Bonclarken


A Year to Remember


thrilled to have each of these projects ready for our summer season, and they received rave reviews from our guests. Having three construction projects in motion at the same time and continu-


CHIP SHERER President


ing to provide our normal excellent service to our guests really stretched our staff during the spring. How blessed we are to have a staff of dedicated people who go the extra mile day after day for our guests. However, every person on our staff commented that what made 2019 seem


struction projects and a year when we did not host the annual meeting of General Synod. Our 2016 Strategic Plan called for


F


several new projects to enhance the experiences of our guests. Through our Today & Tomorrow


– The Campaign for Bonclarken, our generous donors provided funds for these projects---a renovation of Founders Hall, a new youth facility we are calling the Back Porch, and a renovation to our Front Entrance. Work began on each in late 2018 and was completed Spring 2019. We were


or us as a staff, 2019 will al- ways be remembered for two things: a year of many con-


very different from other years was our not hosting Synod. As you may know, Synod accepted an invitation from the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA) to hold concurrent Synods with them at their college, Gene- va College, in Beaver Falls, PA. I was able to attend Synod and was impressed with the fine job Geneva did as host. For us, Synod is the kick-off of our summer season. Synod always brings so


many guests and uses so many of our meeting spaces that we learn if we have any facility issues anywhere on the grounds. Without Synod, the start of the summer was so very different. One staff member said: “I enjoyed the break for one year, but let’s get Synod back on the schedule from now on!” As I look forward to 2020, there are a couple of items for you to know. For


the last few years, we have been transitioning from paper registration to on-line registration for Synod, Music Conference, and Family Bible Conference. 2020 housing registration for these three events will be through our Bonclarken web- site only. The on-line registration will allow you to select your room and pay your deposit the day online registration opens, which is February 3 for Synod and Family Bible Conference and May 15 for Music Conference. If you have any questions about this process, please let us know. I appreciate those of you who so faithfully read my columns. If you would


like even more information about the current happenings at Bonclarken, please sign up for our new monthly email newsletter. Go to our website, Bonclarken.org, scroll down to the bottom of the page, and click on SUBSCRIBE. You will be di- rected where to enter your email address. Finally, 2020 will be Bonclarken’s 99th year of ser-


vice to the ARP Church. 1922 was the year summer conferences were held here for the first time, and our Board is planning to celebrate Bonclarken’s 100th Birthday in 2022. In future months, watch for news on events planned for celebrating this milestone. Thank you for your interest in Bonclarken, and we hope to see you often in 2020!?


An Environment for Christian Inspiration and Renewal January/February 2020 9


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