The summer of 1975, sixteen-year-old Dan Roach of Silver Bay, Minnesota was heading into his junior year of high school. He had made himself available to work and counsel at Camp Lebanon most of the summer. One Sunday, as the senior high campers arrived, Dan saw a teenage girl get out of a car and said to himself, “I am going to go help that girl with her luggage!” She turned out to be fifteen-year-old Wanda Beasley from Mound, Minnesota. Dan was smitten from the start.
Wanda participated at camp as a camper, counselor, and dining room hostess. Dan was a camper, counselor, and summer staffer. Wanda shared, “I always felt like I belonged there – it was such a special place. I have great memories of being a part of Camp’s team, making new friends, and feeling so uplifted after spending time there. Another sweet memory is when I prayed with one of my campers – leading a little girl to Christ. Of course, meeting Dan has turned out to be a golden keepsake as well.” Dan said, “I have so many memories, and I am not always sure what triggers the memory. One day I was working on something with Sidney Anderson. I believe he was in his 80s and his vision was waning a bit. As he slowly drove the old blue van up the hill past the girl’s cabins, he got a bit too close to a tree and a branch broke the windshield right in front of where I was sitting. Sidney’s reaction – or lack of reaction – will always be etched in my memory. Without uttering a word, he simply backed up, drove around the tree, and we continued to wherever we were headed. I don’t think a word was ever said about it.”
Dan continued, “Although living more than four hours apart, Wanda and I stayed in touch after camp. When I went to Bethel we started dating regularly and were married at Northwestern after I graduated from Bethel in 1981. We wanted Herb Hazzard to officiate at the wedding, but unfortunately, he was not available.”
Dan and Wanda currently live in Independence, Minnesota and have three adult children and are expecting their 5th and 6th grandchildren.
How has Camp impacted your lives?
Dan: “My connections to Camp Lebanon go back to well before I was born. When my father was still in high school (I believe 1949 or 1950), he and another boy who attended the little Baptist church in Laporte, MN made a wooden sign that stood at the entrance to the camp for many years. My recollection is that it was shaped like the State of Minnesota.
As a child, I went to camp probably from 4th through 11th grade, working there for most of two summers. I loved camp – the leaders (Sidney, Herb, Larry, and others), the other counselors/staff, my campers, the music, the work – it was an incredible way to spend a week or a summer. I have been blessed in life beyond what I ever expected or dreamed. A huge part of that was God bringing Wanda into my life – and that started with Camp Lebanon.”
Dan and Wanda currently live in Independence, Minnesota and have three adult children and are expecting their 5th and 6th grandchildren.
Share your Camp story!
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