New Medley building
opened in glorious sunshine
text and photos by Ana Watts
Rooms filled with sunshine, fresh paint and some comfortable but basic camp furniture are ready for Camp Medley staff this summer. About 
250 New Brunswick Anglicans and honoured guests gathered at the camp on the St. John River at Upper Gagetown last Saturday (June 19) to officially open Ferris Lodge, the beautifully refurbished administration building and staff house. The building is dedicated to the Rev. Royden Ferris who generously remembered Camp Medley with a bequest. With blue skies,
warm temperatures and gentle river breezes, the opening was an idyllic as well as an exciting occasion. In this overview of the event the stairs to the upper level and the ramp to the lower level of Ferris Lodge can be seen on the left. Straight ahead is the dining hall/general purpose building opened in 2007. To the right are the rustic Camp Medley chapel, and the nurse’s hut, which was also refurbished for this camping season. A new deck for this summer is on this season’s to-do list.
Medley campers Lauren Mullaly of Saint John and Chandler Scott of 
Hampton cut the ribbon to officially open Ferris Lodge. Camp Medley is a family tradition for Lauren and she loves every minute she is there, often attending more than one camp each summer. Because his photo is prominent in recent Camp Medley brochures, Chandler is affectionately known as Brochure Boy by the other campers. Both Lauren and Chandler eventually want to be on Camp Medley staff so they can enjoy the comfortable new staff lodgings first hand. Ferris Lodge was the last of the Medley buildings to be modernized. New cabins and the dining hall/general purpose building were done first because they are used directly by the campers, and their health and well-being is the camp priority.
Many of the participants in the opening of Ferris Lodge gathered on the 
stairway of the new facility following the opening ceremonies and picnic barbecue. The newly refurbished building is the latest major building project in a series that has also seen the Anglican youth camp replace all its cabins, its dining hall, and kitchen since 2004. Now both the major buildings are fully accessible and meet the latest youth camp health and safety standards. One of the cabins is being retrofitted for accessibility. The federal and provincial governments as well as New Brunswick Anglicans’ contributions to the Faith for a Lifetime campaign provided funding for the Ferris Lodge project. From the top of 
the stairs down are the Hon. Greg Byrne, provincial minister of finance; Archdeacon David Barrett of the Parish of Sussex; Archbishop Claude Miller of the Anglican Diocese of Fredericton (Province of New Brunswick); the Hon. Keith Ashfield, federal minister of national revenue, minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and minister for the Atlantic Gateway; campers Lauren Mullaly of Saint John and Chandler Scott of Hampton; and Liz Harding, Camp Medley director.
Camp Director Liz Harding brings more than 20 years of Christian youth camp experience to her position as director of Camp Medley. Archbishop Claude Miller made the pink director’s chair outside the door to her quarters for her.
Camp Medley assistant director Shawn Branch is thrilled with the airy and cheerful administration office that is an important part of Ferris Lodge.