Friendship Ventures! -- Snapshots of Friendship

More than 1,200 volunteers donate a total of 75,000 hours each year – the equivalent of 35 full-time employees. Such dedicated support allows Friendship Ventures to offer the greatest positive impact for those we serve.

Volunteers range from teenagers who help campers enjoy activities to retired union carpenters renovating the dormitory at Eden Wood Center. People of all ages are involved at many levels of operation, assisting with scores of activities. This month, as we salute all of our volunteers, we share the contributions of a few.

Board of Directors – A group of 17 directors is responsible for defining Friendship Ventures’ mission and providing the overall leadership and strategic direction for the organization. These dedicated volunteers commit to offering their personal and professional expertise to ensure that Friendship Ventures has adequate resources to carry out its mission. They support the agency’s efforts through personal financial support as well as through fund raising. Several board changes have occurred recently.

After serving as board chair for three years, Lynne Megan becomes the past chair. As chair, Megan led Friendship Ventures through the merger with Camp New Hope, evaluation and development of a strategic plan and into the renovation project at Eden Wood Center. Her professional background in residential and vocational services and her advocacy work for people with developmental disabilities have proven to be great resources for Friendship Ventures.

Jack Stinogel was elected the Friendship Ventures chair. He has been on the board for the past two years, and previously served as a board member for 10 years prior to rejoining the board. Stinogel, the father of a daughter who uses our services and an emergency room physician, has a strong belief in the value of Friendship Ventures programs.

Dan Miller, center, joined Friendship Ventures President Georgann Rumsey, right, and Evelyn Froise, a camper at the original Glen Lake Children’s Camp, at the groundbreaking ceremony for the dormitory renovations at Eden Wood Center last year.

Dan Miller retired after serving for six years on the board, serving as treasurer for two years. As CEO of Miller Architects and Builders, he lent his architectural design and planning expertise along with financial and business proficiency to help Friendship Ventures respond to many capital and operational challenges. He helped identify and prioritize needs, establish project costs and assist with project oversight. In addition, he and Miller Architects and Builders have been generous with their architectural design services, helping Friendship Ventures complete a number of building projects with significant cost savings.

David Jones, retired executive officer and CFO of Allina Hospitals and Clinics, has joined the board. Besides his financial expertise, Jones’ contributions to the board will include personal experience; his son Nicholas, now deceased, participated in programs at Eden Wood Center.

We extend our deepest gratitude to our very committed board of directors, who make substantial contributions to Friendship Ventures every day.

Sentencing To Service (STS) groups from Hennepin County frequently provide assistance at Eden Wood Center. These county residents, who have been required to perform community service, have made significant contributions to Eden Wood Center. They have helped with painting projects, moved furniture, shoveled snow and installed a new ceiling in Boulay, one of the program buildings at Eden Wood. These groups are available to offer their assistance whenever the need arises.

Union Laborers from the Minneapolis Building and Constructions Trades Council, representing all construction unions in the greater Minneapolis area, continue the renovation project at Eden Wood Center. These union volunteers, from apprentice level to retired workers, represent dozens of trades, including carpentry, operating engineers plumbing, sheet metal work, laborers, bricklayers, cement masons, sprinkler fitters and more. Workers are putting in hundreds of volunteer hours to complete updates on the dormitory before summer camp.

Thanks to all our volunteers! We deeply appreciate your generosity and support.

Amazing Race Takes Scouts to Camp Friendship

Girl Scouts Hayley, Wayzata and Melissa, Minnetonka, pause during their climb on the Giant’s Ladder during the Amazing Race activity at Camp Friendship.

ast fall, 66 six through eleventh-grade Girl Scouts from West metro troops of the Minneapolis Girl Scout Council had a great adventure at Camp Friendship. They participated in a two-day Team Quest adventure program modeled after the television show “The Amazing Race.”

Beginning on their bus ride to Camp Friendship, the girls competed in challenges staged to represent adventures in Egypt and China. Over two days, the scouts, working on teams, earned points for completing activities that included crafts, a service project, eating grasshoppers (real ones), climbing the Great Wall of China (the indoor climbing wall), and participating in the race.

The race involved each troop competing in timed team building challenges that earned them “camp bucks.” Teams used those dollars to bid on climbs on the high ropes challenge wall.

Scout leaders planned the Amazing Race activity to increase excitement in team building activities for older scouts who have participated in such programs before. Joyce Weaver, one of the event leaders, was thrilled with the outcome. “It was my hope that there would be enough program variations to challenge the skills and interests of the scouts and their guests,” she said. “In reviewing the evaluation sheets, it appears to have worked pretty well.”

It worked well enough that another Amazing Race is being planned for next fall for these scout troops. This time the theme is “Down Under.” Whether that includes travel to Australia or undersea exploration remains to be seen.

The success of this first-time event has also provided Friendship Ventures with another option for Team Quest adventure programming. In the fall, ninth grade students from Breck High School will complete their own version of the Amazing Race.

According to Amanda Daniels, director of adventure programs, Friendship Ventures can modify this activity for any group – with or without the grasshoppers.

Register Now for Summer Camp

Studies conducted by the American Camp Association prove that camp offers growth experiences for youth that benefit them throughout their lives. At Friendship Ventures, we find that’s especially true for our participants with special needs. Now is the time to register for camp, and make sure that your child benefits this summer.

Along with our traditional general sessions for children and adults, we offer special sessions focusing on fishing, water fun, crafting, animal studies, art, horseback riding and much more. Also this year, we host two special sessions just for children with attention deficit disorders (ADD/ADHD), one at Camp Friendship and one at Camp New Hope. We’re also offering sessions for children and teens with Aspergers Syndrome. These three sessions, one at each site, focus on different age groups through day camp, resident camp and a combination of the two.

For schedules and registration information, click here, call 952-852-0101 in the Twin Cities metro or 1-800-450-8376 outstate.

Upcoming Events
Please join us for these spring events.

Annandale Snowmobile Club Spring Steak Fry - Friday, May 4, 5:30 – 8:30 p.m., Camp Friendship. Cost is $20 donation per person, and proceeds fund scholarships for Friendship Ventures participants.

Open Houses
If you are interested in camp but have not visited our sites, please join us Sunday, May 6 for a tour, to meet staff and learn more about what is in store this summer.

2:00 – 4:00 p.m. Camp Friendship
2:00 – 4:00 p.m. Camp New Hope
3:00 – 5:00 p.m. Eden Wood Center

Friendship in Action Breakfast

May 23, 7:30 – 8:30 a.m., American Heritage Bank Public Meeting Room, St. Cloud.

This fund-raising breakfast provides an introduction to Friendship Ventures and our programs, and features a parent of one our participants sharing his or her family’s story.

For more information about any of these events, call Friendship Ventures at 952-852-0101 Twin Cities metro or 1-800-450-8376 outstate.

Thanks to Donors

Special thanks to these donors for their recent contributions to fund scholarships:

Lifetouch, Inc., Eden Prairie
Kopp Family Foundation, Edina
Caliber Foundation, Minneapolis
CVS Charitable Trust, Woonsocket, R.I.
Landwehr Construction, St. Cloud
Spring Lake Park Lions Club

And thanks to donors who contributed for these special purposes:

Maple Lake Lions Club, for the Camp Friendship lodge renovation
Landwehr Construction, St. Cloud, for a second grant for the Camp Friendship lodge renovation
Mozaic LTD, St. Louis, Mo., for their in-kind donation of photo enlargements
Morgan Family Foundation, Yellow Springs, Ohio, for construction of a new cabin at Camp Friendship
Spring Lake Park Lions Club, for a second donation for Camp New Hope
Fridley Lions Club, for the Camp Friendship lodge renovation
Toro Corporation, for donation of a 60” riding lawn mower (pictured)

Thanks to all donors!

You Can Help:

To give a gift to children and adults with disabilities, Click to access our secure, on-line giving site. Your support will make all the difference in the world.

Friendship Ventures is a non-profit agency that creates unique educational, recreational and social opportunities for people of all ages with mental retardation and other developmental disabilities. We also offer conference and retreat services and professional team-building programs to the communities we serve. Friendship Ventures operates Camp Friendship near Annandale, MN, Eden Wood Center in Eden Prairie, MN and Camp New Hope near McGregor, MN.

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