CONFERENCE INFORMATION
Event: The 2014 Chesapeake Stake Youth
Conference will be a pioneer trek; it will build upon last year’s conference
when our youth visited Palmyra and learned about the restoration. Youth Conference will be for youth ages 14 up
through those who have just completed their senior year of high school.
Conference will occur Monday, June 23, 2014 through Wednesday, June 25, 2014
and will take place at the Marriott Ranch in Hume, VA (Northwest of
Fredericksburg).
Conference
participants and leaders should meet at the Chesapeake Stake Center at 6:00 AM
on Monday, June 23, 2014 for registration. Participants should arrive at
registration in pioneer clothing. Youth must have a signed permission slip and
medical release form to participate. In order to minimize delays from lost or
missing forms, leaders should collect signed forms ahead of time and send them
to registration with a responsible adult.
If a youth participant will require adult assistance with medications;
the camp physician will collect the medication at the time of registration.
Units are responsible to arrange transportation to and from conference. Space
will be limited, so youth should not bring more than the items listed on the
youth packing list. Once registration is complete, we expect to depart for the
Marriott Ranch at 7:00 AM. Travel to the trek location will take approx. 4 hours.
The youth will
trek in “family” groups. Immediately upon arrival at the ranch, youth
participants will be assigned to their family. Each family will be assigned a
handcart and will consist of 10-12 youth and an adult couple who will serve as
their “ma” and “pa”. The youth will trek
about 11.5 miles over three days. Throughout the trek, the youth will be taught
about real pioneer experiences through stories and portrayals. The youth will
also participate in pioneer games, activities, family devotionals, and a
concluding testimony meeting. We expect
this to be a very difficult but spiritually rewarding experience for our youth.
Background:
From 1856 to 1860 handcarts
were a means of helping Latter-day Saints (mostly immigrants from England,
Scotland, and Scandinavia), who lacked funds for ox and horse teams, to gather
in the West. Nearly 3,000 Mormon pioneers made the journey from Iowa or
Nebraska to Utah in 10 handcart companies. In the Willie and Martin Handcart
companies, nearly 210 of the 980 pioneers died along the way. John Chislett, a
survivor wrote, “many a father pulled his cart, with his little children on it,
until the day preceding his death.” Handcart pioneers have become an important
symbol in LDS culture, representing the faithfulness and sacrifice of the
pioneer generation.
“I
wish to remind everyone within my hearing that the comforts we have, the peace
we have, and most important, the faith and knowledge of God we have, were
bought with a terrible price by those who have gone before us.” President Gordon B Hinckley Oct 1991
Theme: The theme for our conference is Faith In Every Footstep.
Objective: The purpose of this trek is to provide the youth the opportunity to
gain a deeper appreciation of the sacrifices made by the early handcart saints.
Youth today face trials and hardships; while their trials may not be as
physically challenging as the pioneers, they require enormous spiritual and
moral strength to overcome. We want our youth to understand they are a
continuance of the pioneer legacy. They have a great responsibility to overcome
the challenges that their generation faces, just as the pioneers overcame
theirs. We want them to understand that it is their responsibility to build the
Kingdom of God upon the foundation laid for them by the sacrifices of their
forbearers.
Fasting: Fasting should not be
incorporated as part of the trek. The trek will be physically demanding and the
lack of food or water could be dangerous.
Physical Fitness: Participants should
condition themselves physically for this conference. Wards and branches may
make conditioning activities part of their Youth Conference preparation.
Individuals should be able to walk 4 miles on level ground in 60 minutes or
less without undue stress.
Standards: Each participant must act in
accordance with church standards at all times and encourage other members of
the trek to behave in accordance with gospel standards. Non-member friends are
invited to participate but should be made aware of the requirements to adhere
to church standards through an interview or interaction with a member of the
unit’s bishopric/branch presidency.
Not Allowed: Personal electronic
devices (such as phones, Ipods, game devices, music players, etc), are not
allowed on the trek or in vehicles while traveling to and from the trek
location. Animals, small children, firearms, fireworks, fishing equipment,
ATV’s, or mountain bikes cannot be brought to conference. Youth participants may bring folding pocketknives
3.5 inches or less, but sheathed knives or machetes are prohibited.
Emergency Contact: In case of
emergency, parents and unit leaders may contact the following:
President Jones, Stake Presidency
President Miller, Stake YM President
Sister Goldade, Stake YW President
Brother Vetter, Stake YM 1st Counselor
Trek Starting Location
4440 Fiery Run Road
Linden, VA 22642
Conference Location
Marriott Ranch
5305 Marriott Lane
Hume, VA 22639
Telephone (540) 364-2627
Closest Hospital (13 miles, 23 minutes)
Warren Memorial Hospital
1000 N Shenandoah Avenue
Front Royal, VA 22630
Telephone (540) 636-0300
Water itself will be provided, but you need to bring something to drink from. A plastic water bottle works perfectly. It doesn't have to be anything special, just something that you can fill up and cap off.
You will also need a tin plate and cup (aka camping mess kit).
And a spoon.
And finally, bring a sleeping bag. Sleeping under the stars will be much more comfortable in a sleeping bag.
