Our parish has traditionally scheduled three weekends away. One is the Women's Retreat about which a good deal is written in this issue of Ebb & Flow. The second is the Annual Men's Retreat. Admittedly, the men's weekend has been hit and miss recently. (Our 2009 retreat was cancelled due to a fire in Santa Barbara which destroyed the Mt. Calvary Retreat Center). Both of these weekends away are held in the Spring, sometime between Easter and Pentecost. The third weekend away is the Parish Fun Weekend in the Fall.

Unlike the women or men's weekend, the Parish Fun Weekend is for both men and women and for adults and children. And whereas the men's and women's weekend is primarily focused on some aspect of spiritual growth, the Parish Fun Weekend is… well, just for fun.

Last year, the church generously paid for a bus and most of those who attended the weekend rode together, leaving our cars at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, which meant 3 hours down and 3 hours back to share our lives, our snacks, and solving the great mystery of what comes after 99 bottles of beer on the wall.

Arriving at the Diocesan camp, Friday night, we have a pizza party, some games and night prayers.

On Saturday, the camp counselors spirit all the children away for nature walks, an exploration of an abandoned gold mine and a ropes course while the adults have adult time with the Rector for spiritual practice, reflection and discussion. The afternoon allows free time for napping, reading, exploring the antique shops and used bookstores and other attractions in Julian. After dinner, there's organized activities, arts and crafts and the like, ending with a campfire and S'mores (if you have to ask, you obviously weren't into scouting).

Sunday morning we plan our closing worship in teams and share Eucharist together, while praying for our St. A's community back in Santa Monica worshipping at the same time as we are. After lunch, we get on the road and are back home before Sunday dinner.

While many people think of this as a "family weekend" especially geared to children, last Fall a "senior" couple attended with the intention, as 8 o'clockers, to get to know better the children of the parish. It is an intergenerational weekend.

Camp Stevens is a gem. It is that special place where kids can wander freely and be utterly safe in nature, where parents can relax and let their anxieties go for a time, can visit with other adults and have adult conversations (a rarity for parents with very young children) and can even sit in the sun and read a book for hours (wow…). The food is superb as the camp grows much of the food they prepare and serve, and they make fresh bread daily. And being in the mountains simply balances out our very urban lives. (The flock of wild turkeys who stroll across the lawn at dawn and the deer at dusk are a tonic to souls thirsty for a less spoiled piece of God's creation.)

So valuable is this weekend, that the church subsidizes the cost to make it affordable for most and as the Camp has not increased its fees this year, neither have we.

But, we are adding an incentive known as "The Early Bird Special." Each individual that registers and has paid their non-refundable deposit of $50 by June 21st, (Sunday school graduation Sunday) will receive a raffle ticket for a chance to win a $50 certificate to Buca di Beppo Italian Restaurant on 2nd Street in Santa Monica. That means that a family of 4 would have 4 chances to win.

Registration forms will be available on the patio following worship. The cost, again, the same as last year are $160/adults and $80 for kids up to age 12. Children 2 and under are free. For those wanting a private room, which sleeps 6, the cost is $480.

If there is sufficient interest, the church would be honored to offer bus transportation again this year as in 2008 as a gift.

The Parish Fun Weekend is October 2-4, 2009, beginning with dinner on Friday and ending after lunch on Sunday. If you've never been, consider joining us this year. If you've come before, won't you join us again?!