one place your family will not only feel welcomed, but celebrated. Join us August 1-5, 2011 to make a memory that will last a lifetime. There is a $50 deposit to reserve your spot and retreat costs are kept low with scholarships available to those who have a need. Contact us for an application.

Short Term Missionaires (STMs) to Assist Families.

Regardless of your level of experience, you can reach out in a meaningful way to one of the most unloved, unreached people groups right here in our own community - people affected by disability. We offer a one week opportunity to intensify your faith while making a lasting impact on others. If you join us, you'll help families experience all the excitement of being at camp: the recreation, the crafts, the games, and the outdoors. Together with other Short Term Missionaries you'll set an example of having fun and being still enough to hear the voice of God.

Many people are surprised to realize that 1 in every 5 people in the United States have a disability. Some of the families we serve have never been able to take a family vacation before because of the daily grind that is caused by the disability of one of their family members.

During the day you'll provide servant leadership with the children and youth…allowing moms and dads to attend seminars, hear passionate biblical teaching, and enjoy time together as a couple. You'll have free time in the afternoon to enjoy various amenities which may include climbing walls and ropes courses, mud pits, water sports and hiking trails. Then after free time you'll join back up with your family for exciting evening events.Through the simplicity of your service, you'll have the opportunity to build relationships where you can share the gospel... helping others find hope. Join us July 31 - August 5, 2011. Contact us for application information. Watch this (30 minute) video to see what it is like to be an STM.

Making Known the Opportunity:

Lives Restored is particularly anxious to support the Shawnee, Spruce Lake and Jumonville Joni and Friends Family Retreats because these three retreats are closest to our region. It is our goal to increase the number of organizations in our region who are providing help, hope and love to families and individuals affected by disability. 

The Ohio office of Joni and Friends has committed its resources in order to help us start a new camp in Western Pennsylvania. We want to make sure this new camp gets started with plenty of local support. Here are some publicity resources that we have used to spread the word:

A letter to colleges asking for student volunteers: (Microsoft Publisher, PDF)

Last Summer's Joni and Friends Ohio Newsletter: (PDF)

A Bulletin Insert: (Microsoft Word, PDF)

Jumonville Overview for Potential Families - 3 per page (Microsoft Word, PDF)

A Simple Retreat Advertisement: (Microsoft Word, PDF)

You should also look at the "Resources" listed elsewhere on this page to find a number of relevant videos.

If you would like to customize any of the above resources, please contact Cal Clark by Email or at 724-678-6390.

Resources:

To learn more about Family Retreat options for those near Western Pennsylvania: Contact Calvin Clark at 724-678-6390 or contact him by Email.

A list of all the Joni and Friends Family Retreats in the United States and Abroad (and their respective points of contact) can be found here. 

Pittsburgh volunteers will be serving and attending a number of different retreats in 2011: 

(1) Jumonville in Uniontown, PA (August 1-5);

(2) Shawnee in Friendship, OH (June 20-25);

(3) Canadensis, Pennsylvania (TBD); and 

(4) Wounded Warrior Camp (TBD).

You can watch videos for the camps here. You will find videos that cover topics about the importance of famly retreats, a mother's perspective, Short Term Missionaries (STMs), and others.

Here are excellent 30 minute videos that explain Joni and Friends Family Retreats in depth: 

1) A look from the perspective of one camper affected by Down Syndrome "When Robin Prays."

2) A look from the perspective of 4 camp volunteers "Family Retreat".

3) A look at the experience of a camp volunteer "Katherine's Smile."

For the official Joni and Friends Family Retreat Website click here. Information for Families is found at this link. Joni and Friends also has specific pages for Volunteers/Short Term Missionaries and for Church Leaders.