Control that A/C

As summer gets hotter, the A/C works longer. One of the new improvements at Camp Tejas is the addition of a product from XCI Corp, the network thermostat and light controller. With these products we are able to control and monitor the air conditioning in all the new rooms at the Four Seasons and control the outside lights. Right now we are able to check on and make temperature changes to all 12 private rooms. We have the equipment and are in the process of adding control to the large conference room and the outside lights.

With this system, we will also be able to control and make custom timers for all the outside lights around the building. This helps us both in energy savings and also man power. Before we had to send someone around to turn outside lights on whenever guests are here, now we will be able to do it from our computers and save a lot of time.

By controlling the A/C, we are able to make sure rooms are not turned all the way down to 60 degrees and left that way, or in the winter up to 90! The thermostats will limit the range and also automatically cut it off when the group leaves. This should decrease our energy costs by being proactive in our efforts to control that A/C.

Paul Biles
Resident IT Manager

Still awaiting the big storm

Last summer it was too much rain. This summer - no rain. Actually, we have not had enough rain here at the camp to create runoff since early April. Our entire area is in a drought, but it must be the worst immediately around us.

I've included a little weather map to illustrate a very common theme for the last three months. The rain heads our direction, it parts, moves around us, then merges back together on the other side. This weather map is from the storm that blew through last night. This image was captured about 30 minutes after is blew by us. No rain here. I don't know how, but no rain. Looking at this map, you would think we got some good rain. For some reason, it's just not in the Lord's time - yet.

Nonetheless, when it comes to summer camp, the kids have a lot more fun in the sun than in the rain. It's a little hotter than normal, but all the activities are open - with the exception of the entire new lake. Some of the new lake is now open, which includes the slide, rope swing, and swimming area, but about 2/3 of it is still awaiting the big storm.

David Jones, CEO

Anybody out there?

Well it has been a while since any of us have posted to this site. I think that it is very much a representation of how busy the last couple of weeks have been. Summer staff arrived and have been training for the last two weeks. This weekend they are all on mission trips to the Houston and Waco areas. I am sure Natalie, Seth, David or Mike will post on that later.

This weekend we have the pleasure of hosting our last two retreat groups of the Spring season. There is a family group from Houston staying until Sunday afternoon and a children's group from Austin that will be heading out later this evening after supper. I am very greatful for the youth from Giddings who are helping out this weekend and for Arthur, one of our past summer staff and intern.

Alfredo, and his boys Freddie, Ceasar and Louis are still here and working on our lakes. Yesterday they started a siphon from the small lake by Billy's house to the new lake in the meadows. We were able to drain about a foot off that lake and today they will be moving that siphon over to our main swim lake by Marmax. The last couple of weeks we have been building up the lake level to store up all the water we can. Now is the time to start transfering that water down to the meadows.

Prayer Requests:
1. Several staff on the mission trips caught some sort of bug and haven't been feeling well. Please pray that they will not be discouraged.
2. That God will provide the water needed to fill the new meadows lake.
3. Our maintenace crews, they are working non-stop to get last minute projects done for the summer camps.

Paul Biles - Retreat Director

Behind the Scenes: God's Beauty

One of the tasks we do while guests are here is to check the conference rooms in the morning. We refill water dispensers, clean up messes and take out the trash. While taking the trash to the dumpster, which would normally be one of those errands I like to do quickly, I had to pause and look at God's creation. The sunrise that morning was amazing! I only had my phone camera with me and it didn't catch the full magnitude of God's beauty. The sun was coming over the horizon and in the far field I could see 20 or so cows grazing and then in the field closer to me were 10 deer grazing as well. It is times like this that I would love to express the importance and need to get away from everyday life. Even though I live out in the country and work at a retreat, I too need to make sure to get away from hectic schedules and relax with God. Whether it be here at Camp Tejas, at your local park, your back yard or your kitchen table, I encourage you to take time to enjoy God's beauty and relax in it.

Paul Biles - Retreat Director

A New Sitting Place

We are working on new places around the camp to sit, pray, and listen. There are LOTS of great places - just not enough benches. Thanks to a wonderful donor, our little fishing dock is now larger and it includes what we believe will be one the favorite spots to meet with the Lord. The dock was completed yesterday afternoon and at 6:50 this morning, a guest was there enjoying the peace and waiting for the sun to rise from behind the clouds. This bench will be used by thousands for many years to come.

Let us know if you too would like to provide the resources necessary to build a bench (or even a dock) that would provide a place such as this one. The name of the location will be your choice.

David Jones, CEO

david@camptejas.org

Power to the Poopy

So where does all the poopy go? That's not a very common question. If our guests ever wonder what happens when the toilet is flushed, they don't express it to us in words. Well, unless they flush and it rises! Today, Bluebonnet Electric installed the power line to the new poopy station (commercial wastewater facility for those without toddlers). As the camp is growing, so is the flow of the unmentionables - things that we prefer not to discuss at the dinner table after the age of 7 or so. But there are folks out there who make it a topic of discussion on a daily basis. We may not talk about it daily, but it's close. We like to say that some of our best work is never seen. I don't know about our best work, but a large percentage of our time is spent digging ditches, gluing pipe, and covering it with dirt - only to run into it again a few years later when the next ditch is dug. Our new wastewater facility is underway and should be ready by June. I won't tell you where it is - so then you don't have to think about it.

David Jones, CEO

Recreation Fields

As the recreation director and as a person who loves to play sports it has been one of my biggest desires to have quality playing fields here at Camp Tejas. For years we have had descent areas to do different activities on, but never any areas specifically designated for recreation. Now my dream is coming true as we will have 2 fields designed solely for recreational purposes. They will be fenced in and will have sprinkler systems keeping them watered during the dry months. The picture above is of the grass being sprayed on – the fields will be ready by the beginning of summer 2008.

Seth Gordon - Recreation Director

Where am I?

This week has been one of those weeks where I look back and wonder... what in the world do I do this week? We did have a 2 day director's retreat, hosted 600 senior high school students on Wednesday, hosted a leader retreat on Thursday and Friday and then finished the weekend with 300 guests joining us here at Camp Tejas. This past weekend we had 4 groups here, of which 3 were ladies groups. I am sure that 7% of men here this weekend really felt out of place!

One of the projects I did work on and complete was updating our Camp Tejas facilities map. With the addition of the new facilities, this will make it a lot easier to explain to guest how to get to their room in the meadows. While working on it, I did think back to my first summer at Tejas in 1999. I know several people who go back to knowing what it looked like in 1981, but even in the last 9 years, this place has changed!

With the camp expanding more to the north, one of the major changes to the map is the orientation. Instead of keeping to our sideways 8.5x11, I changed it to be upright. This made a huge difference both in the ability to fit all the new roads and buildings, but the bigger part was that most of the time, I was always flipping our sideways map to help guests understand the direction they came into the camp. Hopefully, with the new map, next time you come to camp, you can help me answer the question, "Where am I?".

Paul Biles - Retreat Director

My Favorite Part

Summer is coming - whether we are ready or not - and one long work day sometimes seems to run into the next. It's a hectic time, but last weekend I was reminded of my favorite thing about Tejas. As one of the directors on duty, I was called upon to fill out an incident report (kayak tag can be hazardous to your health). The two college girls who helped me collect the necessary information for the form happened to be students at my alma mater (sic 'em). We struck up a conversation about majors and professors and classes that eventually took a turn. For nearly an hour I got to sit at a table in the Dining Hall and really fellowship with some sisters in Christ. We talked about church and missions and calling. That lead us to over-commitment and time management and some of the mysteries of God. Yea, we fill out incident reports and plunge toilets and refill the garbanzo beans on the salad bar -- but getting to work in a place that lends itself to real fellowship -- that's my favorite part.

Natalie West
Summer Camp Director

A&M Consolidated

Each year right before school lets out most high school students go through the pains of the infamous TAKS testing (you may know the older version called the TAAS test). But while the majority of students are stressing about testing, the senior students from A&M Consolidated come and spend the day at Tejas. This year we had over 500 students come and spend the day swimming in the lakes and pool, climb on the wall and zip down the zip line, and get one of the famous Camp Tejas burgers. After spending most of the day hanging with friends around the camp everyone gathered in the old Tejas rodeo arena for some serious competition relays like the classic tug-o-war. Congrats to all the graduating A&M Consolidated seniors!

Seth Gordon - Recreation Director