Dear Barefoot Family & Friends,
Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to those who have been affected by the tornadoes that ripped through Middle Tennessee just weeks ago as well as everyone who is dealing with disruption to daily routines, and of course, physical health. I am praying for each and every family, especially those of us who may be facing layoffs or reduced work due to the spreading of the coronavirus.
While I know Barefoot is protected by our Heavenly Father, and our ministry is here for a reason, I also know that as the Founder and Executive Director of Barefoot Republic, I have a responsibility to you, our key stakeholders, to be honest and transparent about what is happening at Barefoot. Prayerfully, we are still working towards a full summer camp schedule and will do so until public health officials tell us otherwise. I think our families are going to need us this summer more than ever before and we need your help to sustain.
During this time, many of our staff would normally be serving on our Kentucky campus welcoming retreat groups and spreading Barefoot's mission to our partners from schools, churches and other various outside groups. Sadly and understandably, those groups have had to cancel. Other staff would be digging deep into our newest camp theme, "All In" by building out curriculum, preparing devotions, finalizing daily camp schedules, reading through each and every camper application for buddy requests, special needs, dietary restrictions, and every special detail about each one of our campers. While we are still doing many of these things, we have added a few new and important goals as we adjust to today's new world.
For reference, as our ministry has grown over the past 21 years, we have been blessed to see nearly 50% of our income generated by program fees (35-40% of campers that can pay tuition) and outside groups who use our facilities for their retreats and programs. However, at this time, the Governor of the state of KY has ordered that our facility close, which we anticipate leading to immediate losses of over $100,000 due to retreat cancellations and program and fundraising postponements. This is in addition to already losing one of our most popular day camp venues to tornado damage. If we are forced to cancel additional summer programs, we anticipate these losses exceeding $300,000. While we have contingencies built into our budget, they do not cover an issue of the magnitude we are facing today.
So, how is Barefoot dealing with this crisis? We have created a short-term strategic plan to be sure we are loving our camper families, ministry partners, and staff well. This includes:
- Sterilizing every inch of our campus and working on repairs and other punch-list items while following social-distancing guidelines. Thankfully, our Kentucky campus lends itself very well to this.
- Conceptualizing alternative programming that will meet the needs of our campers and families - be sure to follow us on our social media platforms for family friendly activities and online worship/prayer events.
- Checking in with each and every camper family to offer encouragement and fellowship but also be sure they are all ok and don't have any unmet needs that we might be able to assist with or find support.
- Reaching out to our partners and asking if there are ways we can help them as so many nonprofits have been affected deeply and we need to come together during this time.
At Barefoot, we remain "All In" and committed to every person, family, and partner who have helped us achieve so much over the last 20 years of ministry and it hurts me beyond belief to think that our mission could be another casualty of this virus if I don't humbly reach out and ask for your help.
To address our immediate needs due to lost income from retreats and postponements of events, I have created a fund that directly supports Barefoot Operations (staff salaries, mortgages, insurance, etc.). I have also asked staff for the first time ever to reach out to family and friends in an effort to help raise at least 10% of their salaries over the next month. My prayer is that together we can raise $100,000 to cover the loss of revenue and prayerfully not have any layoffs at Barefoot in this critical time of preparing for camp.
I know it is a difficult time and this is one of the most difficult emails I’ve ever had to write, but I pray you understand why I felt like it is the right thing to do - to keep you informed because you are an important part of this ministry. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out - my direct email is
trhodes@barefootrepublic.org.
If you also need encouragement and prayer, please let me know. Our entire staff is ready to pray for you. For camp and other updates, please follow us on social media. As mentioned above, we are still preparing for a full summer camp schedule but of course will be taking our guidance from the CDC, WHO, local and federal governments, and good common sense. I'm finally getting to use my microbiology degree again! :-)
Thank you for your kind consideration of supporting Barefoot during this difficult time.
All In,
Tommy
