Camp Cabaju

By Jon Griffin

I was saved in 1956 at an American Sunday School Union camp in the Ozarks. I know Bible camps can be used of God to evangelize, and to foster growth in believers around the world.

ABWE entered Paraguay to plant churches in 1974. By 1984 when my wife Kathy and I arrived, three churches were in formation in Asunçion, the capital city, and two in the interior. Missionaries and national leaders, eager to reach and disciple young people, asked us to organize a week of camp. We rented a facility an hour from the capital, and using capable Paraguayan believers as cooks, counselors, and speakers, hosted 85 campers. For most it was an introduction to Bible camp. That was all it took for camp to become a priority among our churches.

The problem was WHERE? With more teenagers wanting to attend each year, rental facilities either weren't available or weren't big enough. We needed our own site if we were to expand the camp ministry. In 1986 we purchased 75 acres of wooded, rolling hillside.

After furlough we began developing Camp Cabaju (kah-bah-JOO) named for the nearby rock bluff Cerro Cabaju (Horse Hill.) Our construction principle has been: build permanent, sturdy, low-maintenance structures. Our dining hall is built of pink stone, quarried on the camp property itself; hand-made brick; and tile, also made near camp. The 15' x 30' cabins, built for 14 campers each, are also brick and tile. Expensive? That first cabin went up for $3,793, complete with bunks, mattresses, jalousie windows, and tiled bath.

Camp Cabaju was inaugurated with an overnight retreat on January 27, 1990. We had one cabin, and a dining hall/kitchen complex, but no water and no electricity. That meant for a regular camp we still had to rent facilities-if we could find them. Some years we couldn't hold camp at all.

Returning for our third term in 1992 with donations totaling $22,000, we built two more cabins, installed a water system, bought a generator, and equipped the kitchen. Rejoicing in the goodness of the Lord, we hosted the first full week of camp at Camp Cabaju in January of 1993. Now, seven seasons later, we have six cabins, public electricity, and a new 290' well. We hosted five weeks of camp in January and February 1999, planned and directed almost exclusively by national pastors and church members. The camp is available to churches year-round and, thanks to the Faith Baptist Church of Blairsville, Georgia, offers rappelling off the side of Horse Hill.

Has the effort been worth it? Ask the dozens of young Paraguayans who've been saved at camp in these seven years, or the 14 teens who were saved in one week in January. Others have made decisions to dedicate their lives to the Lord. We praise God for touching the hearts of those who invested in this camp. We still need more bunk space, a dining hall extension, a multi-purpose pavilion, and cooks' sleeping quarters. We're trusting the Lord for around $75,000 to complete these projects. It's a small price to pay for such great returns!