Effective October 1, Wallace Anderson has been named executive director and CEO of the PCA’s Ridge Haven Conference and Retreat Center in Brevard, N.C.

"We were encouraged by the experience Wallace has had working at Covenant Seminary, MTW, and Covenant College," said Rick Lindsay, who serves as the secretary of Ridge Haven’s board of directors. "Ridge Haven has gone through some hard times in the past few years, but Wallace is no stranger to a challenge. He had work at these agencies during some times of difficulties and hard decisions."

Anderson most recently served as vice president of enrollment management at Covenant College, and anticipates several changes at Ridge Haven.

"It’s such a beautiful place, but we need to clean it up and update the facilities to make it more inviting," said Anderson. "I’m also excited about expanding our wilderness adventure camping option that will create opportunities for fathers and sons, Christian school sports teams, families, and student groups."

Anderson is particularly interested in finding new ways to serve the PCA. "We’ve seen the phenomenal success of Young Life with all of their camps, and we hope to be able to serve groups like RUF in the same capacity."

He cited the statistic that 85 percent of Christians come to the Lord before the age of 14, but that only 15 percent of an average church’s budget goes toward kids.

"For so many kids, camp is a pivotal point of coming to the Lord," said Anderson. "It’s so important to have a facility like this where people can get away from day-to-day life and just listen to the Lord. Our country is in desperate need of being able to unplug and get back to basics."

Lindsay agrees. "We are a connectional church and Wallace wants Ridge Haven to be a connectional camps and conference center," said Lindsay. "We hope that Wallace will be able to restore and even improve people's awareness of what they have in the mountains of North Carolina."

To learn more about Ridge Haven, visit http://www.ridgehaven.org.