A group of 22 women used Okontoe’s Retreat Center in July 2026 to celebrate 20 years of Boundary Waters trips together.
The group leaders—Brenda, Kim, Wendy and Debbie—had been going into the BWCA together for two decades. Each year they’ve invited other women to go along to fill up their group of nine.
The common denominator among them is that they live in Cambridge, Minnesota and attend New Hope Community Church—or did when they were part of one of the canoe trips.
The four leaders decided to have a “20-year reunion” get-together in 2026 with as many of these women as were available. It wouldn’t be able to take place in the Boundary Waters, they knew, but wanted somewhere close. They also knew that not all of the women were still keen on sleeping in tents, so they were hoping for cabins.
We’ll let them share in their own words how they landed at Okontoe and how their group retreat here turned out:
Tell us more about the background of this year’s group gathering.
BRENDA: 20 years ago we started bringing groups of women up to the Boundary Waters along with us, the main four who always go. And a couple years ago we were down the Gunflint Trail, saw another campground and thought, “In a couple years it’ll be our 20th annual. It would be fun to invite everybody who’s been a part of our past Boundary Waters trips to go on a bigger trip.”
As time went on, my husband and I came and stayed at Okontoe one night, and found out we knew Jody and Ben [on-site Okontoe staff from 2020-early 2026]. Ben’s mother has been with us on a couple trips. We thought it would be cool to come to Okontoe.
Then we found out about the Retreat Center, which was amazing. That was like the cherry on top. We had checked out group campsites in other places, but when we saw the Retreat Center, we thought, Yes. The layout is so nice with the cabins, and then the Dining Hall is right there.
KIM: Last year when we came off of the Boundary Waters, we stopped here to look at the space, to see how it worked for us. We drove through, one of the gals offered to put the down payment and we booked. We were very excited.
What made the Retreat Center a great space for you all?
WENDY: Over the 20 years, some of the gals weren’t very excited about staying in tents anymore. So staying in a cabin was nice, and the option of staying in a tent was ideal because many of us still like to stay in a tent. So having the option of adding tents—especially not knowing for sure how many would be going—worked out really, really well.
DEBBIE: The other thing is some of the people who haven’t been in the last many years—like one and done, thanks for taking me—this sounded so cool because if you want to canoe, you can. If you want to go town, you can. If you want to go on a hiking trail, you can. A lot of people stayed in the Dining Hall and did puzzles, painted rocks, played games, had great fellowship and reconnected. It was an ideal site for all of that.
Will you do it again, do you think?
BRENDA: We are seriously considering doing something like this again. We did a Survey Monkey with everyone who came and everybody wants to do this again. The four of us were thinking this was just a one-time deal, but we were convicted after coming to the Chapel service—that morning the theme was sacrifice.
You know, yes, this was some work to do, but we loved how blessed everyone was. One of the gals has gone through some really difficult things this last year, and when she was asked, she didn’t even know it was our 20th annual. She wanted to go. We had so many comments like that from others who needed that fellowship.
WENDY: The four of us always go to the Boundary Waters, then the other 4-5 spots are filled with different women. So most of these women didn’t know each other. New friendships were made, which was really fun to see—and they’re staying in touch. Then some of the relationships were rekindled.
A lot of people talked about it being such a spiritual awakening and reset for them. So how can you not do it again when there’s that much ministry going on, and connections? We did feel convicted from that Eagle Brook service about sacrifice!
Tell us more about the ministry and spiritual reset that happened.
DEBBIE: The spiritual element was another reason for choosing Okontoe. I knew nothing about this place—it was completely new to me. The first time I was here was last year coming out of the Boundary Waters. At that time I didn’t sense some great spiritual place or anything, but when we were here, yes. The Spirit of the Lord is in this place. And that was so important to us.
We could’ve gone to any campground, but the kind of spiritual things that happened in the women’s lives were so important. And sure, the Holy Spirit can work anywhere, but there’s history here, this history of the Spirit moving. The Lord is here. And knowing that you guys are all praying for the people who are coming and going. We’ve covered.
BRENDA: One of the things that we’ve always done over the 20 years of our Boundary Waters trips that has been a very important thing has been taking an hour quiet time after breakfast. Everyone goes to their own little spot. Sometimes there’s a little devotion to follow, like Jesus Calling or Daily Bread, and some questions.
And Saturday night we always have a get-together with a time of communion and sharing. What is God speaking to you about? What is God doing in your life? How can we pray for you? Sometimes we’re up til midnight crying, praying, worshiping. It’s just an amazing time. It’s been really, really special.
On this big trip to Okontoe we still had the morning quiet time, and then we took our sharing time up to Honeymoon Bluff. We worshiped and had communion together over that view at sunset. That was amazing.
What other activities did you all do during your stay here?
DEBBIE: All our meals were together, and then there were impromptu organized events. Some people went to Magney State Park. Some went to Magnetic Rock. Others went to the museum at the end of the Gunflint. Some canoed all three lakes, some went fishing. So there were smaller groups as well as large group things.
WENDY: On Thursday evening, our first night, we played a “getting to know you” Bingo game, because not everyone knew each other. You had to find people on your Bingo card who had maybe fallen out of a canoe, or fallen off a rock. Fun little things from the different trips. The free spot was getting bitten by a mosquito, so everyone got that! So that was fun. Everyone seemed to really like this kind of icebreaker activity to get going.
KIM: If there hadn’t been a fire ban, we would’ve had campfires. So to have the Dining Hall available to still be able to gather all together worked really well.
What were other highlights for you all?
BRENDA: We all have come to the same conclusion that connecting so strongly with Diane and Karen [sisters who have been Okontoe’s 2026 on-site Campground Host and Facilities Manager] totally made our trip. Our interactions with them stimulated some of the spiritual formation that happened—the things we learned from them, their life in Africa, their life here, their life in the Lord. Their testimony is just their willingness to pray with us. Instantaneously, always praying.
DEBBIE: For me, being in the beauty of God’s creation, as always, is great. The sisters exponentially added to it.
KIM: Because we’re limited when we go in the Boundary Waters, we could have everybody here together. The reconnection, as Wendy said, was so meaningful. Making the effort to speak to those who maybe we haven’t seen in years, because they moved away or something. And again, having the option of using both cabins and tents really made it more comfortable, especially for many women our age. It was huge to have that flexibility.
WENDY: I think one of the best things is just how beautiful it is here. You have the different lakes, you have activities. And the upkeep and things the sisters have done—and probably previous camp people too. It just feels homey and comfortable. Everyone was at ease here. You sometimes go places and there are so many rules. We didn’t feel that here. Everyone was free to be themselves, and it was really nice.
Your Group Is Welcome, Too
These four women gave our staff and Board some suggestions for improvement as well, which we so appreciate. We’ll take their suggestions and continue to make the Retreat Center (RC) a workable, beautiful space where you can bring your group(s).
If you have fewer than these ladies did, you may not need the whole RC. Maybe just take Silver Maple Cabin and Jack Pine Cabin, both of which can sleep up to 8 and have their own kitchens.
Ours is a rustic setting: no running water in the cabins. But our campground water is excellent, and we provide 3-gallon water jugs in every cabin. And if you rent the Dining Hall, there’s hot and cold running water in the kitchen.
We have hot showers available for your group in the Shower House, and the nicest outhouses you’ll find almost anywhere 🙂
Click to learn more about bringing your group to Okontoe.
Women’s Group Epilogue
Brenda, Debbie, Kim and Wendy originally wanted to use part of their women’s retreat weekend for volunteer work on our property. But they admitted it worked best for them to get to know Okontoe first, and for our staff to get to know them.
As it turns out, these four returned in August 2026 for a few days of hard-core volunteering. A couple of them are experienced with chainsaws and none are afraid of hours of hard work (after all, they get into the Boundary Waters every summer).
What a blessing for us, and for them, too! We hope that what began as a 20-year reunion outing for them and their friends will blossom into a long-term friendship with the Okontoe community, whatever that looks like.
(Photos courtesy of these women)
