Camp Stevens, the diocese’s facility in Julian, California, hosted a dedication program Dec. 16 for its nearly-completed Bergstrom Lodge, the final stage of a rebuilding and upgrade project begun in the wake of the 2007 fires that destroyed 13 of the camp’s buildings.
The lodge is named in honor of Peter Bergstrom, who retired in 2012 after 40 years as executive director of the camp, and his wife Vicki, who served in many different roles — administrator, guide, trainer and more — during the couple’s long residence.
Bishop John Taylor of the Diocese of Los Angeles and Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, bishop assisting in the Diocese of San Diego and former presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, led the dedication, followed by a walk through other camp facilities, where they also offered blessings, including the Bishop Wolterstorff Lodge, named after the late bishop of San Diego, and the chicken enclosure, home to the camp’s considerable flock, which provides the staff and campers with eggs and meat.
The Rev. Canon Melissa McCarthy, canon to the ordinary in the Diocese of Los Angeles and a member of the camp’s board of advice, opened the proceedings, and the Bergstroms cut the ribbon to open the main assembly room. That room will be named after recently retired associate director John Horton, who with Beth Bojarski, the camp’s executive director, facilitated the new construction.
Bojarski, who succeeded Bergstrom as director in 2012, announced Dec. 20 that she had resigned from the staff to move with her family to Cincinnati, Ohio, where her husband, the Rev. Mitch Bojarski, has a new position as assistant priest. Kathy Wilder, a former operations director at the camp, has been appointed as interim executive director (see story here).