A storied history
The Calvinist Cadet Corps has been around since 1952. Here are a just a few of the milestones we’ve passed between then and now.
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September 11, 1950
First Constitution Written
Later that year the CRC synod appointed a committee to study Boy’s Club activities during the year.
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October 16, 1952
First Constitutional Revision
This was the actual beginning of the Calvinist Cadet Corps.
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November, 1954
First Cadet Guidebook presented
Final draft was presented to the Federation Board by Mart Keuning
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November, 1955
First Clarion published
The first issue of the official magazine for counselors
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September, 1958
Jake Heerema hired as Executive Director
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December, 1958
First issue of Crusader published
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August, 1961
Mart Keuning hired as Executive Director
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1962
Counselor's Guidebook and revised Cadet Guidebook published
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September, 1963
Stu Hamstra hired as Executive Director
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January, 1964
Mart Keuning hired as Executive Director
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1965
Merit badge booklets and counselor aid booklets introduced
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July/August, 1966
First International Camporee
Held in the Rocky Mountains near Denver, Colorado, with approximately 300 in attendance.
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July/August, 1969
Second International Camporee
Again held near Denver, Colorado.
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August, 1969
Mike McGervey hired as Executive Director
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February, 1970
Cadet Congress adopts set of goals for cadeting
Congress also mandated a revision in the Cadet program materials to better meet these goals, and added the dimension of “witnessing” as a formal and integral part of cadeting.
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March, 1971
Cadet Corps moved into United Calvinist Youth building
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July/August, 1972
Third International Camporee
Held in Land-Between-the-Lakes, Kentucky, with just over 400 in attendance.
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October, 1972
Calvinist Cadet Corps celebrated 20 years of service to God
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1973
Voyageurs begun
An advanced program for 14-15-year-old boys
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1974
Guide Trails drafted
A program for 12–14-year-old boys
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July/August, 1974
Fourth International Camporee
Held at Mt. Pilchuck Tree Farm in northwest Washington, about 60 miles from Seattle, with approximately 450 in attendance.
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1976
Guide Trails developed
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June, 1977
Dave Koetje hired as executive director
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July/August, 1978
Fifth International Camporee
Held at Hoag’s Lake in Manistee National Forest, Michigan, with approximately 600 in attendance.
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1981
The Junior Cadet program introduced for 7- and 8-year-old boys
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July/August, 1978
Sixth International Camporee
Held at Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota, with nearly 900 people attending.
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1982
Calvinist Cadet Corps celebrated 30 years of service to God
After 30 years of ministry and growth, cadeting was a network of 3,000 counselors working with 14,500 boys in 600 clubs throughout North America.
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July, 1983
Dick Broene, former Corps President, hired as executive director
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July/August, 1984
Seventh International Camporee
Held at Sonny Meadows near Yosemite National Park, California, with approximately 800 in attendance.
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July, 1987
Eighth International Camporee
Held at Camp Beaver Dam near Orangeville, Ontario, with approximately 1,050 in attendance. It was the first international camporee to be held in Canada.
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1989
Junior Cadet program added merit badges and ranks
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August, 1990
Ninth International Camporee
The ninth and largest international camporee to date was hosted by Hawkeye Council near Cedar Falls in northeast Iowa. It was also the most challenging, as a flood forced the men to find a new location and make drastic changes merely five days before the event began. A total of 1,150 campers had to be rerouted and settled in a new spot. God, as always, provided the blessing needed, and a wonderful experience was the result.
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July, 1993
Tenth International Camporee
The 1993 International Camporee broke attendance records, bringing 1,300 people to a wilderness setting between Kalkaska and Grayling, Michigan.
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July, 1996
Eleventh International Camporee
The international camporee broke attendance records at 1,813 campers. The camporee was in Bow Valley Provincial Park — the Canadian Rockies in Alberta.
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August, 1999
Twelfth International Camporee
Held at London Mills, Illinois, the event attracted 1,082 participants to experience God in the wilderness.
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January, 2000
Cadets were offered a new top award – the Servant Leader award
To earn it, a boy has to progress through all the ranks of cadeting, show significant leadership in a council event, and participate in a Christian service project for at least five days. A significant award, it would not be earned by anyone in cadeting for years to come.
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January, 2001
Congress adopted a mission statement for the Calvinist Cadet Corps: “Helping boys to grow more Christlike in all areas of life.”
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July, 2002
Thirteenth International Camporee
The second-largest international camporee to date was held at Camp Chinook in Southwest Alberta. The 1,538 registrants experienced some new activities, such as fishing, kite building, climbing, and rappelling.
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October, 2002
Cadeting turned 50 years old
Records showed that it had 632 clubs, 4,113 counselors, and 12,878 Cadets.
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September, 2003
First issue of Cadet Quest published
Cadet Quest replaced Crusader as the magazine for Cadets ages 9-14.
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April, 2004
Cornel Rylaarsdam Memorial Fund established
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July, 2005
Fourteenth International Camporee
Held at Camp Diamond Trail near Runnells, Iowa, with 1,288 campers in attendance.
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August, 2008
Fifteenth International Camporee
Held at Camp Northern Lights in Ontario, Canada. Rain and mud forced an evacuation of camp half-way through the week.
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July/August, 2011
Sixteenth International Camporee
Held at Camp Whitetail near Reed City, Michigan.
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January, 2014
Mission Statement/Counselor Landmark
Congress approved making the CCC mission statement a landmark for Cadet counselors: “Helping boys to grow more Christlike in all areas of life.”
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July, 2014
Seventeenth International Camporee
Kamp Lone Pine, near Blackfalds, Alberta
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February, 2016
Steve Bootsma hired as Executive Director
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July, 2017
Eighteenth International Camporee
Held at Camp Elk Run in the Black Hills of South Dakota, with over 1,200 in attendance.