A new CHRISTIAN Children’s & Youth Camp & Retreat Center “CAMPO VIVO” (The Countryside Alive) in middle Chile (roughly 5 1/2 hours south of Santiago)  is in its initial stages of becoming a reality.  The  Christian camp & retreat center property, purchased on October 4, 2019 is 37 hectares (90 acres) in size and the land holds MUCH PROMISE AND POTENTIAL INSIDE OF THE BROAD VISION THAT THE CAMP TEAM HAS FOR IT!  That vision and focus will first be on ministering to children, youth, & adults in hosting camps and in the longer term, retreats of various kinds, including marriage encounters, church retreats, center for restoration of Pastors & others, and special presentations and seminars.  Thirdly, the camp will also eventually serve as a Christian Center of outreach to people of the surrounding area such as periodic medical clinics and programs and presentations of various kinds.  At present there are few other such evangelistic Christian camps located in Chile that we know of.  Our land is away from any cities and is located south of and between Chillán, Chile on the east and Concepción, Chile on the west coast.  Both are good-sized cities and Concepción is Chile’s second largest city.  Roughly half of Chilean youth either doubt the existence of God or don’t believe in him, and most Chileans of any age don’t know Jesus at all.  We Christians know the Jesus IS the ONE, TRUE Savior & Lord and children & youth will WANT to come again and bring a friend! 🙂

In Feb. 2020 a group of 14 engineers, architects, and a surveyor–professionals from the United States and others serving in Nicaragua–came to Chile to study all physical aspects of the land (including water supply and waste management), to assess next steps & stages of development, and design the construction of all structures.  This international ministry is known as EMI (Engineering Ministries International).  Their website is http://emiworld.org

Photos taken during their one-week visit spent with us at our new camp property:

  

Pictured here with friend Rick, Jack, and U.S. Teammate Donn are Abraham & Catalina, their 6-year-old daughter Abril and 2-year-old son Facundo, who began living and working on the property in June 2020.  Abraham & Catalina Salazar are truly the young family for the job!  Abraham and our son Jayme were friends and classmates in their Chilean high school.  He’s a Pastor and has studied construction.  Just as important, he’s a good learner, very capable, and humble.  They as a family have also lived and worked in southern Chile churches in past years.  Most of April and May 2020 was spent to ready the small house on the camp land for their arrival, and at the end of May, 2020, they moved in! TYL!!

Abraham has been kept very busy these past 6 years in working on the land, installing fencing and gates, creating interior roads, building relationships and contacts in the area and in the closest town, and in improving the house that he and his family live in.  A constant prayer of all of us has been for God to answer Abraham’s and our search for an additional full-time person and/or family to live on the property and help in the work!  Despite such outreaches, God has not as of yet provided that person, but our faith always rests in him!

Looking toward our up-coming soon construction of buildings and other structures, each sq. meter (m2) could cost roughly $600 USD or more, given inflation and the higher costs of construction materials in the world today.  Suffice to say, as each structure is planned and built we will be able to assess and communicate costs as we go.  With God’s blessing we may be looking at $700,000 for the completion of buildings/structures as we have them currently planned, in addition to the cost of digging of a lake of five to six acres and associated costs of water & septic for the first area of the property to be developed.

In 2023 we purchased the mission’s own excavator.  It was a very costly investment, but in view of the immense amount of work that is slated for it going forward compared to the much larger cost of renting such a machine, it was well worth it!  It not only will be needed to dig the new lake, but also is being used to level land and make interior roads.

       

And now in 2025 CHILE MISSION in the States has purchased a CASE skidsteer tractor with 5 attachments that will be a huge addition in clearing brush and otherwise preparing our tent-camping area complete with back-to-back bathrooms with showers.  To get it to Chile we purchased a 40′ high-cube shipping container, filling it completely with many, many others items along with the skidsteer, ALL DONATED TOWARD THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROPERTY AND USE IN THE CAMP’S FUTURE BUILDINGS, such as the cabins and dining hall.  The items include many tools, 100 chairs, over 60 mattresses, and linens, towels, and clothes.  Here are some photos:

         

The filled container is due in Chile on Nov 3, 2025 and we are all thrilled and grateful and expectant!!

In early 2026 we hope to finish clearing a tent-camping area in the woods, along with contructing two bathrooms showwith showers and that area, AND ALSO in the first half of 2026 construct the first building projected for construction–a metal two-story workshop/garage/storage space, complete with two offices and bathrooms.  Other planned buildings/structures include a large dining & meeting hall, two-story guest house, 8 cabins, an open-air roofed chapel, and an outdoor amphitheatre.

We pray EVERYTHING forward!  If the Holy Spirit is working on your heart to help by giving funds toward this special project, or by coming to Chile to help use your energy and physical gifts & experience, we very much welcome your help!!

In the first half of 2025, two U.S. churches, along with three other teams of individuals came to Chile on mission trips to help us.  You can contact us through our E-mail chilemission1@gmail.com or support us financially by mailing a check to Chile Mission, P.O. Box 11731, Merrillville, IN 46411.  God is truly amazing in how he moves and how he blesses!!  Also be sure to E-mail us if you (church or individual) would like us to visit you!

Amongst other things, Abraham has used these recent years to :

1.  Improve and maintain essential systems such as water supply and sewage.

2.  Coordinate the moving of electric lines.

3.  Put in new, gated entrances to the property, install security cameras & devices, and three new interior roads.

4.  Complete a other tasks pertaining to the improvement of their house and the property.

5.  Begin building and furthering relationships with churches and neighbors.

In 2022 he built an extra bedroom/office with bathroom on the end of their present house, with an exterior entrance for workers and others spending time on the property.

Also in 2022, we brought Abraham, Catalina, and Abril to the States for the complete months of June and July to tour Christian Camps and learn more about digging lakes, construction, and otherwise build outdoor recreational activities such as high & low ropes courses, zip lines, and different types of climbing walls.  We in addition learned about preparations of full & summer staff and looked at different models for bringing in other needed help and staff.  The trip was a total success in many ways and we were all extremely blessed not only in terms of information gleaned, but in terms of special new acquaintances and encouragements of different kinds.

The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.  But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.  Psalm 33: 10-11