The Qwanoes display at Missions Fest in Vancouver. Alicia (Camp Registrar) and Bethany (Staffing Assistant) in the front saying hello!

What a great weekend of connecting with so many wonderful people! It was awesome to see all the familiar faces and meet some new ones too. Thanks to all those that came by and said hello – it was great to see you! We truly enjoyed pinning on more “Live It Up” buttons than we could count! I even put on a few tattoos too!

Did you know there were about 250 ministries represented at Missions Fest!? It was incredible to walk into the convention room where all the  booths were set up. Everywhere I turned I saw displays and people who represented all the various ministries… I saw Bible colleges, other camps, ministries for youth, children, adults, homeless people, Christian radio stations, other country focuses, and the list could go on and on! If you ever get a chance to walk under the big white sails of Canada Place during Missions Fest you should definitely do it. It was so cool to see all the incredible things that God is doing around the world and for Qwanoes to be right in the middle!

Our Qwanoes students were at Missions Fest too taking it all in, from great speakers to topical sessions. Word has it that they even fit in a bike ride in Stanley park on tandem bikes!

Building the team one person at a time!

Camp counselor from summer 2011 giving a great big hug to some campers!

We are out and about all over the countryside looking for our summer team 2012! In fact just this last week we had staff in Alberta, Saskatchewan and of course right here in the Vancouver area inviting others to consider Qwanoes this summer. Slowly the team is coming together and starting to take shape one by one. It is exciting to see how it happens and how different people feel called to join up with us. Often people hear about Qwanoes through their friends, so if you know of anyone that you think would love joining the staff team, let me encourage you to share Qwanoes with them! We are looking for people who are excited about helping kids this summer discover, live and share life like no other!

Our Qwanoes display was set up in a giant room under the big white sails of Canada Place.

~ Written by Jay Kennedy, Qwanoes Assistant Director

Now that's a little different look of the qrok Tower! The Squirrel is hibernating coming up with all new songs!

We woke up Wednesday morning like many of you around Vancouver Island and Greater Vancouver area to a blanket of fresh snow! From our entrance sign all the way to the end of the dock, there was snow everywhere. The year-round staff gathered together in Club Coco for our Wednesday staff meeting and shared stories of how we all got to camp. I live close by, so I put on my snow boarding boots and followed Stevie-G’s trail all the way to Club Coco. Thanks Stevie-G for breaking the path! Check out more Qwanoes winter pictures on our Facebook page.

Snow is here now, but summer sun is coming soon!! We have had many campers reserve their spot for a week at Qwanoes. Every day now registrations are coming in of past campers, and brand-new kids who have never been here before. We can’t wait to welcome everyone to Qwanoes this summer!

Here’s an update for you on the new full length CD that the Squirrel is working on. He last reported writing 6 brand-new songs, and there are only 4 to go! I love the new theme song “Live It Up”, but another new favorite one of mine is a new song called “At Last I’m Home.” It is an awesome song and you will be able to listen to the song and watch our new video online real soon! Stand by on FB and Twitter for when it goes live! You’re going to love it! For now take a listen to the new theme song and watch a brand new mini slide show!

Qwanoes students heading up the chair lift at Mt. Washington!

Our students in our Kaléo program can’t wait for the summer too, but they are all loving the snow right now on Mt Washington. They headed up to the mountain bright and early on Monday morning at 5:00 am! You really have to love snowboarding and skiing to do that. They all stayed together in a mountain chalet right at the base of the ski hill. It’s been an awesome time of hanging out together, chapels in the evening, and just enjoying God’s creation. They are coming back to camp tonight, and heading out to the youth groups they help out with. You can go online to learn more about our Kaléo program for college-age students and follow the journey through the program blog. We are now accepting registrations for next year’s program.

We hope to see you at Missions Fest in Vancouver next weekend! We will have our camp booth up in the same spot as last year. Stop on by, we would love to see you!

Summer sun will soon be here at Qwanoes! We can't wait for giant water fights once again!

.

There were nerf bullets flying everywhere, staff dodging, and shooting to protect our kingdom from other kingdoms…. yes, I know what you are thinking… and yes we are just like campers… sometimes . When we weren’t competing in our own style of All Star Games, we were slowing down and taking time to reflect on all that God is doing in our lives personally and at Qwanoes. We took time together, to pray and look forward to all that God has in store for our new theme “Live It Up!” It was an awesome weekend to be together as a full-time staff team.

Cowichan Valley Youth Night is happening at Qwanoes tonight! It’s going to be one fun-filled night with lots of youth from around the Cowichan Valley. We have a night game planned, Quixotic will be playing along with a band of students from our Kaléo program, a message by Andrew Macdonald, and of course  Mug-Up! This is the third year we have been partnering with Cowichan Valley youth groups to put this on, and it is always a great night. The theme for the night is “ONE” – one valley, one night, one God. Looking forward to it!

Missions Fest Vancouver is coming up fast and we will have a Qwanoes booth set up once again! We really hope you stop by to say hello. We will have our new video/slideshow playing with the “Live It Up” theme song! We also have another video just out today with a brand new song for summer 2012. Be sure to stop by!

Have you received your SUMMER 2012 brochure yet!? They have all been mailed out, maybe your picture is in it or one of your friends! If you haven’t received your free brochure or you want more, it’s quick and easy to order them online and we will send them to you right away!

The new 2012 brochures are ready! Maybe your picture is in it?

Alicia, our Registrar (in the back), and Keerstin, Admin Support, were busy in the Qwanoes office this morning!

At 9:00 this morning the phones started ringing, online applications started coming, and registration for 2012 programs began! It was an exciting time as we have been waiting for this day ever since last summer ended. Much planning and preparation has gone into our new theme and 2012 programs, and we can’t wait to have campers back once again!

For all your registration needs please visit our website. It only costs $150 for a deposit to reserve your spot for summer 2012 – LIVE IT UP!

We gave you a sneak peek at the live unveiling of our summer 2012 theme in the last blog post, but here is the rest of the story…

At our Staff Retreat this past weekend, Qwanoes Executive Director Scott Bayley kept sharing more and more of what summer 2012 has in store…. Okay, let me take you there to show you what it was like! The way we announced the theme is with the Squirrel (Russ Smith) at the back of Club Coco ready to press play on the new theme song. Then the big screen came down and part of the new poster could be seen… and then at the same time the new theme was heard in the song, the Squirrel revealed the new theme logo on the screen! Reading about it is just not the same as seeing it… is it? So how about we just show you on  Twitter!

What a great way to bring in the New Year with the excitement of knowing a whole new adventure called “LIVE IT UP” awaits all who will be part of Qwanoes this year! Here are a few pictures of what happened at the sneak peek of the new theme – go to our Facebook for even more photos.

Don’t miss watching the new LIVE IT UP video and hearing our new theme song! Way to go Squirrel (Russ Smith)…it’s another amazing creation!

Check out our new SUMMER 2012 page! Just click on the link and scroll down to find the LIVE IT UP logo. Be one of the first to share it with your friends!

Scott Bayley, sharing new LIVE IT UP 2012 theme!

The new posters are here and will be mailed to your house soon!

The new LIVE IT UP banner looks great outside of Club Coco!

January 3rd at 9:00 am is a very significant time and date around here at Qwanoes. That’s when registration begins and we’ll be standing by on our computers,  phones, fax machine and in person to hear from you! We can’t wait to have many campers register for a week at camp for what could be our greatest summer ever! (By the way, it only takes a $150 deposit to reserve your spot.) For more registration info please go to our website.

Smoke, lights, party hats, music and fireworks! It's hard to capture it all in one picture!

What a great weekend we just had celebrating the New Year with many of our summer 2011 staff team. I think the best word to describe this very special weekend is “appreciation.” Our summer staff are so important to us here at Qwanoes and we want them to know how much we and all our campers love them! There is something special about bringing in the New Year together in such a meaningful way. We pulled out all the stops and enjoyed a great speaker (Sid Koop) who helped us look back at our year and challenged us to look ahead to 2012. We had late mornings and late nights all weekend long!

During the mornings we turned the dining hall into a special Qwanoes restaurant where our summer staff were waited on by year-round staff. It was quite a menu! Fom french toast to waffles and mountains of whip-cream and eggs anyway they chose! We even had special room service in the morning! We love spoiling our summer staff and they are such a huge part of Qwanoes. It seemed like there was always food available…like special mug-ups including chicken wings and nachos and snack food at the back of Club Coco. Hot tub, SkyScraper, games, free long-distance phone calls to friends around the world, Quioxtic, a full evening banquet with an awesome slide show looking back at summer 2011 and all that God has done. Thank you summer staff 2011 for a great year and weekend!

Another big part of the weekend was the sneak preview of SUMMER 2012. You could just feel the anticipation in the room as everyone was on the edge of their seat waiting for the big announcement of what the theme would be! There we were on Saturday afternoon just moments away from hearing the new theme song and the announcement from Scott Bayley, Qwanoes Executive Director. Then it happened, the theme song started playing and everyone listened intently for any clues to what it could be! Come back January 3rd for the official launch to summer 2012 and discover the theme for yourself!

We hope to see you this summer! There was so much excitement in the room when the new 2012 announcements kept going and going with brochures, tattoos, buttons, posters, displays, banners, theme song, T-shirts and MORE! Come back on January 3rd to see more pictures of the sneak preview that took place at our staff retreat.

.

So what’s new for summer 2012 at Qwanoes?! Even more fun, always new adventures! Here’s a small glimpse at what’s ahead…

Try it out this summer!

Try out the latest surf sensation – paddle surfing – this summer at Qwanoes Beach! Known as Hoe he’e nalu in Hawaiian, stand-up paddle surfing is actually an ancient form of surfing that emerged in Hawaii and is now exploding in popularity globally.

Watch out below!

The Aqua-Park just keeps growing… let’s see who can make the biggest splash on our new Aqua Rope Swing! The Super Slide has been so popular that we’re adding another amazing slide option, a new 10 foot tall Freefall Slide!

Inspired by the addition of our new paddle surfing activity – we’ll be throwing giant Surf-O-Rama beach-theme parties at our Junior High and Youth Camps, and running Surf-A-Rama carnivals at our Juniors Camps and Family Retreats!

For the latest on Qwanoes as it happens, and for some fun, encouragement and interaction, you can now follow us at twitter.com/qwanoes! We are excited about Twitter because it’s a simple, instant, and very efficient way of communicating and connecting with a lot of people.

We’re committed to making this the best summer ever at Qwanoes – and we sure hope that you’ll be a part of it! Check it out online! for much more info about our featured new activities and adventures for 2012.

Your cow apron is looking good, Alberto!

At the end of last week, we had our Qwanoes staff Christmas party for all the year-round staff and families. After enjoying a great dinner out together, we all headed back to Russ & Michelle Smith’s home for yummy desserts, Christmas carols, and a fun gift exchange. The most traded-for item of the night was a Disney Scene-It game with Buzz Lightyear on the front – our Executive Director Scott Bayley had it twice but lost it in the end! Gifts also included a “cow & flowers” apron, Duck Shoot game, and the Justin Bieber Christmas ornament that ended up on the Squirrel’s (a.k.a. Russ) Christmas tree!

A few staff members were noticeably absent from the Christmas party – but for a very good reason because a very special wedding was happening the very next day! On Saturday, Dec. 3rd, two of Qwanoes’ year-round staff members, Chris Downey (Staff Team Coordinator) and Alicia Marshall (Registrar) were married in Parksville. After their honeymoon, we look forward to welcoming them back to Qwanoes as they start out on their married life together. We wish you the very best, Chris and Alicia!

Congratulations, Chris & Alicia!

Also last week, our students in the Kaléo program took their last course of the fall semester, Gospels, with Wes Olmstead from Briercrest College. Through the fall the students have been receiving quality Christian college education and leadership training, experiencing outdoor adventures, and taking part in ministry in camp, local churches, and in the area. It is so great having all of them as part of the community at Qwanoes! A couple of days ago, staff and students enjoyed a delicious Christmas turkey dinner together in the Qwanoes dining hall followed by a talent show in Club Coco. We’re excited that the students are coming up to the halfway point in their year and we look forward to seeing them back here in January.

A peek at our students in class with Wes Olmstead.

It is only 25 more days until registration begins for 2012!! Right now, we’re working hard to make sure that the new summer 2012 brochure, new poster, new staff and CIT application brochures, and all the other new stuff is ready to go. New activities and events are being planned, new music is being written and recorded, shirt colours are being picked, and logos are being designed.

We can’t wait to launch our 2012 theme and to start to take summer registrations on January 3rd!

A few of the guys from the worship band from The Meeting Place in Nanaimo.

The last of the men from our Men’s Retreat just rolled out of Qwanoes, and with their departure ends our Fall retreat season at Qwanoes. It was a great weekend with the men, with so many great memories to take away. We had an awesome band here from The Meeting Place in Nanaimo. They bring a lot of energy and excitement to the stage as we enter into our worship times together. Steve Sundby from Saanich Baptist church in Victoria was our speaker, and he got right to the point in many areas as we talked all about what the Bible says it means to be a true man through the series “Play The Man.” So many men commented on how it was just good to be at Qwanoes with friends, good food, and a quality time of reflection and time to just be together as guys. On Saturday night after a great session together, it was cool to see some watching the Canucks win yet another hockey game! Others having a big fire down at the fire circle and still others having a soak in the hot tub. So many great options over the weekend. Some of my favorite times were having a great steak meal together, plus late night nachos and chicken wings! We already can’t wait for next year… but we hope to see many of the men back for our family events soon.

Wow! Another foot and the water would be right where everyone puts their towels during the summer!

Qwanoes looks a little bit different during the winter, and there is one place right now where that is very obvious. Remember where the tideline usually ends during the summer? You can always usually take a walk on the beach or at least on the rocks by the beach. Well, as you can see by the picture that is just not the case right about now. Julie Bayley, our Associate Program Director, couldn’t believe her eyes when she snapped this picture. Can you believe it?!

And as a chapter is quickly coming to a close here at Qwanoes another exciting one is about to begin! That’s right – SUMMER 2012!! And we all can’t wait for our campers and their friends to start signing up for camp on January 3rd at 9:00 am. Be one of the first ones to go online and check out the new summer theme which will be unveiled on our website on January 3rd! Russ, the Squirrel, is working hard in the studio coming up with a brand new full-length album including our new theme song. The 2011 theme “HERE WE GO” brought us so many great memories and things we learnt that will always stay close to our heart… but as we look ahead to summer 2012 and the unveiling of our new theme, we can’t wait for it to start all over again!

Stay tuned for more info on what is coming for 2012!

Storm lining up for a nice hot Club Coco drink!

This afternoon I ran into our camp speaker for the weekend, Storm Moore. It’s great to have Storm back once again! I have to be honest though…I didn’t really run into Storm, I went out looking for him during activity time and I knew it wasn’t going to be hard to find him. You see…it was a little chillier today, and I knew Storm was in one of two places, he was either going to be warming up by the Club Coco fireplace or lined up for a nice warm drink from the Coco Hut. That’s right if you guessed it! He was at the CocoHut! Storm said he was excited about two things this weekend…  1. talking about how God makes a BIG difference in our lives and 2. a piping hot drink from Club Coco!

Playing Mario Cart by a nice warm Club Coco fire!

Club Coco is one nice, warm place to be to be on a chilly day – that’s for sure! If you take just one look around you’ll see so many different options to kick back with some friends and have some fun. On one end there was a roaring fire going that was warming up the whole room. There’s only one thing that makes a nice fire even better on afternoons at Qwanoes during a retreat… playing Mario Cart! I saw a few campers battling it out on the big screen! If you turn around to other parts of Club Coco there are options galore! There were campers playing carpetball, foosball, battle top arena, bubble hockey, and some were just kicking back with friends. Got to love Club Coco… especially after being outside on a Fall fun-filled afternoon swinging from trees or climbing to the top of the Elevator in the challenge course!

A couple campers enjoying the Club Coco couches and a drink. So good to be here!

The night is still young at Qwanoes! There is still so much left to do! It’s Q-Town right now, and then an awesome night game coming up right after that called “Firestorm!” I heard it involves water balloons and fire! Now that’s going to be exciting. Then off to invade the town wave pool, water slides and hot-tub! Oh and don’t forget about Mug-Up!

It’s been a great retreat season for our students in our Kaléo leadership program! They have been involved in every retreat and done an amazing job! You can see lot of pictures of our students serving on our Kaléo program blog.

It’s hard to believe how fast time flies as our retreat season is quickly coming to an end. The Men’s Retreat is coming up in just two weeks and it’s not too late to sign up! Our youger campers have had their turn, and now it’s time for the men! If you would like more information or want to register, visit us online today!

Qwanoes summer registration is under two months away!

Christmas? Yes, that too! But something else that is two month away is the first day to register for SUMMER 2012 at Qwanoes. We can’t wait to welcome you into what promises to be another great summer. Stevie-G is thinking up new games, Russ the Squirrel is working on the secret new theme song and a brand new full length CD! I wonder what the theme is going to be!?? Well come on back in just under two months and you’ll be one of the first to find out right on our website. For now… put on your camp DVD, or Q-Town tunes, kick back and think warm summer thoughts!

Some of our campers aren’t waiting until the summer! They are here right now during our Junior High Retreat! Everything that is great about the summer packed into an action packed weekend. Today has been filled with great food, awesome games, Q-Town talks and cabin discussion, activity times, music, Club Coco and more! Tonight we think warm thoughts and take over the town pool & hot tub and more Q-Town time!

All-Star games friday night! Now that is one mascot who is proud of her team colour!

Dan King, who is the youth pastor from a church in Parksville, is our speaker this weekend. I caught up with Dan on the Club Coco deck and he had this to say about what the challenge is for this weekend: ” Our theme this weekend is ‘Brighter Yet’ and we are talking all about how Jesus brings light into the darkness and shows us what real life is all about and how we can walk with confidence in who he made us to be and created us for.” What a great message for the campers as they dive into all the fun of camp including some pretty big challenges on life.

From left to right - Nicole, Shannon, Sarah, Cassia and two staff Kathleen and Tessa getting ready for the Sky-Scraper!

I ran into some girls who just  finished getting off the Sky-Scraper and then headed to Club Coco to hangout and have some treats. I asked the girls how they were liking the retreat and boy oh boy…are they ever liking the retreat! All of them at the same time answered my question! I heard, ” I love the food, my counselor is the best, the Sky-Scraper was soooo fun!” Nicole mentioned that staying in the Qwanoes Pacific Woods Lodge is like staying in a hotel for kids! Shannon said: ” I love the warming feel and atmosphere at Qwanoes, feeling loved by everyone.” That was all very cool to hear!

There are still two more retreats coming up to conclude our Fall retreat season. We have the Senior High retreat coming up next weekend followed by the Men’s retreat! So it’s not too late to jump in on the Fall retreat action. See you soon!

On Friday night we had an awesome kick off with Quixotic. Click on the picture and listen in! Qwanoes Q-Town

Click on the picture to listen to the Quixotic band playing on Friday night!