On January 10 the international Camporee officially sold out of 55,000 tickets, that includes North American Division and International (general admission, junior, staff child, and staff baby tickets). With less than 200 days left, this was the earliest sellout of any camporee.
Now what? There may be hope for those who could not purchase tickets! Individuals should contact their local Conference or Union Youth Director to be added to their waiting list (this does not guarantee that you will get a ticket). The International Pathfinder Camporee is NOT responsible for the resale of tickets. Scammers have already tried to trick individuals into buying fake tickets. Upcharching is not allowed. If tickets are sold for more than what is listed on the Camporee.org website, those tickets will be invalidated. 2024 International Pathfinder Camporee tickets can only be sold at face value. This is another reason why you should contact your Conference and Union so they can validate the ticket being sold. Pathfinders should follow the process described above and follow the Camporee Ticket Sale Guidelines that can be found on the Camporee.org website to make sure they get a ticket in good standing. There are volunteer tickets still available.
Volunteer Tickets Are Still Available
The International Camporee’s success is dependent on volunteers. You can be a part of its success by volunteering for various opportunities; medical, activity, drum and drill staff are key areas where volunteers are needed; you can view available volunteer positions on the Camporee.org website. They ONLY have volunteer tickets for Full-Time positions. A formal process exists to become an official volunteer and receive your ticket. Volunteers must be 18 or older with legal status in the United States and Canada. You have to be willing to volunteer for approximately 8 hours a day. A Camporee downline director will notify you in advance about what options are available, what to expect, and your expected start and end time for the day. Just because you register to be a volunteer does not guarantee you a ticket. You must go through the volunteer process to be selected by the director for the position you are applying for. Once you register, a background check will be performed (a photo has to be submitted). Then, someone will contact you to be interviewed. After the interview is completed, the director for that position will determine if you meet the criteria. If you do, then you will be notified that you can purchase your volunteer ticket. Only after this process is completed will you receive your ticket, so make sure you complete your application so the process can move forward as quickly as possible. You can start your application on the Camporee.org website.
Trading Tickets
If you are going to trade tickets with individuals, it is preferred that you do it with someone from within your Conference. Trading or exchanging tickets within your Conference helps keep the footprint the same for your respected area on the camp grounds. This also helps keep the total tickets listed on the Camporee.org website correct.
Printing Your Tickets
You should be able to print or download your tickets after May 1st. You don’t have to print your ticket to enter Camporee when you arrive; you can show them your digital ticket also, but do not attempt to download them when you get to Gillette; you run the risk of running into issues with internet connectivity and not being able to download your tickets on-site and not being able to enter.
What About Day Passes?
Day passes will be available at some point in April, but these tickets will be limited, and you can only use them on one day. Day passes will not be sold on the Camporee.org website. They will be available throughout the North American Division, Union, and Conference offices for a while before making them available to the general public. I would only look at day passes as a viable option for someone who would like to attend Camporee for part of the time.
What Else Should You Expect at This Year’s Camporee?
This Camporee is lining up to have the most honors ever! They already have 130 honors committed and expect over 200 honors to be available. There will also be international honors that you can only get a Camporee. They are still looking for instructors, so if you are interested, you can apply on the Camporee.org website or contact the Honors Coordinator, Brenda Brandy, at mrsbear61@gmail.com or 925-586-1058. Remember to plan and figure out what honors you would like to receive. A sign-up will be available each day, and you should be quick about signing up for the respective honors you want before they fill up for the day.
Off-site activities will have an Olympic-like style this year. Gillette has four facilities that accommodate indoor swimming, track and field, soccer, basketball, and more. They are looking at hosting tournaments, honors, and activities. You can learn more about everything available at the Camporee.org website. Volunteers will be needed to help these activities be successful. Volunteers may be asked to serve at any point between noon Tuesday through Friday until 5 pm. Volunteers will not be needed for off-site activities Saturday.
Largest Baptism Ever
The 2019 Camporee baptized the most Pathfinders ever at 1,320. With God’s guidance this year, the goal is to baptize over 2,000. It is the prayer that each Pathfinder club brings two or more souls to be baptized. The Voice of Prophecy is helping in this effort by providing special Bible studies for Pathfinders. You can find the VOP Bible study series and how to register to be baptized at Camporee on the website at Camporee.org.
If I am Not Camping, Where Do I Stay?
By now, you are aware that most hotels in the area have no vacancies, but there may be few hotels that have vacancies. The prices are still high and there is nothing that can be done about the pricing. You can still take a look at the hotels in the area by going to the Camoree.org website. There is a list of hotels and motels in the area on the website.
Other options for off-camp site lodging:
- Look in the Gillette, WY newspaper, or advertise in the newspaper requesting a place to rent or RV.
- Fly into Denver, CO, or Salt Lake City, UT, and enter an RV. You can place your RV in a public RV park or the Camporee overflow RV area (no water, electricity, or sewer will be provided).
- Look at hotels that are an hour away.
- Stay in Casper, Wyoming and then drive over to Gillette.
Where Will My Pathfinder Group be Camping?
There is a preliminary map on the Camporee.org website, but the map is old and will change now that all tickets have been sold. You should not do any planning based on the current map. The Camporee Executive Committee will be meeting in late March, so the map should be available on or soon after March 27. This map will be the earliest that the Camporee has made the map available.
How Can I Watch if I Don’t Plan on Attending?
Over 300,000 people watched the livestream of the evening program in 2019. The Voice of Prophecy is planning to stream the evening program this year to even more people worldwide.
Can I Visit Before Camporee?
There are only three more opportunities to be given an official guided tour of the campgrounds. Visit Camporee.org to register with Vern Byrd for a Walk Around Tour. A free lunch will be provided when registered with Vern. You have to take care of your accommodations. There is a hotel across from the grounds, Arbuckle Lodge, with a special promotional rate; just mention Pathfinder Tour to get that rate.
Can You Fly Into Gillette?
You can fly into Gillette. The Northeast Wyoming Airport is a five-hour drive from Denver, Colorado. You can currently fly in from Denver. More hubs are being developed. There are discussions that when you fly into Gillette during Camporee, you will be met with a Color Guard and Drum Corp. The Camplex is three miles from the airport. You can use Lyft, Uber, or their local taxi service if you don’t want to rent a car. There will also be shuttles from some hotels.
Theme Song Being Evaluated
There were a lot of entries for this year’s theme song. The decision about this year’s Camporee will be shared in late March or early April.
Share Your Musical Talents
The choir and orchestra deadlines have been extended. If you are interested in auditioning for the Choir, please submit your information before May 1, 2024. If you are interested in auditioning for the Orchestra, please submit your application before March 1, 2024. Mid-America’s own Joseph E. Choi, from Sunnydale Adventist Academy, is the Camporee Symphony Orchestra Conductor, and he would love to see Mid-America represented during Camporee.
I Need Help Creating a Pin for Camporee
Pinfinder.com is the official sponsor for the 2024 Camporee.
How Do I Make Sure I Don’t Miss Anything?
- Sign up for the Camporee newsletter.
- Follow the Camporee Facebook page
- Visit the Camporee.org website
- Follow the Mid-America Union Pathfinder Facebook page
- Sign up for the Mid-America Union OUTLOOK newsletter