Church guide

Jr. Boy's cabin singing "Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho" for campers at Mountain View Bible Camp's Thursday night campfire. The fire is blazing as the sun is setting. Come make some special memories this summer! For more information, call 276-733-2674.

Walter "Tater Man" Terrell will be speaking at the Pioneer Day Camp of Mountain View Bible Camp in Dugspur, VA, June 20 - 24. Walter is with the Rock of Ages Prison Ministry, and speaks in numerous churches, schools, and children's home. Known as the "Tater Man", Walter is an engaging preacher who connects with young folks and keeps their attention while he shares the gospel and Bible truths! :-) https://www.facebook.com/events/1706769579560820/

THE SEVENTIETH SUMMER OF MOUNTAIN VIEW BIBLE CAMP Though brimming with stories and overflowing with memories, one of the oldest summer camps in the area may just be the hidden gem of this area of the Blue Ridge. Since the 1940's, a little known camp in Dugspur has given youngsters the quintessential camping experience. Counting the red barn days on Little Reed Island Creek, this summer will be the seventieth that hundreds of children have spent time away from home and closer to nature at Mountain View Bible Camp. THERE'S JUST SOMETHING ABOUT IT. A week of hiking, swimming, Bible study, crafts, games, and sleeping on a bunk bed in a rustic cabin with screens for windows, suits Jed Carrick just fine. The sixteen year old has been to several larger "more fancy camps with lots of attractions," but prefers the simplicity of Mountain View. "There's just something about it," he ponders. "The other camps are fun, but this camp is fun and also more relaxed with time to get to know and enjoy your friends. It's more personal." Richard and Mary McHenry, graduates of Lancaster Bible College in Pennsylvania, started the camp. Friends of theirs from college days lived in Sylvatus, and through letter communication learned of a local invalid, Hazel Lindsey, who was earnestly asking God to send a young minister and his wife to start a church and Sunday School near her home in the Hillsville area. After visiting Ms. Lindsey, the McHenry's moved to Carroll County and started the Calvary Bible Church. In 1947, they learned of a Recreation Camp on Little Reed Island Creek in Hillsville. Attracting their attention was a red barn on the property, where they began taking children for a two-week camping experience with many of the meetings and activities taking place in the barn. Blankets were hung for room divisions for sleeping. Adding to the get-away-from-it-all experience was the fact that the children were carried to the barn in the back of a truck. The creek was the swimming pool, and parents were invited to come for Sunday dinner. Jim and Snowy Hall, Winfield and Stella Strock, and Harold and Grace Fenstermaker, all local pastors and their wives, pitched in to help. In 1949, Mountain View Bible Camp was established on church property. About three acres were purchased in 1946 with financial help from Mt. Calvary Church in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. The church property didn't have a handy barn, so tents were used. By 1950, a dining hall and two cabins were built by the church family. In 1955, about two more acres were purchased and a concrete pool installed. THE JOY RANCH CONNECTION. It was through Mountain View Bible Camp that Joy Ranch, another locally beloved organization, started. In the early days of the camp, Mary McHenry was reading the mail to her husband. "Listen to this," she exclaimed with letter in hand, "This lady says: 'There's a boy in our community who has no home. He stays with one and then another of the families in this area, but no one can keep him permanently. I must tell you he is undisciplined and hard to manage. Would you be willing to take him for the older boys week of your Bible camp?'" "Of course we will!" exclaimed her husband. "Why not?" Mary McHenry, reminiscing in her book, Feed My Lambs, the Joy Ranch Story, vividly remembered that the orphan lad loved every minute of camp, was one of the first to respond to the invitation to come to Christ, "and when the week ended he had become one of the most cooperative boys in the group." But the question of what would become of the boy stirred the hearts of the pastor and his wife. "At the close of the week we were the most miserable. What would happen now to our young friend? Where would he go? Would anyone give him a home? And in that soil of misery God planted a seed that would germinate eight years later and grow into Joy Ranch, a home for boys and girls who needed care." Alvin and Juanita Thomas, now in their nineties, remember a long-standing close relationship between Joy Ranch, Calvary Bible Church, and Mountain View Bible Camp. "I remember the big yellow bus bringing the Joy Ranch children to church," Juanita recalls. "And the McHenry's brought the children to the camp for years," Alvin confirms. And again this summer, Joy Ranch children will be participating at the camp, and a number of Joy Ranch staff family members will be volunteering as counsellors and kitchen help, as they have for years. EVERYBODY LOVED THEM. As the McHenrys made Joy Ranch their full time focus, Al Pinkerton, his wife Lois, and their two children moved to Dugspur on May 18, 1958, to continue the ministry of Calvary Bible Church and Mountain View Bible Camp. The Pinkertons, also from Pennsylvania, would remain for forty plus fruitful years before retiring. Pastor Pinkerton was also the chairman of the board of directors of Joy Ranch in the late seventies and early eighties. "Precious, precious people," Patricia Blackwell shared. The widow of the late Robert Blackwell (longtime pastor of Tuggles Gap Baptist Church in Floyd), Patricia had several opportunities to help the Pinkertons at camp. "I loved them. Everybody loved them. They were greatly admired and respected." "I think you'd be amazed at what the Lord could do through a handful of dedicated people. Lois (Pinkerton) would get right in there in that kitchen and work like a trojan all summer long. Many of the Joy Ranch boys and girls came through the camp, like Bobby Combs, as fine as they come, and now a deacon at New Haven Baptist (in Floyd)." With a tender longing in her voice, Blackwell concluded, "To sit around the campfire at night and hear the testimonies was such a blessing, and is one of the highlights of my life." Pastor Pinkerton agrees. "The campfire service was a favorite time." "There was so much that we enjoyed," Lois Pinkerton shares, "It was a wonderful time of fellowship, and it was wonderful to work with all the young people, and to see them go on to serve the Lord." The Pinkerton's children would grow to six during their time in Dugspur, now in their adult years with children of their own, and "all following the Lord," Pinkerton says thankfully. Jeff Dalton, now pastor of Slate Mountain Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Meadows of Dan, recalls, "My first experience there was probably '68 or '69. As a kid it seemed like I was a million miles away, but I was just from Willis. The Pinkertons ran it then. It was a wonderful time. We did crafts, and we made a storage box. I still have it. We had bonfires, prayer time at night, and morning devotions. They always had good food. It was Christ centered and Bible based. You learned Bible verses. You learned about Jesus." Pastor Dalton explained that in comparison to what little children had back then to occupy and entertain, that camp was quite the experience. "The highlight was getting to do something like that. Camp was something you went to that was almost like vacation- meeting new people and making new friends." Lois Pinkerton agrees: "We all looked forward to camp. Some of the children would look forward to camp all winter long, and be so thankful when summer would roll along." WITHOUT BORROWING A DIME. In the early nineties, A. T. Wiggins and his wife Christy, moved to the area from Alaska. After making Calvary Bible their church home, they, like many of their fellow church members, poured themselves into the work of the camp. "One day in church Pastor Pinkerton announces that he had been saving some money and that we were going to use it to build a new dining hall." A. T. recounts. "He had saved $7000.00, and I remember being like Sarah in the Bible and laughing in my heart, thinking there's no way we're going to build what we needed for $7000.00. But he gave the money, and then more began to give, and without borrowing a dime we built a beautiful $80,000.00 building." Pastor Pinkerton remembers the domino effect: "A man in Massachusetts out in Cape Cod, a relative of my wife's parents, sent us a check for $20,000.00, and then we got several more checks to bring the total to around $50,000.00. Seemed like everything we wanted to do, the Lord answered prayer and we could do it." "That's how the church has always been," Deacon Cracker Moore comments. "People just pitch in, and give, and we've never had to borrow to do what needed done. It's a very giving church, and no matter what the obstacle, the church has always got behind the camp and made it work. And through the years a lot of young people have given their heart to the Lord at camp." As it has through the decades, each week of camp features a Bible teacher and a missionary for a Bible study and mission time in the morning, and each night a chapel time with singing and preaching. Additional land has been purchased through the years to total approximately 21 acres, with six cabins, two shower houses, and the original dining hall now serving as a "craft shack." "We came to Dugspur to preach the Word, and see the camp grow," Al Pinkerton states, "So we had a mind to enlarge the camp. And there for a while we had about 260 kids at camp (for the summer). That was back in the 1970's." "We tried to keep the camp going, keep people occupied, tell them about the Lord- how they could be saved, and I believe that's what kept the camp going," Pinkerton concludes. When told about the lasting legacy of their forty-three years at the church and camp, Lois Pinkerton sighs, "The Lord gave us the opportunity to be vessels He could use. We love the work there in Dugspur." Pastor Pinkerton retired in 2001, and was succeeded as pastor and camp director by his son-in-law Ed Lanning, who had served at the camp as a counselor and Bible teacher. During Lanning's tenure, Hemlock Hall was constructed out of hemlock, and serves as a center of activities and other meetings, with carpet ball, ping pong, foosball, air hockey, and a snack shop. Due to health problems, Lanning was unable to continue, and in 2009, the Rev. Russell Gordon with his wife Judy, missionaries with Baptist Mid-Missions to Brazil for over forty years and frequent camp speakers, graciously agreed to be the interim pastor and camp director. During the summer of 2010, Jonathan LaMontagne, a graduate of Pensacola Christian College and Theological Seminary in Florida, became pastor and camp director, serving through last year, with Thomas West taking the supervisory reins of the camp for the last several summers. WATCHING THE SQUIRRELS SCAMPER ABOUT. Through an anonymous donor, the roofs on one of the cabins, the main shower house, and a rustic outdoor pavilion will be repaired. Upon learning that mission time would return to the shelter, Bonnie Brock rejoiced, "The pavilion is camp for me so it will be wonderful to have mission time there." "Miss Bonnie", as the campers affectionately call her, is a regular during one of the girls' weeks as a missionary speaker. "My husband Bob (also veteran missionaries to Brazil) and I have worked with Mountain View Bible Camp since 1975. Bob went to be with the Lord in 2014." Nancy Millar, a former camper now in her adult years, remarked that the pavilion was her favorite place for meetings. "I loved to see all the green of the trees in the woods, everything was so pretty." "And watch the squirrels scamper about," someone added. Megan Moore, who serves on the Camp Committee, and is instrumental each year in camp preparations, has her own fond memories. "What I enjoyed a lot was the hikes to Rocky Knob and having Bible and missionary time before having our picnic. Getting to enjoy the mountains and God's creation with friends you only have a reunion with year after year at Mountain View Bible Camp is a special memory in itself." In a special effort to commemorate this seventieth summer of camp, disadvantaged children who have never had the privilege will be sought out to attend Mountain View Bible Camp at no charge. "We want to find more children like the little boy that inspired Joy Ranch, and give them the opportunity to have this wonderful experience," says Brent Carrick, Development Coordinator at Joy Ranch, who is also currently serving as Interim Pastor at Calvary Bible Church. "Many have given generously to make this possible, and we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate seventy summers than to share the gospel to children in our area through the ministry of the camp." For more information, call 276-733-2674, or find Mountain View Bible Camp on Facebook.

The last night of our revival with Pastor Shannon Hicks is tonight at 7:00pm. Make sure to be there so you don't miss a blessing from the Lord!

Join us tonight as we kick off our revival at 6:00 with Pike City and Shannon Hicks bringing the message.

Baby Shower for the Sumners this Saturday at 10:30am in our Dining Hall! Please join us as we celebrate this blessing from God.

Church is canceled tomorrow, February 15th. Stay safe.

Join Calvary Bible Church of Dugspur, VA as Calvary Celebrates Christmas at 6:30 on December 24th. Through this year’s theme, He’s My King, we endeavor to rekindle a passion for the Lordship of Christ as we celebrate the incarnation of King Jesus. The celebration will include live music from local musicians, drama/skits and Scripture readings that are all designed to make Christmas Eve a truly joyous service of praise. Refreshments will be served following the program. For more information about Calvary Bible Church phone 276-728-7448 or visit their website at www.cbcdugspur.org.

Thanksgiving Meal is today at 1pm! The turkey is already cooking this morning!

The Ladies Sunday School class will be studying the Bible with the Devotional book Becoming a Woman of Grace: "Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you." Isaiah 30:18 by Cynthia Heald. If you are interested in attending this Fall sunday school class, please contact me. We need a head count as to how many will be attending, and you'll need to pay for your book before it is ordered in mid-August. The cost is $10 each book (includes shipping). Thanks!

The Wylers on Wheels will be with our church this Sunday morning, evening, and for our camp's day camp next week!

Mountain View Bible Camp weeks 2014: Pioneer Day Camps: June 16-20 Boys Teen Week: June 22-27 Girls Teen Week: July 20-25 Boys Junior Week: July 6-11 Girls Junior Week: July 13-18 Call us 276-728-7448!

Praise the Lord, you have already earned camp $6.00 by using Goodsearch.com as your search engine and camp as your charity of choice. Thanks and keep it up!

Cooking Apple butter and making apple cider; Fall Family retreat with speaker Steve Demme; Operation Christmas Child; Supper with the Saints; Keepers of the Faith