September 30, 2026

Good Newsletter

Hello friends of Koinonia,

There’s something special about the change from summer to fall at Koinonia. The pace shifts, the leaves begin to turn, and after a full and joyful summer, we have a chance to take a breath—and then get ready for what’s next.

Fall is here, and there is no shortage of activity. We’re looking forward to welcoming groups to the Conference Center, families to the cabins, and many new and familiar faces to camp in the weeks ahead. This has always been my favorite season at Koinonia, when the beauty of nature seems to invite us to slow down, gather together, and enjoy being here.

Camp has been busy this month with someone staying on grounds nearly every day in September. Since stepping into the role of Acting Executive Director a few weeks ago, I’ve been especially grateful for this opportunity to serve the Koinonia community alongside Mike O’Brien, our staff, Board, volunteers, and supporters. We’re continuing the search for Koinonia’s next Executive Director, and I’m excited to see where this next chapter takes us.

For now, I’m thankful to continue being part of this place and to help care for it during this season of change—five years after I first stepped foot on these special grounds.

I hope you’ll come see us this fall. There’s always a little something happening at Koinonia, and we’d love to see you.

Please read on for our updates and good news.

Season of Transition

As we move through this season of transition, your support means more than ever. Koinonia continues to be a place of welcome, connection, and renewal because of the generosity of people who believe in our mission. If you’re able, please consider making a gift to help celebrate, encourage and support the Staff and Board through this exciting transition of leadership.

Your gift can make a difference. Give your gift here.

CAMP NEWS

Fundraising/ Finance Update

Our total operating donations as of September 20th were $193,103.80. Thank You!

Our Capital Campaign Gifts (2020-present) were, as of September 20th, $2,010,458.40. Total gifts and pledges are $2,138,799.52. As you can see above, we are still receiving Capital gifts beyond our 2 million goal!

Total Giving in 2026, as of September 20th, was $574,202.44. Thanks to all of our generous donors and supporters!

Lora and Mike put together the next quarterly installment of the Koinonia Ripples newsletter - coming your way November. Thanks to our wonderful volunteers for getting this mailing ready! Read the most recent story here.

If you have a story about Koinonia's impact on your life that you would like to share with the Koinonia community, please reach out to Lora HERE.

Your generosity helps Koinonia thrive!

Property Update

The Oasis Shower House was in use for our Nature Campers and guests of Koinonia. Jim K. will begin properly winterizing the shower house on October 15th and will have it back up and going in the spring.

Jim has been working on tree removal, mowing, and repairs in the Conference Center this month.

The generator pad and conduit was completed at the Conference Center this month. The generator is expected to arrive around October 18th.

Mike is working on a volunteer schedule for maintaining the landscaping at the front of camp. If you're interested in helping, reach out to Mike here.

Mike has several groups coming to volunteer in the fall:

Youth Build November 9-12^th Cypress Hills Deck and Accessible ramp – Hillside and Redo the dock in sections
Lumberjack games weekend October 16-17-18 – KWMA will bring splitters, getting all the lumber split – in the afternoon, lumberjack games!

Outreach/Marketing

Facebook 90-day Facebook visits were at 66,100, up 29.3% from the previous year. We gained 6 Facebook followers in the past month, and post engagements hover between 350 and 3,500. Instagram is increasing its views and interaction, and visits to the profile have increased 161.4% in the last 90 days. The last monthly newsletter had a 48% open rate, a slight increase from July. The monthly Ripples stories have a 45% open rate.

Lora emailed fall programming flyers to pastors and church contacts in the MNYS, retreating congregations, and Member Congregations welcoming them to Koinonia.

Izzy started this month as our new full time Marketing Director/Program Assistant. She created a new social media posting schedule and will continue to work on updating our website. She also worked on streamlining our social media posting process. Thanks for these important updates, Izzy!

Izzy has been invited to table at the Barryville Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings - at not cost to the camp. She will go and represent Koinonia on Saturday mornings she is available.

Mike hosted the 1st of 2 YouthBuild groups this fall. If you're interested in volunteering to mentoring these young adults in November, reach out to Mike here.

FALL EVENTS

Thank You

Thank you for being part of Koinonia and for all the ways you help make this place what it is—whether by visiting camp, gathering here with others, volunteering, praying, or supporting us financially. As we move through this season of transition and into a new chapter, I’m grateful for the community that surrounds Koinonia and for the many ways our paths continue to cross. I’m looking forward to seeing what the coming months hold and, most of all, to welcoming you to camp.

In Koinonia,

Lora Baumhardt

Acting Executive Director

lora@koinoniany.org

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