Description

Camp Joseph Badger Meadows (JBM) is a 235 acre church camp supported by 50+ churches of Eastminster Presbytery--a district of Presbyterian churches which includes churches in Akron, Barberton, Cuyahoga Falls, Kent, Warren, Youngstown, and Lisbon. While JBM has, at this point, no separate legal standing apart from the Presbytery, the camp's budget, operations, and programming are the responsibility of the camp committee, consisting of an approximately equal number of clergy and lay persons from the presbytery. During the boom of mainline Protestantism (mid 1960's) the presbytery bought a farm and converted it first into a summer camp where children, youth, and adults came for fellowship and Christian education. Over the years more housing was built, including housing that could be used year around--especially for weekend retreats. Given the steady decline of presbytery membership over the last 20 years, the camp's usage and revenue has also declined to the point that several years ago a committee was formed to study the continued viability of the camp. It was at about that time that the idea of creating a farm incubator was proposed and support for that idea quickly emerged. This particular business case seeks to leverage the value of the training farm, translating that into increased summer camp, retreat, student, and conference revenue. Larry Bowald, James Walawender, Casey Walawender, and Steve Fortenberry will be leading this effort.

Proposed Location

7266 Hayes Orangeville Rd NE, Burghill, OH 44404

Visibility

Public - accessible to all site users

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Business Case Information

Value Proposition

<p>JBM will provide housing, indoor meeting space, and outdoor lab settings for a variety of individuals and groups.</p><p>Those willing to pay for this service:</p><ol><li>Independent educators who are looking to host training events in their field of expertise.</li><li>Agriculture associations looking for a conference venue.</li><li>Church groups looking for retreat accommodations for faith and food themes.</li><li>Children and youth organization wanting to have events promoting healthy eating.</li><li>The JBM Farmer Training Entity will eventually be a regular leasee.</li><li>Families wanting to have a week-long farming vacation.</li><li>College groups wanting to explore academic pursuits related to agriculture.</li><li>Church mission groups.</li></ol>

Workload

<div>&nbsp;</div><div>Further Market Analysis</div><ol><li>Identify area colleges most in alignment with JBM&#39;s mission and goals and form relationships with them.</li><li>Form a list of people who teach seminars in agricultural/food systems field.</li><li>Identify major faith networks most inclined toward food justice.</li><li>Identify Warren and Youngstown community organizations working with children and youth, and who also have a health focus.</li><li>Identify agricultural associations that regularly host regional meetings or training events.</li><li>Find models of family farm camping experiences.</li></ol><p>Marketing Plan</p><ol><li>New website</li><li>New brochures</li><li>Build related social networks through the region, identifying the best venues for attendance.</li></ol><p>Administrative Issues</p><ol><li>Determine how all different types of hosting fit together through out the calendar year.</li><li>Determine housing and food fees.</li><li>Determine how much of the programming will be led from within, as opposed to trainers and programs which simply use the facilities.</li></ol><p>Infrastructure Assessments</p><ol><li>Determine current usability and capacity.</li><li>Determine ROI on upgrades to existing facilities.</li><li>Determine ROI on new facilities.</li></ol>

Mapping

<p>Many of the steps are listed in the previous answer. Most all of what we need will be come from our region.</p>

Required Resources

<p>The JBM camp committee, the staff of Eastminster Presbytery, and leaders from among the 50+ churches in the region will be of help.&nbsp;</p><p>Some of our networks:</p><ol><li>Presbyterian and other Mainline denominations</li><li>Assemblies of God</li><li>Evangelical Lutheran Church of America</li><li>Mahoning Valley Organizing Collaborative</li><li>Ohio Prophetic Voices</li><li>Mahoning Valley Area Church Association</li><li>Younstown ACTION</li><li>The Rescue Mission of the Mahoning Valley</li><li>The Hope Center (Warren)</li><li>Lorain Community College</li><li>Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation</li></ol><p>Additional Needs</p><p>Some of the programming we hope to host can begin right away, but other programming will depend upon the establishment of a working farm, which is a separate, but integrated business. Still other programming will depend upon the renovation of current facilities and perhaps the construction of new facilities. Capital will be required for that. Options for capital include: presbytery-wide capital campaign, gas lease income, bequests, and loans.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>

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Director of Market Development

Mission: 

Founded in 1972, BFG Supply has a long history of serving the Green Industry including professional growers, lawn & garden centers, landscapers, and indoor growing stores.

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