Bethel Baptist Association

"Dont exist anymore"

"Before I get to the review proper, I would like to give some backdrop to my experiences with camps. I help my denomination do yearly camps for teens and children. As well, I'm on the board of Poplar Point Camp, stationed in Rockford AL. Here are the pros as I see them. We were able to rent the camp for Labor Day Weekend. We had full use of the kitchen which was supplied with all the tools we needed. The cafeteria gave us all the space we needed. The recreation center was fairly new. The pool was probably the best amenity we had. Weather was in the low 90s and we had some 20+ kids who used it. The cafeteria, chapel, and cabins were all air conditioned. Here are the cons. Speaking to the cons, I'm reminded of the proverb that goes: a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands and poverty comes upon you. Everywhere I looked I saw evidences of inattentiveness and neglect. For instance, when we arrived at our cabin there was mold in the air, running water in the bathroom from piping that wasn't sealed correctly. My mom couldn't sleep in her cabin because she kept coughing from the dust and mold. The mattresses were well beyond their time. Urine was in the toilet, had been there for a time because the smell was thick throughout the entire cabin. We were told that we had to replace all toilet paper in the bathrooms, well, there wasn't any in our cain. In the kitchen, water was running out of the ice maker machine onto the floor and disappeared in the flooring. Later, while exploring the basement I saw where all that water went, it was about an inch deep. I don't know what kind of cleaning system the pool has but the water wasn't clean when we arrived. My children smelled stale after swimming. There is a sign in the pool saying to shower before you swim. Out of three showers in the pool bathroom, one worked. Again, I think of neglect and inattentiveness. In the pool bathrooms, there was one roll of toilet paper to three stalls (men's room only, I don't know about the women's). The floors were dirty and the sins had stains. I get that there may be a limited budget and therefore no funds to upgrade. However, leaky pipes, dirty rooms, no toilet paper, a leaking ice maker, and things like this point to neglect and inattentiveness. Somewhere along the line such things have become normative for Camp Inlow and this is unfortunate. It would only take some industry to get these things under control."