A Brief History
Before 1967 the members of the Gulf States Region of Community of Christ gathered for camping and retreat activities wherever they could rent meeting facilities. In 1956 the Florida youth had a meeting in Mt. Dora. In 1959 and 1960 summer youth camps were held at a campground near Orlando. In the early 1960s the older youth joined their counterparts from the Deep South near Andalusia, Alabama for Labor Day retreats. Reunions and youth camps were held at Camp Keystone (near Tampa) through 1963, then at a campground near Sebring. Our continued use of this campground became jeopardized when its owners realized they should rent to other customers with larger camps. Some programs were moved back to Camp Keystone. Leaders of our camping programs were looking for a place to call "home".
In 1965 the Tampa Bay and Eastern Florida Districts of Community of Christ were organized. Simultaneously the Florida Peninsula Campground Committee was formed (in recognition of the need for a permanent campground). The campground near Sebring was offered to us for approximately $50,000. However, funds were not available and many thought that Sebring was too far south. Bob Wise was made aware of the search for a suitable location. For many years he and an employee of his father (Milton Chapman) had hunted and fished north of Orlando and in 1945 Milton had purchased a 184-acre tract of forest for $2,700. In 1965 he made this property available to us for $57,000. The Campground Committee devised a plan for subdividing 120 acres into 114 lots of one acre each and selling each for $1,000. These lots became Deerhaven Community. The remaining 64 acres (a 41-acre square and a connecting 23-acre triangle) would be developed into a campground. In the fall of 1965, the district conferences agreed to this plan and the property was purchased on January 3, 1966. The trustees for this purchase were Dick Fenn, John Holt and Klaas Kaat. Because maps of the area named the lake Deerhaven, the campground was named Camp Deerhaven.
During the summer of 1966, heavy equipment was brought in to clear land and build 5 miles of roads (topped with clay from a deposit on site). During work weekends sponsored by the two districts, crews built a building (with kitchen and bunk and bathrooms, as well as storage) and a swimming dock on the lake. The last Sebring youth camps and Camp Keystone summer reunion were held in 1966 and the last Sebring Winter Reunion was held in 1967. Early in 1967 we rerouted the public forest road so that it would cross the campground only at the intersection of the square and the triangle. Later that year electric power and a well were installed and a dormitory was constructed, allowing Deerhaven's first Senior High Camp (24 campers) and Junior High Camp (39 campers). The drought of that summer permitted the deepening of the north end of the lake and the upgrading of the beach that was built in 1966.
On October 27, 1968 Camp Deerhaven was dedicated. Community of Christ World Church officials participating included President Duane Couey, Apostle Howard Sheehy, Jr., and Bishop Harold Cackler. In 1970 a sewage collection and distribution system was installed and in 1972 a drinking water treatment and distribution system was built. In the summer of 1973 these systems were extended to the 44 lots in the RV and trailer park. In 1975 a four-year-old mobile home was placed on one of these lots as a residence for the campground manager. In 1977 the campground committee was replaced by Deerhaven Campground, Inc., a non-profit corporation, chartered by the State of Florida. The membership of this corporation consists of all Community of Christ members who live in any of the four sponsoring districts (North Florida, Eastern Florida, Tampa Bay, and South Florida). These four districts were merged together into the Florida Mission Center in 1998. The affairs of this corporation are governed by a Board of Directors.
The continuing capital improvements program is reflected by the following facilities list:
In 1965 the Tampa Bay and Eastern Florida Districts of Community of Christ were organized. Simultaneously the Florida Peninsula Campground Committee was formed (in recognition of the need for a permanent campground). The campground near Sebring was offered to us for approximately $50,000. However, funds were not available and many thought that Sebring was too far south. Bob Wise was made aware of the search for a suitable location. For many years he and an employee of his father (Milton Chapman) had hunted and fished north of Orlando and in 1945 Milton had purchased a 184-acre tract of forest for $2,700. In 1965 he made this property available to us for $57,000. The Campground Committee devised a plan for subdividing 120 acres into 114 lots of one acre each and selling each for $1,000. These lots became Deerhaven Community. The remaining 64 acres (a 41-acre square and a connecting 23-acre triangle) would be developed into a campground. In the fall of 1965, the district conferences agreed to this plan and the property was purchased on January 3, 1966. The trustees for this purchase were Dick Fenn, John Holt and Klaas Kaat. Because maps of the area named the lake Deerhaven, the campground was named Camp Deerhaven.
During the summer of 1966, heavy equipment was brought in to clear land and build 5 miles of roads (topped with clay from a deposit on site). During work weekends sponsored by the two districts, crews built a building (with kitchen and bunk and bathrooms, as well as storage) and a swimming dock on the lake. The last Sebring youth camps and Camp Keystone summer reunion were held in 1966 and the last Sebring Winter Reunion was held in 1967. Early in 1967 we rerouted the public forest road so that it would cross the campground only at the intersection of the square and the triangle. Later that year electric power and a well were installed and a dormitory was constructed, allowing Deerhaven's first Senior High Camp (24 campers) and Junior High Camp (39 campers). The drought of that summer permitted the deepening of the north end of the lake and the upgrading of the beach that was built in 1966.
On October 27, 1968 Camp Deerhaven was dedicated. Community of Christ World Church officials participating included President Duane Couey, Apostle Howard Sheehy, Jr., and Bishop Harold Cackler. In 1970 a sewage collection and distribution system was installed and in 1972 a drinking water treatment and distribution system was built. In the summer of 1973 these systems were extended to the 44 lots in the RV and trailer park. In 1975 a four-year-old mobile home was placed on one of these lots as a residence for the campground manager. In 1977 the campground committee was replaced by Deerhaven Campground, Inc., a non-profit corporation, chartered by the State of Florida. The membership of this corporation consists of all Community of Christ members who live in any of the four sponsoring districts (North Florida, Eastern Florida, Tampa Bay, and South Florida). These four districts were merged together into the Florida Mission Center in 1998. The affairs of this corporation are governed by a Board of Directors.
The continuing capital improvements program is reflected by the following facilities list:
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1971
1973 1974 1977 1978 1984 1986 1987 1998 2001 2007 2008 2014 2019 |
Pole Building
Trailer Park Bathhouse Four Duplex Cabins Restrooms added to each cabin Multipurpose Assembly Building with kitchen remodeling Staff/Craft Building on old dormitory slab Three Gazebos Maintenance Building Kitchen air conditioning Residence Center Campground Manager's Home/Office Barbeque/Classroom Building Additional Residence Center Nursery facility added Swimming Pool GaGa Pit |