SUMMIT46 Leadership for 2024:

Director – Lesley Fields

Lesley is the director for this year’s Summit 46. She’s a professional church volunteer at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Austin. She loves being a sponsor for the youth group at WPC and teaching VBS. Lesley grew up going to and working at Mo-TLC, Youth Celebration, and Junior High Jubilee and she’s thrilled to be a small part of introducing the Summit 46 kiddos to conference life at Mo. In her spare time, Lesley teaches teachers at Elevated Achievement Group.

Co-Director – Rev. Gin Courtney 

Rev. Virginia “Gin” Courtney is thrilled to be a part of Summit46 because two of Gin’s favorite parts of church life are Mo-Ranch and declaring to everyone (especially preteens) that God loves them. When she’s not splashing in the Mo-Ranch rapids and dancing like nobody’s watching to the Energizers, she’s living in San Antonio with her family which includes a seven-year-old, twin four-year-olds, a sweet partner, and two dogs. She’s the Associate Pastor at Madison Square Presbyterian Church which is just a few blocks from the Riverwalk. She’s lived at seventeen addresses and has been to three continents. There’s lots that Gin would love to do like learn to juggle, play an instrument, and speak another language, but her favorite thing to do is play with her kids and be outdoors, so she’ll learn those things later. If any campers know how to juggle, play an instrument, or speak another language, Gin would love to learn at Summit46!

Keynote – Rev. Josh Kerr

Josh Kerr is a three-time seminary flag football championship-winning quarterback who has pastored two churches since hanging up his flags in 2014. After a decade of leading churches in mission and membership growth, Josh has recently joined the team at the Presbyterian Foundation, serving as a Ministry Relations Officer for Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana.

Josh’s passions are preaching from the heart, walking his beloved dog, Bella, spending time with his wonderful wife, Tara, and son, Kellan, and eating far too many gas station egg rolls.

Josh loves the church and is pumped to be a part of Summit46!

Worship Leader – Rev. Charlotte Trafton

Rev. Charlotte lives in Austin working as a preacher and a teacher. She teaches kindergarten. And she preaches Bible stories loving to get people involved in the act of telling the story. Charlotte loves reading, hiking, and checking out ocean animals scuba diving. Charlotte first visited Mo-Ranch as a six-year-old and remembers loving hanging out with friends on the Cat Walk, stargazing on the tennis court, and singing at the top of her lungs on the wall at Loma Linda.

Small Group Leader – Kellie Martini

Kellie is a member of the University Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas. Kellie, her husband, Dave, and their two kids (Ethan-16 and Emmie-12) enjoy spending time in the beautiful Texas hill country. Kellie is an Occupational Therapist and Assistive Technology Specialist with Dripping Springs ISD and loves working with students and teachers. When she’s not at school she enjoys camping, hiking, and spending time with friends and family. Mo Ranch has been a place of refuge and renewal for Kellie since she was a child and attended church retreats and youth conferences. She is jumping for joy at this opportunity to attend Summit46!

Music Leader – John Mark Solomon

John Mark is a native Texan, grew up in Houston and now lives in Wylie, TX with his Presbyterian Minister college-sweetheart, Lynette. Devastated by the recent peanut butter recall he decided a full life is worth the risk and returned to daily use. John Mark was a Mo -Ranch attendee as a youth,  a sponsor, a music leader and was even part of the Austin College acting troupe that put on plays in the summer.  He has lead music at conferences and churches for 30  yrs and provides Psychotherapy for Veterans at the VA in Plano.

Recreation Leader – Molly Rambur

Molly has the joy of leading the children and family ministries at First Presbyterian Church in Norman, OK. She is especially excited to share her love for all things recreation at Summit46! Molly enjoys creating and playing games and finding ways to connect them to Jesus. While Mo Ranch is not a new place to her, it has been a while since she has been and is excited to reconnect with the place where she experienced God’s love in fun and meaningful ways. The things Molly loves most are spending time with her husband and 14-year-old son, traveling the world, Atlanta Braves baseball, Broadway musicals, and her two dogs Buzz and Sputnik.

2024 Theme: Linked

Ephesians 2:20b-22 : …built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

S46 Schedule 2024

Cost and Housing

$275 per registrant/adult sponsor for group lodging

$410 per registrant/adult sponsor for hotel lodging. 

Housing

Many of the buildings on our historic property were built as early as the 1950s.  We acknowledge that our buildings cannot accommodate all abilities and people yet and commit to making reasonable accommodations until all facilities are renovated.

Standard housing for youth conferences at Mo-Ranch is group housing. These spaces include, but are not limited to, Milk Barn, Milk Barn Bunkhouses, River Dorm, Guest Lodge, and Log Lodge.

Conference Housing Description – Shared space with other churches, youth groups, and conference attendees.

Sleeping quarters will vary from semi-private to dormitory style housing that can consist of 4- 20 beds in a shared communal living environment. These rooms can consist of single or double beds, and single bunk bed styles. For specific bed/room layouts, please visit Stay at Mo-Ranch • Presbyterian Mo-Ranch Assembly (moranch.org).

Bathroom Facilities Description

Bathrooms in group housing are shared community spaces. Private showers and bathroom stalls are available. There are no designated private changing areas. Mo-Ranch encourages all guests/campers/staff to change clothes in private areas and discourages nudity or disrobing directly in front of others.

Mo-Ranch encourages all participants for youth conferences to reside in the community living environment. However, if this style of lodging does not meet your individual needs, please make us aware. We will make every effort to accommodate your housing needs. Changes in housing are subject to availability and additional fees.  

Considerations

Housing Reservations: When booking your group for a conference at Mo, please be mindful of our limitations and our available housing. Conference participants will be housed on a first come, first serve basis, though we will do our best to honor your housing preference. To be good stewards of the housing facilities that we have available, your group may be housed with other youth groups in dorm/group housing. It is always a good idea to share this information with your group, including youth participants, parents, chaperones, and church leadership prior to booking so that we may partner with you and your group to try meet the needs of your participants.

Sponsors

You will need a sponsor to youth ratio of 1:5. Adult sponsors must also pay and register for the conference. The number of adult sponsors must correspond to the gender numbers in the group they are bringing.  Five boys and three girls would mean at least one male and one female sponsor. If your group chooses to stay in hotel-style accommodations, youth will be housed 3-4 youth per room and churches may be combined to accommodate this arrangement.

Questions? We’re happy to help! Contact us at 1.800.460.4401 ext. 246 or registrar@moranch.org.

Arrival & Departure

Arrive and check-in between 4 and 6 p.m. on the day the conference begins. One sponsor per group should check-in their group. Groups will be able to move into their housing facilities no earlier than 4 p.m. Conferences begin with dinner at 6 p.m. and end mid-morning on the day of departure.

Adult Sponsors

You will need a ratio of 1:5; 1 adult sponsor per 5 youth. Adult sponsors must also register and pay for the conference. The number of adult sponsors must correspond to the gender numbers in the group they are bringing. 5 boys and 3 girls would mean at least 1 male and 1 female sponsor.

Appropriate Dress

While we recognize clothing is one way young people express themselves, we expect them to do so in ways that honor themselves as well as the kind of community we are building during our youth conferences. We ask participants (both youth and adult sponsors) to dress comfortably for the weather, but also modestly. Please refrain from wearing clothing:

• that is too revealing like: short shorts, strapless tops or dresses, shirts that allow for a bare midriff, pants worn below the waist line. Dress should be appropriate for a youth conference. 
• that advertises alcohol or tobacco products
• that contains language demeaning or ridiculing someone’s gender, sexuality or ethnic origin

For recreation events, all participants are expected to wear shirts. Participants out of line with dress standards will be asked to change clothes.

Swim Check

Youth will be asked to take a swim check at the pool during the check-in period. For easy access, youth should remember to pack swimsuits on top. Swimmer and non-swimmer wristbands will be issued to all participants. All youth participants must take the swim check even if they are 18 years of age. Participants not wishing to take the swim check must go to the pool to be given a non-swimmer wristband. Wristbands provide guest identification to our staff and act as meal tickets in the dining hall, and must be worn by guests at all times. Please note Mo-Ranch’s appropriate dress standards when packing swim suits.

Stuff to Bring

Water bottles! Bible, casual clothes, closed-toe shoes for ropes course, swim suit (swim trunks for males, no bikinis for females. “Tankinis” are acceptable so long as no midriff is showing), swim towel, river shoes, sunscreen, insect repellent, flashlight, toiletries, notebook, spending money and a camera.

Personal Electronics

Electronic devices include, but are not limited to: cell phones, tablets, mp3 players and handheld games. The use of personal electronic devices affect not only the person using the device but others around them. Using an electronic device for activities unrelated to the conference can be disruptive and disrespectful. Mo-Ranch encourages groups to leave personal electronics at home. We ask that any electronic devices brought to the conference be kept on silent or turned off during all scheduled events (keynote, small group, worship, vespers, etc.) Distracting personal electronics may be collected by conference staff and turned in to a sponsor. Mo-Ranch or its representatives will not assume responsibility for devices that are lost, stolen, damaged and/or confiscated.

Transportation

Mo-Ranch is 90 miles one-way, or a 2-hour drive from the nearest airport (SAT), allow 3 hours travel/check-in time for departures. We recommend generally scheduling arriving flights before 3 p.m. and departing flights after 3 p.m. to be sure you do not miss any of your event. If you are in need of shuttle service to Mo-Ranch, call Kars for Hire in Kerrville at (830) 890-8200 at least 15 days in advance to arrange transportation from San Antonio International Airport. Directions to Mo.

Ropes Course

This conference will include a selection of our ropes course elements. To read a description of each element, click here.

Trading Post

Make sure to stop by the Presbyterian Mo-Ranch Assembly bookstore during your conference to pick out a souvenir!

Questions

We’re happy to help! Contact us at 1.800.460.4401 ext. 246 or registrar@moranch.org.