2021 | Men’s Shoot Straight Retreat

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We had a full group of men join us this year for our Shoot Straight Retreat! Generations of family shared the good fun found in the great outdoors of Whisper Mountain. Church friends went a little deeper in the shared experience found in the woods together. Individuals, pastors, fathers, sons, comrades — all enjoyed the the archery tournament, spiritual encouragement and time away from the everyday pressures. Did we mention the good food too?

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Boys got to run around and breathe in the mountain air…and get some aggressions out (with adult supervision, of course!)

We got to utilize our new cleared pads (for future buildings) for some of our targets in the tournament which really seemed to make a smoother walk for all the guys. One of the best parts of the weekend isn’t winning the trophy for the best score at the end of the tournament, but is the process of walking our woods and trying to hit a 3D target! The woods are calming and beautiful and so good for the soul.

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We were so thankful to have Marcus Clapper and his dad Dale with us to share their journey and ultimately the journey of our Father’s great love for us. Unlike other years, the encouragement focused in on relationships between fathers and their sons but the reminder of God’s faithfulness and grace to us was an encouragement to all.

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Thanks to all who came to the retreat. We hope you found great refreshment. If you’ve ever thought about coming to our men’s retreat, mark your calendar now for Sept 30 – Oct 2, 2022. If you want to on the ball and register now, use this link! We would love to have you join us!

(SIDE NOTE: we are accepting donations of outdoor gear of all kinds for our raffle drawings for the 2022 retreat. Contact Cassi@WhisperMountain.org if you’re interested or have questions! Thanks for your consideration!)

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Author + Photography | Cassi

Shoot Straight 2019

A month ago now, we hosted a crowd of men for our annual Shoot Straight Retreat! Kids 8+ came to our woods to relax, throw knives (mhm, that’s right!), shoot some arrows, eat good food and be encouraged!

The worship and encouragement throughout the weekend (from Rich!) helped center the time on Christ and uplift in those most personal spaces of the heart. The older men praying over the younger men was a highlight to see and a powerful time for both the younger and wiser among us!

All of Saturday was spent outdoors, first practicing with the bows and arrows and then the actual 3D tournament in the afternoon! The time shooting arrows ends with a long shot, which is a fun challenge for all! (No worries, guys, we did find most of the stray arrows 😉 !)

Of course, one of the favorite parts of the weekend is getting to draw for allllllll the raffle prizes! This year, we even had a fancy spinning machine to select the ticket from! They say it’s all in the details, right?!

After all the tournament scores are collected and counted, of course we have a trophy ceremony, because if you didn’t get a trophy, did you really win?!!

We hear such good things about this time away in the woods! The encouragement, the fun, the refreshment! Thank you to all who came this year! We hope you’ll gather again with us next year! Keep October 2-4, 2020 blocked out on your calendar!

Now, go be those men God’s called you to be! And help raise up some younger men to follow behind! To God be the glory!

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Author & Photography | Cassi

White Space at Whisper Mountain [2017]

Over the weekend some ladies gathered for our annual Craftivities Event! Creating White Space in our lives was sort of the call this year!

We were thrilled to have Kaleigh Stickles come to lead a Hand Lettering Workshop on Friday night!

Kaleigh sells her masterpieces on etsy at Master’s Piece Co. and we were lucky enough to see them up close and personal! She does beautiful work! Go check it out!

Saturday began with some tasty homemade apple cider donuts, which means everything! (Patti does amazing work in our camp kitchen, am i right?!)

We got our hands busy Saturday, creating four different crafts throughout the day! Everybody had their own take on things and each one was so pretty and showed a little more about the person who made it! That’s what I love best — seeing the heart of each person come out in the things they create! (Such a reflection of our Creator, no?!)

I’m personally thankful for this time carved out of otherwise busy living, but it also seemed everyone else left a little more refreshed than when they came!

Thank you, ladies, for coming to spend the weekend with us at #whispermtncraftivities ! If you missed out this time, we hope you can make it the next time! More than that, we hope you are able to carve out some white space of your own! You’ll be thankful you did!

[Author & Photos: Cassi]

Shoot Straight 2016

The weather couldn’t have been more gorgeous a couple weekends ago as we welcomed a small group of men to our Shoot Straight Retreat. Men came to Whisper Mountain to get away from their responsibilities for a while and to breathe slower and deeper with a little man time in the woods! Fathers and sons came together which made for an even more memorable time.

100 yard shoot was challenging and fun!

Pros and amateurs alike enjoyed the challenge of the 3D Archery Tourney!  Bears, turkey, deer, boar and a few other 3D animal targets could be found scattered throughout our woods awaiting the rounds of arrows heading for their kill zone! Some arrows met their mark, and well, some never did! But in the end, the getting away, the connecting and the encouragement made the weekend a success!

Here’s what one person said about the men’s weekend:

click to watch

We are already looking forward to next year! Mark your calendars for October 6-8, 2017! We hope to see you then, if not sooner!

 

Fall 2015 >> Shoot Straight Men’s Retreat

Thanks to Hurricane Joaquin, raincoats became a big part of our first men’s retreat here at Whisper Mountain! But, what’s a little weather when guys get out in the woods, away from their normal pressures, enjoying good conversation and laughter, and indulging in home-cooked meals?

We saw everyone have a good time, even if they’d never shot a bow before! Some kids shot as good as some of the guys, but it was never really about skill. It was about the refreshment and connection a weekend like this offers.

After some target shooting, the guys broke into teams to begin the 3D shoot in our woodsball paintball course!

We are thankful for Jason Dellinger (he’s the guy on the right in the photo above!) offering the guys short but powerful challenges, encouraging them to be men of diligence!

All throughout the weekend, prizes were raffled off randomly (how did some of those kids get so lucky!?!). For the tourney, one winner from the adults and one from the youth were recognized. Junior and Issac (pictured above) won those trophies! And the giveaway of all giveaways (the crossbow!) went to Joe! He’s looking pretty pumped, right?!

To those of you who came: we really enjoyed having you join us for our first men’s weekend! Thanks for having fun even in the rain. We hope you’ll join us again next year!

To all the others: plan on coming next year! We’ve worked out all the kinks now!! Dates will come out in January, but plan on October for sure!

(GUYS: if you want the weekend’s pics — lots more than seen here — sent to you, please email Cassi@WhisperMountain.org and I’ll get them to you!)

A Barnett Jackal Crossbow is up for grabs!

We are giving away a brand-spankin’ new Barnett Jackal Crossbow! All men who register for the Shoot Straight Retreat by Friday, September 11 will be entered to win!

Here’s the skinny on the crossbow:

• Complete crossbow package, includes quick-detach quiver, bolts, and premium red dot sight
• Sleek, military-style stock; high energy wheels; synthetic string and cable system
• Shoots at 315 feet per second with 150-pound draw weight
• Picatinny rail provides a mounting platform; 3.5-pound trigger pull

Oh yeah, boys! Who doesn’t want this?! 

Clear your calendar, your friend’s/son’s/dad’s/compadre’s calendars too, and head to our website to register! You could be strutting out of the woods (after an amazing, man-time weekend) with this crossbow in hand!

If you don’t know what we are talking about, see the retreat details here! If you are well aware of all that, GO GET REGISTERED HERE!

May the luckiest man win!

Upcoming Men’s Retreat >> Shoot Straight 2015

Men need a place to get into the woods, to grunt together, understand each other, and do manly things together. Right?

Whisper Mountain understands this need and has been preparing and planning for such an event to take place this October! In exactly one month, men will come together for camaraderie, fire side conversations, an archery tournament with 3D targets (prizes will be awarded), relevant encouragement from a special guest and overall simple, backwoods fun!

 This is an all-men event, boys 10+ being invited to join. So while this is a great opportunity for dads/sons/grandpas to bond, we look forward to the individuals, small groups or friends who think this sounds like just what they need about now!

Women, encourage your men to come (a great chance for you to get some girl time in while they’re gone?!)! Men, plan to come on October 2-4! Enjoy the fall beauty of Whisper Mountain, enjoy getting away from your regular demands, enjoy building relationships with other men and being encouraged in the process!

Go to the Men’s Retreat Page on our website to learn more and get registered!

If you know someone(s) who you think would enjoy a weekend like this, let them know — Help us spread the word!

canvas of grace

Each fall we hold a teen girl's retreat at camp. In years passed, we have hired a college ministry group to come and run the program for us. While that was good for then, the time has come for us to run our own program! And I couldn't be more excited. As I've been praying through the direction and material and the help, my excitement grows! I can't wait to see how God personalizes this retreat for each person coming!

Feel free to pass the word along to any teen girls! (More info here) The more the merrier! Would you also begin praying with us that God is in every square inch of the planning, preparing and executing?!

blessings on your day!

True ID 2011

Whisper Mountain had a lovely time this past weekend hosting our annual True ID Retreat for teen girls! With "God's Boutique" all set and the tables decked out for a feast, we welcomed both local and non-local girls for their one night stay, and their 2 day encounter with the truths from God's Word about their value, their purpose, their hope! 

Giveaways, yummy food, girly time, pop-culture vs God's truth, dance-off, connecting, smores…this is how we spent the weekend!

The True ID leaders who came from Charlotte and Virginia to run the program did a great job connecting with these girls, leading workshops, and teaching! We appreciate them sharing their hearts as they did!

Thank you to those who helped us bless these girls through the provision of giveaway prizes and those who helped cut felt that we fashioned into hair accessories (as seen on some of the girls above), those who prayed for this event! We believe God has used this in the hearts of some girls who are desparate for Him! (To learn how to make your own hair accessories, visit this page!)

 (oh and…my daughter was old enough to participate in this event. gulp.)

The Case of the Missing Cornhole Beanbags

During this group's recent weekend retreat at Whisper Mountain, the craziest thing happened. All of our Cornhole bean bags disappeared. We have no idea what happened to them. The teens went looking for them during free time and they just weren't there! Along with giving them a hard time for "stealing" them, we threw out the idea that the dogs that live in our woods on occasion must have taken them (other strays have been seen doing such things!)

This week Whisper Mountain received a package.

From the guilty party! With a confession letter and all!

phew. I feel so much better now that the Case of the Missing Cornhole Bean Bags is now solved. I shall sleep better tonight! (And we thank the Wild Mountain Dogs for cashing in on our behalf!)