The Dakotas Conference camping program reaches thousands of kids in our communities each summer. There are kids in communities where new worshiping communities are starting—places like Box Elder, Fargo African Worship, Kenmare, Salem, Spirit Lake and Watford City—who have never been to camp.  They have not seen a campfire, roasted a hot dog, or a marshmallow.  You can help make that happen by contributing the 2017 Kids Count Miracle Offering.

The goal of the 2017 Kids Count Miracle Offering is to raise $100,000 for grants for church-school partnerships and to help new worshipping congregations send the children in their target communities to our United Methodist camps. Eighty percent (80%) of the cash offering will go to support church-school partnerships and twenty percent (20%) will go to help our new churches send children and youth to camp. 

Here is one example about what a camping opportunity can mean to kids. S’mores and Spirit is the story of a small perishing dreaming big about camp.

Highmore, Harrold and Blunt United Methodist Churches in South Dakota started dreaming big about what God might want to be doing in and among the churches to inspire youth and families about Jesus. People began to dream a God-sized dream of sending 20 kids from this small parish to camp - fully funded.

Over 30 kids headed to camp in 2015.  The churches raised nearly $9,000 in a few weeks to help pay the fees for the campers. God is working in mighty and significant ways at Highmore, Harrold and Blunt United Methodist Churches.

In 2016 the God challenged these small churches, with a total average worship attendance of just under 100 to raise money, to send 40 kids to camp.

New church starts do not have the resources or an established program to send kids to camp.  The 2017 Kids Count Miracle Offering is one way United Methodists throughout the Dakotas can make reach out. 

All churches recently received a packet with materials (click to download: poster, pledge card, offering envelope, bulletin insert, letter from the Bishop) to help them promote the Kids Count Miracle Offering to their congregations. Please share this giving opportunity!

S'mores and Spirit from Dakotas UMC on Vimeo.