In this three-part history of Sawtooth Camp, I have written about people who made choices about the land they acquired. One chose to change the beautiful landscape by dredge, leaving miles of ugly piles of destruction. The second wanted to bring the unlawful building of a casino, thereby destroying the amazing silence of the valley. And yet another squabbled with his family over the land and faced financial disaster. Each had a grand plan. But it was not God’s plan. God’s plan was not for wealth or commerce, but for stewardship. God’s plan was to trust the men and women who came to this place we now call Sawtooth Camp to be managers of this beautiful land through careful, thoughtful, and responsible care. It has been through stewardship that the land today is a space that invites and nurtures sacred connections.
While the Methodist Men’s groups from the Magic Valley purchased and began developing the land for our camping ministry, some significant history has been shaped over the years by the camp directors, and I am humbled and excited to take my place among them this year. There have not been many directors at Sawtooth, and I cannot finish the history of camp without talking about one particular director who, with his family, impacted thousands of lives through the shaping and protecting of this unique place.
Dave Hargreaves was hired as the Sawtooth director in 1972 and retired in 2018 after 46 years of service. (It’s worth noting that Dave first interviewed for the job in 1970 but was passed over because it was thought he was too young and might not have “staying power”!) Dave’s influence on the site has been magnified by the entire Hargreaves family, including first Dave and Karen, and now Dave and Candace, plus Dave’s parents, Ted and Pat, as well as children Lori and Bill, grandchildren Chris and Xander, sisters and brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, extended family members, other in-laws and probably even some “out-laws”! They have all been an enduring part of the history of the Sawtooth experience.
Try to imagine what Sawtooth was like in 1972 when Dave first took the job. On the 120 acres of dry sagebrush, there were eight small service buildings, seven “open air” cabins, and a lodge. There was a small modest cabin for Dave, his wife, and newborn first child. Camps were growing and Dave soon found his talent as carpenter, project manager, fundraiser, and volunteer coordinator, in addition to managing the day-to-day camp operations.
The landscape of the grounds around the “Old” Lodge and later the “New” Lodge began to change drastically through the middle 70’s to the late 80’s. The meadow and ball field were not green and the trails were not rock-lined or shaded. Through Dave’s vision and leadership, and the efforts of many other Sawtooth supporters, a very ambitious new watering/irrigation system was developed and implemented that carried water from Koonce Creek on the southwest end of the property to the main area of the camp at the north end of the property. It was a monumental task! With the efforts of many, Sawtooth Camp became even more beautiful with an amazing new green space in the middle of the high mountain desert.
The 80’s saw a huge expansion of facilities with the opening of the beautiful Sawtooth Lodge in 1985. It housed the kitchen, dining room and an extra-large program space. Unfortunately, the west extension of the original lodge had to be removed because of its weakening and collapsing structure caused by weather and snow over the 30 or so years that it served Sawtooth Camp. That space was re-purposed as the Sawtooth Basketball Court.
In the 90’s the original shower houses, the His’n and Her’n, were replaced with two new modern shower houses that served both ends of the sleeping cabin area. The Greenhouse Cabin was acquired from the Hupfer mining claim a few miles north of Sawtooth. The 90’s also saw the beginning of the sleeping cabin remodeling project with the enclosing of the first two cabins. An outdoor meeting and programming area was needed so the Sawtooth Pavilion, designed and built by Bill Merritt, was built across the creek from the outdoor Chapel.
From 2000 to 2020 the camp continued to prosper and had even more improvements. Electrical power was connected to the Bishop’s Cabin so it would be a more comfortable place for camp guests to stay. A new Manager’s Cabin was finished in 2005. The last sleeping cabin to be enclosed and weatherized was Trout in 2006. From 2007 and 2008, the improvements to camp were the building of an outdoor stage for camper performances, and the creation of hiking and biking trails. In 2011 the addition of an extra bedroom was added on to the Bishop’s Cabin. The name of the Bishop’s Cabin was changed to the Palmer Guest Cabin or PGC during this period. In 2011 the Riverview Trail was built and introduced to campers. It was in honor of Karen Hargreaves and her service to Sawtooth Camp after she passed away in May of 2011. In 2016 the Welcome Center was finished and added at the entrance of the camp to serve as a welcoming environment to the campers as they arrived.
Since Dave’s retirement, there have been four Sawtooth Camp directors: Robert Poe, Larry Haley, Mike Pletcher, and me, Wes Remaley. As you can see, the camp has flourished and grown over the years; and it will persevere through the stewardship and dedication of the past, present, and future directors, site committee members, volunteers, deans, counselors, and campers who love Sawtooth Camp.
Because of that love and commitment, I am confident Sawtooth Camp will continue to thrive. Programs will continue and improve. Campers, new and old, will come to Sawtooth. New groups will want to make Sawtooth their home for their special week at camp. The flowers will bloom in spring. The quaking aspen will turn yellow in the fall. The river will continue to rush past. The road will always be rough and long. Adventure always waits around the next corner. The mountains will continue to tower. The sun will shine. The deer will graze in the meadow. The fire will always be warm at the nightly campfire. The s’mores will always be gooey. The swimming will always be cold, but oh so nice on a hot summer day. The memories will last. The friendships will endure. God’s love will always be present and beautifully apparent at Sawtooth Camp!
Wes Remaley,
Sawtooth Camp Director
P.S.You can find testimonials from a variety of Sawtooth campers here.
*PHOTO: The Sawtooth Camp entrance gate
The weekend after Easter about 30 people gathered together to participate in our leadership training event at Suttle Lake Camp. The training is designed for those who will be counselors and counselors in training (CITs), as well as deans, chaplains, nurses, and resource staff.
Through role-playing, the counselors had the opportunity to experience a variety of scenarios from camp life, including the challenges of getting campers up and to breakfast in the morning, rounding up campers from a busy session of afternoon game playing, getting campers excited about participating in campfire, and finally getting the campers calmed down and ready for bed. As you can imagine, those who were playing the role of campers gave it their all to keep from allowing the counselor to reach their objective.
These real-life situations can be stressful at camp, which is exactly why we do them in training. We want to enable our leaders to develop their abilities, and we support them in preparing a number of tricks up their sleeves should they encounter any of these situations. Following each role-playing scenario, there was an opportunity to have the counselors share what it was like and how they might handle it differently the next time.
As for the deans, chaplains and nurses, they were able to talk about curriculum (so did the counselors) and to cover material related to restorative justice practices. These practices help us work with campers and challenging situations to address harmful behavior, work through the process of confession and forgiveness, and restore the community to one of trust and support for all members. Yes, this is a challenging task! And it’s one that we hope will be a witness to our commitment to healing harm and establishing strong, resilient, and resourceful staff and campers.
There was time for Safe Camp (you might know it as Safe Sanctuary), and we reviewed our mission statement and explored how we align our tasks with the mission and vision of camp and retreat ministries: “We are a people dedicated to creating sacred spaces of Christian hospitality and learning.”
We enjoyed games like flyswatter jeopardy, King Frog, and invisible ball, to name a few. We sang campfire songs and mealtime graces to help leaders feel more comfortable doing the many things that they are called on to do in a week at camp.
Our time at camp training also included a campfire where we roasted marshmallows (and Peeps—it was less than a week after Easter Sunday, after all!) for S’mores. Part 2 of this report will come in a couple of weeks as I share some of the experiences from a similar training to be held at Hillview UMC in Boise, April 19-20.
~Todd Bartlett, Executive Director
*PHOTO: Aura Taylor may be a little young yet to serve on a camp staff (she attended the training with her dad, Troy, who is director at Magruder), but she's definitely not too young to enjoy an Easter-themed Peeps S'more! (Todd Bartlett)
Partner churches
Games that are fun and help us learn
Patient leaders
Please send your blessings to share in future issues of the e-news.
It's amazing to read about how much Sawtooth Camp has changed over the years, as outlined in Wes Remaley's three-part narrative. Wes has highlighted the sometimes HEROIC efforts of staff and volunteers who have made Sawtooth what it is today (and be sure to read here about how much Sawtooth has meant to campers across those years).
And now we have another opportunity to rise to yet another challenge! As you may have read last week, the camp's old generator--which was slated for repair before the 2024 summer season--is no longer a candidate for repair. The good news: a new generator has been ordered and will arrive in time for camp! The bad news? The cost, including shipping, is $16,295.
So far we've raised $6,575, so that means we have another $9,425 to go to meet the $16,000 goal. In 1964, the Methodist Men of the Magic Valley raised $8,000 in 90 days to purchase an additional 40 acres of land to complete the acreage that is now Sawtooth Camp. Surely we can double that today, working together across the Oregon-Idaho Conference. Please help us get there by donating today! Click on the green button and choose the Sawtooth Development Fund (you'll also be able to make a note that you want your donation to support the Sawtooth generator project).
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© 2014 Camp and Retreat Ministries:
A partnership between The Oregon-Idaho Conference of The United Methodist Church
and The Episcopal Diocese of Oregon