Historic Barn to be Relocated to Twin Lakes

The camp is planning to move a barn from a nearby lot on July 12 as part of a "Rally 'Round the Barn" campaign that hopes to raise funds for needed restorations to the camping facility. The Evangelical Covenant Church camp was given the barn in 1994 and the structure (60 feet in diameter and more than 53 feet tall) has been refurbished with volunteer help.

Built around 1920 by a crew from Illinois, the Chris Knapp round barn currently sits about a mile and a half from TLCC. It has been cleaned out, re-roofed and given a new haymow floor, according to a recent Midwest Conference newsletter article. TLCC has received matching grant monies from Iowa's Historic Resource Development Program for roof and floor restoration. A local contractor and his sons made repairs and volunteers provided hours for the flooring work. It is hoped the "Rally 'Round the Barn" campaign will raise the estimated $50,000 for repair and moving costs through sales of commemorative blankets and through $5 donations for each foot the barn will be moved (about 7,920 feet).

TLCC staff members said that the barn will be used for indoor recreation and events as well as provide space for worship services, concerts and exhibits. The camp has also considered using it for an outdoor education program featuring a farm park element. The July barn moving isn't the only physical change occurring at the camp. TLCC is hosting an August 15 Grand Opening for Harvest Hall, a 13,000-square-foot multipurpose building.

For more information about both events or about other camp activities this summer, call 712-297-7714 or email the camp at: info@twinlakescc.com.

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