Mennonite Church Manitoba has sold Camp Moose Lake which is located near Sprague. Executive Director Ken Warkentin says it is a decision that was decades in the making.

"During the 60's and 70's, when Mennonite Church Manitoba was in a growth mode, we acquired three camps and they served us very well and we loved them and built them and used them to educate our kids and to transfer our faith to our children. But our church growth has not matched the camps that we have established so we really just had too much camp for our size."

Warkentin says Mennonite Church Manitoba will now focus its camping ministry on Camp Assiniboia, near Headingley and Camp Koinonia near Boissevain. He adds it was not easy to decide which camp to sell.

"There were lots of factors that went into it but, in the end, we decided that the best use of our camping resources was to retain Camp Assiniboia and to consider Camp Koinonia to be sort of a satellite of Camps With Meaning. Indeed the ownership of that camp will also change somewhat. We are looking to transfer the management of that camp (Koinonia) to a local group but it will still be one of our primary sites for camping ministry."

Warkentin reiterates it is hard to give up Camp Moose Lake.

"The selling of that camp is a mixed blessing. It does free up some resources for us to develop our ministries in other areas, but it certainly is with lament that we say goodbye to Camp Moose Lake because it has been such a pivotal place for so many people in their spiritual journey."

Warkentin says he has been asked to not disclose the buyer of Camp Moose Lake. We have learned the buyer plans to make an announcement in mid-September.