Caroline Furnace Camp and Retreat Center
Annual Update Spring 2025
Wear Love: Summer 2026
Consider your favorite piece of clothing—the well-worn flannel, cozy sweater, or lucky jersey. Behind each garment is a story: the fibers, the hands that crafted it, and the care required to stay in your wardrobe. Love, much like clothing, has a journey. Rooted in God’s love, it’s woven into our lives, connecting us to others and guiding our actions. As Paul writes to the Colossians, love binds us together through virtues like
kindness, humbleness, calmness, steadfastness, and forgiveness. These qualities strengthen our relationships, reflecting God’s love in every interaction and aligning us with the values that create the good life God wants for all of us.
Our theme for Summer 2026 of Wear Love explores this idea as campers discover stories of individuals embodying Christ-like virtues that illustrate God’s love in action. They will find space to wonder what it looks like for them to put on the all-purpose garment of love at camp, in their home lives, and in the world. As God’s love weaves us together, strengthening us even when we feel worn down, campers can also name that wearing love has its challenges. We will practice how to share love sustainably and passionately. Daily themes and bible studies will dive into various aspects of what it means to wear love in our daily life.
Part of our expression of the Wear Love theme at Caroline Furnace will be a renewed focus on the Bread Tag Club. A longstanding tradition, the Bread Tag Club grew out of Caroline Furnace’s
first Director, Pastor Wayne William’s, frequent reminders to staff and campers to always “leave it better than you found it.” Campers in the 1970s, 80s, and early 90s who were found exhibiting these behaviors of picking up trash on property and leaving things in good shape for those who came to use them next were initiated into the “bread tag club.” Members of the club were given a plastic bread tag which was worn on the laces of shoes and boots as a visual reminder of their pledge to continue their habits of care for God’s earth and those around them. The bread tag club has as much importance today as in its earliest years,
as we focus on sustainability and the importance of caring for the creation God has entrusted to us.
As you visit camp this summer, keep your eyes open for bread tags on boots as well as the acts of kindness, humbleness, calmness, steadfastness, and forgiveness in our everyday interactions as a community rooted in God’s grace and a commitment to Wear Love.
2025 In Review
Expenses: $467,232 Revenue: $517,852
Total Volunteers: 215
Estimated Volunteer Hours: 4,238
Value of Volunteer Hours: $54,540
Value of In-Kind Donations: $9,850
Growth in Gifts from Congregations & Individuals
Annual gifts continue with growth in new and returning gifts from individuals, organizations, and congregations. You met and exceeded our giving goals for 2025 that provided resources for over two thousand six hundred and eight people (2,608) – five hundred new people. Fulfilling our missions we were able to provide unforgettable experiences by educating 1048 students and scouts, renewing and retreating with 1,076
guests, and faith building with 484 campers and guests.
Property Updates & Improvements 2025
Just before summer camp we installed new ceiling fans in Moyer Lodge Dining Hall and made repairs and updates to our lower ropes course elements. The solar pavilion is complete and ready for final inspections with the soffit and end caps installed, the stage lights and projector installed, and the exterior flood lights installed. The small twin bridge was reset and a ramp put in place after an early summer rain, the ramp to the staff room at the lodge was repaired and a railing installed, the bell at Sukkah Village was remounted, benches and picnic tables repaired and painted, culverts dug out, lake bathroom roof repaired, and the new lake sitting dock was completed.
Retreats in 2025
We had 99 events this year with small and large retreat groups, schools, and outdoor enthusiasts. Potomac Appalachian Trail Club returned this year with the Volunteer fest and the Sierra Club of Virginia returned
after 15 years. We also continued our third year of Conservation Day for youth from FFA and 4-H clubs partnering with local non profits and conservation agencies to include Friends of the North Fork, Department of Soil and Water Conservation, Department of Forestry and more… Bring your family, friends, nonprofit or church groups and experience the comfortable adult space available in the Apartment/Loft, Farmhouse, and Cabins 7 and 8.
Leadership & Staff Updates in 2025
Board Members Annabelle Allard, Bert Roepe, and Lorrie Runion completed their terms of service. We welcomed new Board Members Eric Valentine, Rev.Angela LaTourette Dunn, Cedric Wilson, and Staci Rijal. In September 2025, we celebrated 11 years of leadership and service by Rev. Heidi David-Young, who spent four years as a Board Member (2014 to 2018), three years as part time staff (2018-2021) and four years as full-time staff (2021 to 2025). In October 2025, we welcomed Melody Stachour to our year round staff. Melody brings experience in inclusion advocacy, adult education, and people leadership gained from her 21 years in the Navy Reserve and consulting. We also welcomed Lindsay Owen as Director of Summer Camp. Lindsay serves with us part time through the year and full time during summer camp sessions.
Growing in Our Efforts for Inclusion
In keeping with our 2026 theme of Wear Love, our Board of Directors decided one way to help our whole organization to Wear Love on a more consistent basis is to make Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion a permanent standing committee of the Board. Born from the task force supporting Total Inclusion efforts, this standing committee gives us the chance to live more deeply into the welcome statement we adopted
in 2020. As we continue on this journey, we are exploring ways we can work together to combat the various forms of racism, whether seen or unseen, that can contribute to a lack of inclusion; calling us to raise our own awareness and finding ways in which our administrative structures may continue to be barriers. We believe in the importance of partnerships and looking beyond our own knowledge and experience to ensure we are truly being welcoming to all. As part of this work, we are excited to announce our recognition as a Reconciling In Christ partner! Caroline Furnace has been taking steps in this direction for many years, from our efforts to be a Brave Space through the Total Inclusion work that we have done in partnership with Lutheran Outdoor Ministry. These partnerships meld with our own efforts here to live into our new statement of vision as “A mighty refuge in the peaks and valleys.” As part of this partnership recognition, we want to note that this doesn’t mean that we’ve finished the work of inclusion. This milestone commits us to continue to learn and grow, as part of an effort that will last throughout our lives and the life of the ministry of Caroline Furnace.
New for Summer 2026
Programs. Our age groups and names remain the same: Explorers,Voyagers, Pathfinders, and Mountaineers offer targeted experiences for every camper age. Shenandoah River Camp returns in June as its own camp session for middle and high school. We are introducing Land Exploration to provide a larger variety of options to explore the ecology surrounding our fauna and forests. Family Camp is now offered Wednesday to Saturday to provide specific quality programming and lower barriers for working parents.
Introducing Tiered Pricing! As part of our efforts for equity and inclusion, we are excited to introduce tiered pricing for summer camp. This new pricing structure is designed to lower barriers to attendance by allowing participants to choose our standard rate or one of our tiers with a lower price. We never want finances to be the reason anyone does not attend. Our new tiered pricing structure, in addition to available scholarships for campers, are a concrete action step we are taking to increase inclusion and access for all families. For the first time in decades, we have a large source of scholarship funds and we truly want
those who would benefit from them to please apply.
Get Involved!Summer & Beyond
It takes a village! We are excited to continue to offer programmed retreats and host groups and events through the winter and spring but we need your help! We are looking for folks interested in volunteering their
weekend time to help with hosting retreat groups, support in the kitchen, and other additional program aspects. If you are interested in sharing your gifts and time, please contact Melody Stachour, office@carolinefurnace.org or 540-449-0018.
Additional Ways to Give Back
- Stock Shares Did you know there are tax advantages to donating shares of stock to a nonprofit such as Caroline Furnace? Contact your financial advisor to learn more.
- Legacy Giving Let us refer you to a trusted financial consultant who can help you set up Legacy Giving through your will, trust, retirement account, insurance, property, and more. Invest in your own
legacy; your beneficiaries may not support the same organizations you do. Just 10% of your estate can support your favorite nonprofit for years to come. - Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) If you have an individual retirement account (IRA), you can choose to give up to $100k per year to a nonprofit. This donation is pre-tax, can be done at any time of year, and counts toward your minimum. Requirements vary by plan but may begin upon retirement, at age 70 1/2, or within one year of inheritance. Contact your financial advisor to learn more.
- Gifts of Hope A ministry of the Metro D.C. Synod, Gifts of Hope helps connect donors with nonprofit organizations. We receive donations for camper scholarships and program equipment during their Advent campaign.
- Thrivent Financial Action Teams & Choice Dollars Eligible members of Thrivent may apply for up to two Action Teams per year, which provides $250 in starter funds for a project. These are perfect for Work Weekends and retreat group service projects! Choice Dollars are tier-based and 2024 funding may be designated until March 31st. If you haven’t designated yours yet, log in and update your account today!
- Corporate Matching Check with your employer to see if you are eligible for matching gifts to a 501©3. Tax exemption form available upon request.
- Kroger Community Rewards Enroll your Kroger Plus card online and support Caroline Furnace. Our code is VL934. Every time you shop, Kroger donates to Caroline Furnace!
- In-Kind Donations We have an ongoing wish list for in-kind donations, if you prefer to donate supplies or equipment. Many new items are added each spring in preparation for Summer Camp, in addition to other ongoing projects. Contact us to learn more about a specific item listed.
Caroline Furnace Camp & Retreat
Growing Community in a Sacred Place
2239 Camp Roosevelt Rd., Fort Valley, VA 22652 | (540) 449-0012 | https://carolinefurnace.org/
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