Replacing the A-Frame Bridge

For 47 years, Camp Ewalu’s A-Frame Bridge has spanned the Maquoketa River. It has become perhaps the most recognizable image of the camp, and it is certainly the most photographed. Our Final Mile Campaign this summer aims to replace our A-Frame with a new, updated design in a better location to shuttle the next many generations of campers safely across the river.

 

 

The new bridge will maintain the wooden A-Frame look of its predecessor, but its skeleton will be stronger, utilizing metal beams and significantly larger abutments. The new bridge will be constructed upstream of the current bridge in a straight, shallow portion of the river to avoid excess erosion. Construction for the new bridge is scheduled for fall of 2022, but we need your help to get there. Rising construction costs have necessitated one final push. Because of the generosity of so many who donated to this project last year and during the Great Give Day in May, we have already raised roughly 2/3 of the costs!

Help us complete that final mile:

• For generations of campers and counselors to safely cross the river
• For a new iconic location at Ewalu, a place to explore and contemplate
• For a splendid image of how we connect the Word of God with the world of God

As a way of giving thanks to our donors for this final mile, we are offering an added incentive to get us over the hump.

All donations of $1,000 or greater given to the campaign* will receive a beautiful framed photograph of the original A-Frame Bridge. Among those who give $1,000+ in the first two weeks of the campaign, we will randomly draw 10 donors to receive an A-Frame photo with a 16×20 custom wood frame made from 2×4 boards from the original A-Frame itself!

 

To make your gift, please use the card and envelope sent in the mail, or give via our online portal at this link and when using the PayPal portal, use the “Write a Note (Optional)” field to write “A-Frame Bridge Appeal.”

* Gifts made to the project during May’s Great Give Day will also count toward the $1,000 total. 

Below are the three bridge prints we’re offering in an 11×14 size, which will be matted and mounted in a 16×20 frame. Ten donors will be drawn among those who contribute $1,000+ in the first 2 weeks to receive a custom 16×20 frame made from boards taken from the A-Frame itself! All other donors who contribute $1,000+ will receive an A-Frame Bridge print of their choice in a similar-style frame.