Welcome to Winter Retreat!

More About Winter Retreat

Winter Retreat Elements:
Small Groups are groups made up of genders separated by church groups. The boys from one church will all meet together with their male leaders, and the girls from one church will meet together with their female leaders. 
Breakout Sessions are topical Bible studies surveying relevant teen issues. Participating
student pastors teach the sessions.
Recreation is a time of competition in fast paced games. We will attempt to do large groups games in the field if weather allows, but sometimes we shift and do indoor activities.
Worship is the large group gathering of all participants. The program consists of crowd
games, modern worship led by the camp band, a message given by the camp speaker,
and an invitation.

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Organization and Budget:

Winter Retreat is organized by the student pastors of participating churches. Each participating church’s student pastor is expected to participate in camp set up and to serve in some capacity at Winter Retreat. Planning takes place over the year in a series of in person meetings. Winter Retreat requires a tremendous amount of work, but facilitates an equal amount of friendship, camaraderie, and networking. As there is no central backing organization, Winter Retreat finances are handled differently than many retreats and are the corporate responsibility of all participating churches. Each year the Winter Retreat Leadership Team agrees on a budget, forecasts participation, and sets a registration fee, which is reasonably expected to cover the
budget. If, for some unforeseen reason (e.g. low turnout vs. projected numbers, accidental equipment damage), the budget is exceeded and the monies from registration fees don’t cover the actual cost
of camp, the remaining balance is covered by the participating churches via a per capita charge. (For example, if the registration fees are set at $100 per camper and the actual cost to put on Winter Retreat is $105 per camper, each church will contribute an additional $5 x the number of campers they brought.) This scenario is rare; however, participating churches must be prepared to shoulder their responsibility in the event of a budget overrun.

Currently the Winter Retreat budget is run through Rector First Baptist Church with Rector First Baptist Church receiving and making payments on behalf of Winter Retreat. Financial decisions are made by the Winter Retreat Leadership Team.

As Winter Retreat includes the participation of multiple churches, it is absolutely vital that each church adequately screen and conduct a background check on every adult who attends Winter Retreat. Any adult with a history of sexual predation is not welcome to serve at camp due to the inherent risk. Chaperoning students at a cooperative retreat is not an appropriate opportunity for churches to help recent and unknown church participants get involved; nor is it an appropriate venue of service for recovering criminals, addicts, or others of questionable and untested character. Winter Retreat values the safety of the students who attend over the rehabilitation of adults. Participating churches are expected to recruit and screen chaperones accordingly.

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Arrival, Check In, and Orientation:

There is no meal served on Friday evening; however, the Snack Shack will be open. All items in the Snack Shack are $1-3, with proceeds going back into Winter Retreat, in order to help keep the registration fee as low as possible. It would be prudent to plan on stopping for dinner prior to arriving at Winter Retreat depending on the distance you are traveling.
 

Check in is at the main lodge right as you enter into camp. At check in, student pastors will confirm participants, find out dorm assignments, and pick up name tags and books. Student pastors need to let the staff at orientation know of any late arrivals or early departures. After check in, participants will unpack and return to the Worship Center for Orientation.

Churches arriving late because of distance, ghetto church buses on the side of the
road, or the student pastor’s poor math skills should notify Nate Lawrence.

​Payment Information:

Make checks payable to Rector First Baptist Church with Winter Retreat in the memo line. You can bring the payment to camp with you or mail it. 
Mail to:
Rector First Baptist Church
Attn: Winter Retreat
200 S Steward St.

Rector, Arkansas 72461

501-358-8347