The Ketchen Lake Bible Camp is sponsoring a drive to collect clothing as well as small household items.
"The clothing and other articles will be taken to Value Village where they will weigh the things and pay us per pound," said Elaine Brewer, director of the camp.
"We are excited for this opportunity to raise money for camp," said Brewer.聽 "This will help us to keep costs down. Our camper fees only cover a small portion of what it costs to send a child to camp so we rely heavily on donations. We are always looking for new ways to fundraise.鈥�
It all started when Brewer researched fundraising ideas and contacted Value Village.
鈥淚 went into Value Village and talked to the manager who provided a very positive response,鈥� she said. The manager was very helpful and Value Village makes a donation of the same value to the diabetic association.
鈥淲e will be collecting clothing and small household articles until April 10," she said.
The camp also hosted its annual promotional banquet in Sturgis on March 25 when there were approximately 150 people in attendance. There were 155 silent auction items featured that included children's toys, bicycles, food, hunting and fishing items, musical instruments, clothing, sports goods and numerous camping items.
The silent auction and a free will offering raised over $20,000.
"This will go a long way to operating the camp. We were incredibly blessed by the generosity and support of the people in the communities. It was a lot of fun and fellowship," said Brewer.
The highlight of the evening was seeing the two cakes that had been prepared by Verene Primeau and were auctioned off by Eldred Hamm. The first cake was fashioned like a first aid kit and sold for $240, the other cake was an ambulance cake that sold for $400.
The clothing and small household items donations that were received filled up a five-foot by eight-foot trailer.
