Proclamation_Camp Lifetree Week Copyright 2014
City of Dubuque Proclamation(s) # 1.
ITEM TITLE: Camp Lifetree Week Proclamation
SUMMARY:
SUGGESTED DISPOSITION:
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
❑ Camp LifeTree Week Proclamation
DUB E
Masterpiece on the Mississippi
PROCLAMATION
Whereas, Camp Lifetree will be hosting 400 youth from all over the United States plus an
additional 40 to 50 staff in June 2015 for A FULL WEEK MISSION WORK PROJECT,
and
Whereas, the Big Day of Serving Dubuque conducted a one day Mission Service project in
Dubuque in May 2012, 2013 and 2014 that involved 200 to 321 youth each year, and
Whereas, the youth will be working on 60-75 homes of elderly, handicapped or low income people
who cannot physically or financially maintain their homes, and there will be no cost to
the homeowners, and
Whereas, it is estimated that over $300,000 in revenue will be generated in the Dubuque
community by their presence.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ROY D. BUOL, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF DUBUQUE, ON BEHALF OF THE
CITY COUNCIL, STAFF AND CITIZENS OF DUBUQUE, DO HEREBY PROCLAIM THE WEEK OF
JUNE, 21 THROUGH JUNE 27, 2015 AS
"CAMP LIFETREE WEEK"
IN THE CITY OF DUBUQUE, IOWA.
IN WITNESS THEREOF, I have hereunto set my
hand and caused the Great Seal of the City of
Dubuque to be affixed this 5th day of January 5,
2015.
Roy D. Buol, Mayor
Attest:
Trish L. Gleason, CMC, Assistant City Clerk
,1:11SSION: Gtoup Mission Tripshietpine kids— cliscovet who theywere made to be.
May 7, 2015
Kevin S. Firnstahl, CMC
City Clerk, City of Dubuque
50 W. 13th Street
Dubuque, IA 52001
Dear Kevin
Camp LifeTree
Dubuque, Iowa
June 22 —June 26, 2015
Camp LifeTree Dubuque appreciated your efforts in helping us get a PROCLAMATION designating the
week of June 21 through June 27, 2015 as CAMP LIFETREE WEEK.
However, since the time the Prodamation was issued, ourpartnehngor0mnizatkon,GroupK8issionThps
of Loveland, Coorado, were unable to attract enough youth to participate, and theyhove cancelled the
program for 2015. (A coGroup Mission Trips canceHation notice is enclosed.)
This necessitates a major change in our program this year. Camp LifeTree will be
select
work projects In Dubuq2015, but nowhere near the scope we d anticipated. We will not be
having youth coming to Dubuque for the week, and will be having a much Iesser impact on our city.
Camp LifeTree dto be aware of our
present plans. There will be some projects completed, but on a much lesser scale.
What action, is any, should we take concethat was issued to Camp LifeTree?
Should we return it, or should we just appreciate the fact that the City Council issued it and consider it
an honor to us?
Please advise if further action is necessary. Thank you for your assistance.
Sincerely,
Mark Beard, Community Director
Email: marksr56@msn.com
Phone: 563-517-7711
Lyle BeckFinancial Director
Emoi|:kdeandjean@yhom.com
Phone: 563-556-1253
Mail address:
12566 Rugby Court
Dubuque, IA 52002
April 2, 2015
Dear Mark,
In the fall of 2014, we approached you about partnering with Group Mission Trips to bring a
brand new camp opportunity to the Dubuque area. You and your team were great partners for our Big
Day of Serving events over the last several years. Our dream was to launch a summer camp opportunity
for high school students combining the best of a mission and service experience with the fun of summer
camp. Your team agreed to help us launch this new camp — Camp Lifetree.
It is with reluctance that we made the decision to cancel our Camp Lifetree location in Dubuque
at the University of Dubuque. Our intention was to bring up to 400 high school students to the
community to bring needed home repair for low-income, elderly, or disabled residence of Dubuque.
Unfortunately we encountered significant difficulty launching this new camp experience. We did not
attract enough families to send their child to camp with us. We had less than 10 campers registered for
the Dubuque location when we made the difficult decision to cancel the summer.
We value our partnerships with communities like yours. These relationships are the strength of
our programs. We simply cannot do what we do without a community partnering with us like
Dubuque has done so admirably. Cancelling Camp Lifetree was an incredibly difficult decision. We do
not take action like cancelling a location likely or without regret. Our decision is in no way a reflection
on Mark and his team or the community of Dubuque. It is our failure to attract enough people to come
serve in your community. I am sorry we failed in our promise to bring needed assistance to residence in
your community.
We would love the opportunity to return to Dubuque and serve in the future. In fact, we do
have some ideas that would allow that to happen as soon as the summer of 2016. Thanks again for your
support of this project. If I can answer any questions, please contact me directly.
Sincerely
Je Thompson
Executive Director, Group Mission Trips
jthompson@groupmissiontrips.com
970-292-4459
1515 Cascade Ave — Loveland, CO 80538 TEL 866.276.5921 1 FAX 970.292.4371