Fundraiser returns with family entertainment after rough fire

Although the forest fires caused one of the biggest events at Hume Lake to be canceled last year. The Country Fair restarted its event on Labor Day weekend. The Country Fair brought back food, bounce houses, and a live auction to help raise funds for Hume projects, Sept. 3.

The clouds parted the morning sky as heat flooded throughout the festivities below. The scuffle of feet along the dirt paths and the shouts of joy and excitement from the guests could be heard from the other side of the camp.

Not only did the sounds attract people, but the smells of corn dogs and pies lured the visitors towards the booths that contained homemade goods.

Rows upon rows of tents lined the path, covering antiques, toys, and books for sale. The hungry guests winced as they slowly but surely passed by the appealing items.

As the people hungrily bit into their enjoyable meal, the excitement around them continued. A log sawing booth caused children to scream with delight, and a giant swing caused the adults to scream in fearful fright.

Guests soon started to greet with each other and meet new people. The fair soon turned into a giant get together, providing new friendships and amazing experiences.

The Country Fair not only gives community development and connects people to Hume, but it also serves as a fundraiser. The Fair raises money for future Hume expansion plans such as new staff, buildings and tree removal.

Hume collects about $100,000 through selling food, holding yard sales, and hosting the silent and live auctions at the fair. This year the fair collected over $180,000 from many generous guests.

Since 1946, Hume Lake grew to become one of the three largest camps in California, and the largest high school camp in the country. Despite this current success, Hume did not always attract so many visitors.

It’s a really neat opportunity to come up, fellowship, and have a great family day. It’s also a great place to come reconnect and take some time to breathe and enjoy the mountains and the beauty that God’s created. Besides the food, I think I like rummaging around and just seeing what kind of treasures I might find in the sale part and the auction. –Dannette Gillingham

In the 1880s, two businessmen named Austin Moore and Hiram Smith came across thousands of acres of timberland in Tulare County. The two men formed the Kings River Lumber Company. They began the construction of two saw mills and formed a steady business.

But after several years of operation, they hit a financial bump in the road, and could not recover. So the mill was put up for sale, and caught the eye of many potential buyers.

Ira Bennett, the general manager for the American Lumber Company of Albuquerque in New Mexico, and his wealthy former associate, Thomas Hume, bought the land and formed the Hume-Bennett Lumber Company. They too ran into troubles.

Hume and Bennett’s business relationship faded away and almost disappeared completely. Bennett’s removal from his job started the end of the company.

No profits, the struggles of running the business, and a fire that consumed half a million dollars of wood forced Hume to close the mill’s doors.

It would be another 20 years before five men turned up in search of a place for a Christian Bible camp. They bought the land that belonged to Hume and named it Hume Lake Christian Camps.

One of the five men responsible for the founding of Hume Lake, Kenny Poure, was invited to speak. When he arrived, he could not believe no one stayed at the camp.

But Poure, persistent and outgoing, spoke in churches and started telling them about the camp and pursuading them to come up. Now over one million people have come to Hume Lake and experienced the beauty of the mountains and the amazing ways to connect with others.

After the first founder, Walt Warkentin, passed away, Kenny took up his job and became the speaker at Hume Lake. He talked with the junior high and high school camps, and the adult ministries. Kenny passed away almost two years ago, ending a memorable legacy. 

Kenny’s wife, Melba, also made an impact at Hume. She worked in the office to begin with, and as time progressed she ran a women’s’ ministry and ran the women’s retreats. She even started a mother-daughter retreat. She reflects on the journey and service her husband had towards Hume.

“That was really his gift, as a speaker,” Poure said. “He was a real people person. With his guidance, and God’s helping hand over the camp, Hume Lake kept growing, growing, growing! The Country Fair is an example of the growth. At the beginning we were raising $3,000. But now we have raised over $100,000 for our ministries and our camps because of the fair.”

The Country Fair’s growth stopped abruptly last year, when the Rough Fire spread near Hume Lake, destroying over 150,000 acres of land. Miraculously, Hume Lake remained untouched by the flames of the fire.

This year the Country Fair brought back many more of the fun things people missed out on last year, including the food. FCS alumni of ‘85, Stanton Thomas Whitling worked the corn dog booth at the food station. Whitling works with five departments behind the scenes at Hume Lake, including ones that help design new projects for Hume.

“This is my tenth year here at Hume Lake,” Whitling said. “We’re getting ready to build two new staff duplexes and then we are doing a lot of tree removal this year with the beetles that have been killing trees. We are going to be spending over $100,000 to take out trees.”

The Country Fair not only provides family entertainment but a safe environment and a great getaway for Dannette Gillingham’s family. Gillingham came up to Hume for the festivities because of the spiritual atmosphere.

“It’s a really neat opportunity to come up, fellowship, and have a great family day,” Gillingham said. “It’s also a great place to come reconnect and take some time to breathe and enjoy the mountains and the beauty that God’s created. Besides the food, I think I like rummaging around and just seeing what kind of treasures I might find in the sale part and the auction.”

Although the Country Fair ended its annual festivities, Hume Lake still provides a variety of activities to participate in and places to stay. Eating s’mores, looking up at the stars at night, and going to Christian camps all give Hume a sense of relaxation.

For more information on Hume Lake cabins and camps, visit their website. For more articles on the Country Fair, view the promo.

To learn more about the Rough Fire read, Update: Hume Lake, post Rough fire

This writer can be contacted via Twitter:  @schultz_kamryn and via Email: Kamryn Schultz.