Muskoka Miracles: 80Th Anniversary

MUSKOKA

MIRACLES

80TH Anniversary Edition

Muskoka Baptist Conference

John F. Holliday

Richard D. Holliday

Foreword by Rev. Robert Irvin

Huntsville, Ontario, Canada

iUniverse, Inc.

New York Bloomington

Muskoka Miracles

80th Anniversary Edition

Copyright © 2010 John F. Holliday and Richard D. Holliday.

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ISBN: 978-1-4502-5224-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-5225-6 (e)

Printed in the United States of America

iUniverse rev. date: 10/12/2010

Foreword

Rev. Robert W. Irvin

In the little white chapel at Muskoka Baptist Camp,

I made a personal commitment to serve the Lord. In

time, our daughter was a summer waitress and our

son a counselor. While serving at Moody Bible

Institute, we made summer trips with our camping

trailer, to benefit from MBC ministry. Later, a fruitful

summer was spent as volunteer Chaplain to the staff.

The spiritual impact has been widespread and

challenging. May this record of miracles and memories

bless you and yours, knowing that ‘the best is yet to be’.

"To God be the Glory, great things He has done!"

Dedication

The Founders

and those who laboured with them

to the glory of God

Contents

Preface

3rd EDITION ~ 80th ANNIVERSARY

Introduction

Chapter 1

1930 ~ THE BEGINNING OF MIRACLES

Chapter 2

MIRACLES OF GROWTH

Chapter 3

MIRACLES OF SAVING GRACE

Chapter 4

MIRACLES OF JOY, PEACE, AND POWER

Chapter 5

MIRACLES OF BAPTIST INFLUENCE

Chapter 6

MISSIONARY MIRACLES

Chapter 7

MIRACULOUS PROVISION

Chapter 8

THE MIRACLES AT M.B.C. YOUTH CAMPS

Chapter 9

MEET THE FOUNDERS

Chapter 10

1930 to 1946 ~ FOUNDATION YEARS

Chapter 11

1947 to 1954 ~ RENEWAL OF STRENGTH

Chapter 12

1955 to 1965 ~ BUILDING ON FIRM FOUNDATIONS

Chapter 13

1966 to 1969 ~ PROGRAM EXPANSION

Chapter 14

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES BUT

UNCHANGED PURPOSE AND POWER

Chapter 15

1970 to 1990 ~ DEVELOPMENT YEARS

Chapter 16

EXPANDING THE FULL YEAR MINISTRIES

Chapter 17

MEETING NEEDS BECAUSE WE CARE

Chapter 18

MEMORIAL CHAPEL 1978

Chapter 19

1978 ~ THREE GREAT STRIDES

Chapter 20

CAMP WIDJIITIWIN

Chapter 21

TWO EXPENSIVE HURDLES

Chapter 22

Acknowledgements

M      Each use of this symbol identifies a Muskoka Miracle…

          ~ a supernatural act of God

Preface

3rd EDITION ~ 80th ANNIVERSARY

MUSKOKA MIRACLES, a book telling the heart-warming story of the commencement and growth of Muskoka Baptist Conference, was published in 1970 to commemorate its 40th anniversary.

In the succeeding five years, 1971 to 1975, the Conference experienced unprecedented blessing. Development included administrative reorganization, expansion of facilities and the assistance of qualified leaders from many professional, technical and other trained groups. The second edition of Muskoka Miracles, also by John F. Holliday, was published in 1975, celebrating MBC’s 45th anniversary. The author incorporated the pen and the perspective of his associate in leadership, Sydney L. White. These two men were the principal leaders who told the story and kept the records, but took no honours. They believed that God would do the impossible if the principles of His Word were coupled with spiritual passion in families and churches.

This 80th anniversary edition 2010 incorporates the basics of the first two, as authored and published by John F. Holliday in 1975. His son, Richard D. Holliday adds thirteen chapters by word and pictures to show the present realities of what God has wrought. Through eighty years of preaching, heaven’s music, hospitality and recreation, there is a lengthening chain of MUSKOKA MIRACLES which now stretches to not just two, but three, four and five generations of families and churches.

To quote our founders, "one thing should be emphasized; the original purpose of Muskoka Baptist Conference remains unchanged… the determination to exercise a soul-winning and bible teaching ministry to an increasing number of persons, young and older. This is still the compelling objective of our existence. The directors must always realize that this goal can only be achieved by seeking the guidance of the Spirit of God in making decisions, and by implementing those decisions with an eye single to the glory of God".

This edition concludes with the testimony of one of our five generation families, Jim and Elaine Ross. The father and grandfather were members of one of the founding churches. The family has had continuous involvement and leadership to the present day. We thank God for the spiritual concern, hard work and faithful stewardship of a dedicated household.

Introduction

"Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the sea … Jesus stood on the shore … At the lakeside an exultant disciple, cried: It is the Lord". How precious were the lakeside experiences recorded by the fisherman apostle! How dramatic was the breakfast on the beach, prepared by the Risen Christ! How compelling were the calls to follow the Master and fish for men, reported by John Mark! How weighty were the lakeside parables! How momentous the miracles! After nearly two thousand years, Bible readers are still learning invaluable lessons from the inspired record of those Galilean scenes and sermons.

No longer do we see the Risen Christ in His glorified body. Gone is the time when He showed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking things pertaining to the kingdom of God (Acts 1:3). He has not ceased to draw near in spirit to hungry hearts, nor has He relinquished the power to support His claims by supernatural acts.

In the pages that follow, it is our responsibility and joy to record spiritual experiences which parallel those lakeside intimacies with the Lord in the long ago. On the shores of Mary Lake, Jesus showed Himself again and again, and displayed His undiminished supernatural resources. Thousands, of men and women, boys and girls, have been made conscious of His presence and power. This anniversary booklet is an attempt to recapture some of the memorable examples of divine ministry and miracle, which have marked the eighty year history of Muskoka Baptist Conference.

FOR PERSONAL CONTACT:

Rev. Dr. Richard D. Holliday

1339 Bryanston Court, Burlington, Ontario, L7P3N7

Telephone 905/331-0420

Email – [email protected]

Chapter 1

1930 ~ THE BEGINNING OF MIRACLES

Muskoka Baptist Conference was born in the great depression when pocket-books and church treasuries were empty. Besides the economic factors, the founders of M.B.C. faced unfavourable conditions of a very different nature. Canadian Baptists were being despoiled and divided by the encroachments of theological liberalism. Doctrinal declension was accompanied by compromise in other areas, and added to these problems, were attempting to stem the tide of apostasy. In this sea of unrest it was a miracle that M.B.C. ever came into existence.

This is how it happened. In the fall of 1928 young people from Christie Street and Fairbank Baptist Churches in Toronto confided in their respective pastors. They had found an unwholesome moral atmosphere in the summer resorts where they had vacationed. This had convinced them that there was a real need for a camp where Baptists in the moderate income bracket could blend recreation with Christian fellowship and helpful Bible teaching. The report of these young folk was presented to the newly organized Fundamentalist Baptist Young People’s Association. It was then recommended to the Union of Regular Baptist Churches.

In 1930, under F.B.Y.P.A. auspices, the first camp was held at Fisher’s Glen, eight miles West of Port Dover on the shore of Lake Erie. It was attended by 134 campers from 32 churches. Accommodation was provided in tents and in a rented hotel. Rates for the ten-day period were ten dollars for those in tents and twelve dollars for residents in the hotel. From a 1930 invoice file, we learn that the price of butter was 31 cents per pound, sugar less than 5 cents per pound, and a large can of pork and beans cost 13 cents.

The directors of the Fisher’s Glen Camp were Mr. S. L. White, Rev. S. Lawrence, Miss (now Dr.) Olive Clarke, Miss Twiss, and this writer, (the chairman, Rev. John F. Holliday). Miss L. Wyse (now Mrs. W. Gordon Brown) was editor of the first camp paper The Fisher’s Net.

The unexpected emergencies of that first experiment in Canadian Baptist Bible Conference history make an interesting chapter in the forty-year administrative record of the project. A year later the venture became Muskoka Baptist Camp. Before all the registered guests had registered and arrived, the members of the hotel staff resigned. The complaint was that the manager had not advised them of the coming of so many guests (134 instead of the usual 25). The manager promised a wage increase. The program organizers enlisted campers to assist in the dining-room kitchen and room-care. Mrs. S.L. White was appointed to supervise purchasing, catering and table service. This brought the strike to an end.

A sudden drop in temperature occasioned the second dire emergency. Unaccustomed to camping, most of those accommodated in tents, had ignored the registrar’s instruction as to what to bring. They had been asked to bring blankets, but had brought only sheets and pillow-slips. When the mercury fell, it required a midnight trip to Brantford Y.M.C.A. to provide a hundred freezing campers with blankets.

M Financially, Fisher’s Glen was a bold venture of faith. With nothing in the treasury, two of the directors signed an agreement to pay $800.00 for the use of the hotel and the services of the staff, and accepted the responsibility of tent rentals, food supplies, advertising etc. A faithful God supplied the need, and when all accounts were paid there was a credit balance in the treasury.

The spiritual objectives and Baptist emphasis of that forerunner of M.B.C. are indicated in the Fisher’s Glen advertising. On the 1930 folder, there are five significant Scripture texts:

"Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through

our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1)

"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it

is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that

believeth" (Romans 1:16)

"Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling

and to present you faultless before the presence of

His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 24)

"Thy Word is true from the beginning"

(Psalm 119:160)

"Forever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in Heaven"

(Psalm 119:89.

M The spiritual, numerical and financial success of that Biblically based beginning assured the continuation of the camping enterprise. A large number of the Fisher’s Glen registrants met at Fairbank Baptist Church on February 3rd, 1931. It was the first Camp Reunion. There was enthusiasm and thanksgiving when the announcement was made that the F.B.Y.P.A. had taken steps to purchase a property near the junction of Mary Lake and the Muskoka River. The new site had an area of 117 acres and included 5 tourist cabins and three other buildings, which could be used for accommodation. God set his seal upon this second venture of faith by bringing to the Association an unexpected legacy. This paid for the property and provided an additional thousand dollars for legal fees, essential equipment and repairs.

The records show that groups from the following churches were active in helping to establish the Conference at Mary Lake: Barrie, Boston, Central Brantford; Christie Street, Fairbank, Faith, West Toronto and Pape Avenue in Toronto; Flamboro Centre, Freelton, Hartford, Scotland (ON), Memorial Stratford; Oxford St. Woodstock; Wortley Road, London; and Calvary, Ottawa.

That first camp in the Muskoka Hills was another miracle, and also, in many senses another Beginning. It demanded every bit of pioneering spirit that directors, staff and guests could provide.

DeLoss Scott, the 1931 handyman and popshop manager came to camp in luxury (?) with the director and his family. Twenty-five years later, when he was pastor of The National Tabernacle, Washington, D.C., he sent Silver Anniversary greetings to M.B.C. in a letter, which vividly describes that pioneering season: Could we ever forget that first year on the present property?

(1) The ride from Toronto in your Plymouth loaded to the roof with articles and materials too numerous to mention and with yours truly seated high and dry on top of it all in the back seat.

(2) The road into camp – ugh! The present one is like the Pan American Highway in comparison.

(3) The condition of the property. Grass and weeds everywhere were to the height of about three feet. That smelly old Chicken House by the back door. The old, and first Pop Shop in back of Spinster’s Alley with a roof that leaked like a sieve. My stock that was not spoiled by rain was stolen by the squirrels. No profit for that year. And the sleepless nights because of a million mosquitoes!!!!

(4) The old tumble-down barn with the late J. G. Connor and about ten boys sleeping (or pretending to) in the hay loft. What a barnyard rumpus!

(5) The equally dilapidated ice-house located back of the house near to the old oaken bucket well by the front door.

I felt like singing, ‘How dear to my heart are the scenes of my childhood’, for the Camp has surely come a long way since then. But, in spite of the above, we had some great times back in those days of pioneering. It was there my sweetheart and I made all of the plans for our wedding and approached the late J. N. Millar re tying the knot. Then, together, Jennie and I will not forget all the hard work we put in as Camp Hostess and Camp Superintendent respectively. We would gladly do it all over again.

Now, after a fruitful evangelistic and pastoral ministry in Canada and the U. S. A., Pastor and Mrs. Scott are with us once more in Ontario, and head-over-heels in assisting wherever possible at M.B.C.

Mr. and Mrs. Knight were there with the advance party to repair roofs, remodel buildings, clean rooms, wash floors and windows, etc., etc. Mr. Knight cooked for the advance party on a stove set up in the middle of a field. One member of the party, finding it difficult to saw wood without a wood-horse, horrified everyone by sawing off the back of one of the few chairs on the premises. The director’s wife, drawn to Muskoka by the description of its restful beauty, worked from daylight until dark from the time she arrived until the hour she left, and enjoyed it all. On the day camp opened, the cook, Mrs. Lowry of Christie St. Church, attempted to split wood for the cook-stove. Her intention was good, her muscular power unimpaired, but her aim was poor. She missed the wood, nearly took off one of her toes, and ended the adventure in a doctor’s office in Huntsville.

At that first camp, directors and staff occupied tents. Meals were prepared in the kitchen of the old farm house. They were served on the wide verandah or in the newly constructed dining area, produced by tearing out one of the partitions inside the house. Women and girls on the guest-list occupied five cabins on the riverbank. This area was labeled Spinster’s Row or No Man’s Land. Families and middle-aged men were accommodated in tents. In the Grove, not far from the farm house were the family tents. There was the Loveday Tent, the White Tent, the Goheen Tent, and the Holliday Tent. The big Connor Tent, accommodated Mrs. Connor and approximately nine children. The pup tent belonged to Dr. J. W. Browett. Young men were quartered in the Round House, a place that left indelible memories upon the minds of many Baptist youths. Teen boys, under the supervision of Rev. J. G. Connor, slept in the haymow of the barn. This stood on what is now the site of the dining-hall. At night, the barn fairly rocked with laughter. This was natural reaction to Father Connor’s bedtime stories and his own hilarious humour.

It is impossible to pack into these few pages the record of all the labour and sacrifice that went into M.B.C.’s early years of development. Every spring, advance parties motored to Mary Lake at their own expense. They worked from dawn ‘til dusk, preparing the grounds and buildings for the coming of the guests. Directors and staff-members not only served voluntarily, but they also often paid the full rate asked of the guests. When the camp opened, staff and director relinquished in-door accommodation and moved into tents. The new registrants occupied the in-door accommodations. In those days of depression, our little churches were hard-pressed financially. It took all the loyalty, enthusiasm, and sacrifice of the old and young to keep M.B.C. afloat.

Every improvement was a triumph, every addition to equipment was a victory. -a patch on the leaky roof, - new mosquito-netting, - little mirrors on the walls, - canvas cots replaced by spring bunks, - straw ticks exchanged for mattresses – coal-oil and Aladdin lamps supplanted by electric lights, - home-made quilts donated by interested churches. Even these little improvements were much appreciated.

Before long a large tent superseded the verandah of the farmhouse as the Conference place of assembly. In 1936, a rustic chapel replaced the tent. By way of preparation, a 1935 circular, appealed for funds to build the new Chapel. The circular of request contained the following: Do you remember sitting in the big tent trying to listen to the speaker, while ten thousand mosquitoes attacked your arms and ankles? Do you remember the Sunday when the wind nearly turned the tent into a balloon? Well we are going to end these experiences by presenting the Camp with a brand new chapel. With lumber (cedar) cut from our own bush, and with volunteer labour, we expect to finish the whole project on $250.00.

The fund brought a generous response from the F.B.Y.P.A. constituency. Interested men from the Muskoka district gave their labour freely. Rev. James Millar, of Wortley Road Church, London had been a carpenter before he became a preacher. He supervised the area helpers so that the Chapel was erected in time for use at the 1936 Camp. A unique rustic pulpit was fashioned by Bert Olan, the original owner of the Camp property. He used scraps of cedar that were left over from the chapel construction. That pulpit has been used ever since.

There was great variety of programming in those early camps: hikes to Blueberry Mountain, paper-chases, treasure-hunts in the camp bush and tennis tournaments were played on rugged turf courts. The tennis winner was the racket-wielder who was most familiar with the bumpy places. There was keen competition in connection with tent-inspection, water-sports, and miniature golf. There were ball games, which engendered as much excitement as any big league final. The most violent form of recreation was broomball. Even veteran preachers were crippled in those fierce conflicts. The Camp Paper was always a masterpiece and sometimes an embarrassment. The schedule was varied by travel excursions: a weekly boat-trip, a drive to Algonquin Park, a ride on The World’s Shortest Railroad. As time went on, the weekly feature included a trip to Callander to see the world-famous Dionne Quintuplets.

A morning prayer meeting, made a good start for every day. Chapel services were known for their strong Bible teaching, preaching that emphasized fundamental doctrines, and sound Baptist convictions with clear-cut separation from the world. God used those Bible hours to produce conversions, baptisms, restorations and dedications.

There were open-air meetings in Huntsville on Saturday evenings and two great services in Camp on Sunday. Usually, Sunday afternoons a large group of campers went to some neighbouring home or school to hold an evangelistic meeting. These were happy, wholesome groups of vacationers. Old and young were playing and praying together with no generation gap. It was such a great time that many of them wept real tears when their camp period ended. In memory we can see them standing around a car-load that was ready to depart, commending the travellers to God and singing earnestly, sincerely:

We’re sorry you’re going away,

We wish that you could stay.

We’re going to miss you,

Our prayers will go with you (by many, "we wish we could kiss you!")

We’re sorry you’re going away.

In those early years, there were three men who contributed much to the maintenance and improvement of the physical assets of M.B.C. They are worthy of a very special mention.

Deacon T.E. Harley He was officially or unofficially, maintenance superintendent. His home was the halfway stopping place for every work-party that drove northward to the Camp. His has many business connections and was able to enlist helpers from our Barrie Church. Proximity to M.B.C. made him invaluable. His concern for the enterprise knew no limits.