Introducing Acampamento Elim

And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the waters. Exodus 15:27

Ever since before we arrived Brazil, we have been aware of the great need of our churches in São Luís for a camp. As it stands right now, when one of our churches wants to have some sort of retreat (say, during the yearly social upheaval that is Carnaval) they are forced to rent some kind of facilities for the event. The problem is that, during these periods, retreat centers (called chácaras) are in high demand. One of our churches was able to rent one this February, for over $1200 for the weekend. Most of the time our churches have to settle for sub-par facilities–like schools–that are not made for such events and are uncomfortable, to say the least.
In recent years even these accommodations have become scarce. Add to this the fact that there is no camping program available for our kids and no retreat program available for our teens and young adults. These advantages, which most churches take for granted–both in the US and Brazil–are unavailable here.
For these reasons we decided that one of our goals here in São Luís would be to start a camp program. And, in order to have a camp program, you need a camp.
Last month Itacyara and I were considering financing a piece of property here in São Luís. Our idea was to eventually build a house on it so we could get out from under rent. The piece of land was 10 by 27 meters (about 29,000 square feet). The price was roughly U$11,000.
As we were working through the details of the financing, we became aware of a property near the city of Morros, about an hour and a half from the city. It is 40 by 250 meters (or over 100,000 square feet, more than two acres). The front of the property is bordered by the highway, and the back, by a river–suitable for swimming. The price? U$6,250.

Approximate location of Acampamento Elim
When Itacyara, Pastor Francisco and I went to look at the property, we were immediately impressed with how ideal it was for a camp. When we got back home from that initial trip, Itacyara and I sat down and talked things over. We decided to forgo the purchase of a piece of land here in the city, and instead buy the land in Morros. A block of it–comparable to the size of the land we were going to acquire in São Luís–we will develop into a house for us, over time. The rest we will develop into a camp and, when ready, turn it over to an association made up of men from our churches here in Maranhão.
During the following weeks we secured the financing, made the final negotiations, and, this last Friday, we sealed the deal.
Here are some pictures of the property, as we found it on our first trip:

Smooth roads leading to and from the camp.

Walking along a trail cut through the property.

Testing the waters

Palms!
The scene above made Pastor Francisco think of the oasis at Elim, mentioned in Exodus 16:27. We all decided this would make a great name for the camp–whose purpose will be to serve as an oasis for our churches in São Luís.
Itacyara and I have never been so excited about a project as we are about this one. It represents the beginning of the fulfillment of a dream–one we have had for a long time.
You can be sure that you will be hearing more about this as we go along. For now, I leave you with two immediate prayer requests.

1. More Land We have an opportunity to buy roughly another acre of land adjacent to the one we already own. The price tag is U$6,000, which is not much, but it is more than we are able to afford right now. The purchase of this additional piece of land would greatly enhance our ability to develop this property.
2. Development Obviously, the development of this property into a working camp facility will take some time. Thus, we ask that you pray that God would provide funds and volunteers to work with us in this process. We are scheduling a work-day there next month with some men from our church to do some initial clearing of the brush.
If anybody is interested in knowing more, or in helping with either of the two requests mentioned above, please do not hesitate to shoot me an e-mail.