MILLIE JACOBS TROYER
Our Founder
Millie had a dream of having her own camp, and in 1963, God led her to Northern Ontario where that dream became reality on St. Joseph Island.
All Tribes Christian Camp was founded by Millie Jacobs Troyer, a remarkable, energetic, outdoorsy lady with a can-do spirit. Millie was born and raised in Indiana. She accepted Christ as her Lord and Saviour at the age of fourteen during a church service in 1938. Ever since she was young, Millie has always been interested in nature, sports and camping. In 1947, when Millie was a college junior she was offered a summer job at Gaberdiel’s Tourist Camp. She quickly accepted the job offer knowing that she would be a factory worker that summer if she did not take the tourist camp position.
Gaberdiel's Tourist Camp was located on Peterson’s Island near Bruce Mines and it was during that summer that Millie was introduced to St. Joseph Island. Her purpose for going to the Island was to buy fresh fruits and vegetables as well as to attend evening camp meeting services sponsored by the St. Joseph Island Free Methodist Church.
In the Spring of 1963, after finishing her Masters at Indiana University, Millie decided to take a sabbatical and wound up back on St. Joseph Island. She rented a small cabin from Bernt and Rose Gilbertson on what is now the All Tribes Christian Camp property. Because Millie agreed to teach the Young People’s Sunday School class and meet with the youth on Friday nights, she was able to live in the cabin rent free. At first, Millie planned to be in that little cabin for only one year, but the Lord had a different plan! During that year, Millie decided to purchase the property from the Gilbertsons and eventually she became the proud owner of one hundred acres of paradise. This purchase would soon make more of Millie’s dreams possible.
The first week of Vacation Bible School was held at All Tribes in the summer of 1963. In the Spring of 1966, Millie had paid off the property loan and decided that 1967 would be the year that she would build her new home on the property - a log cabin. It seemed like a great year to do such a project as Canada was celebrating its 100th birthday. Millie, with the help of many, finished the cabin in time to entertain people for Christmas that year.
In the years that followed, Millie still worked at Indiana Wesleyan University and traveled back and forth to the Island. On May 19, 1978 Millie married Richard Troyer (Dick) and the two became co-managers of All Tribes Christian Camp.
Millie continued managing the Camp after Dick's death in 1999, and then in 2001, Millie retired back to Indiana where she is Indiana Wesleyan University's chief cheerleader. Millie continues to sit on the Camp's Board of Directors and is actively involved throughout the camp season. She still has friends, old and new, at her cabin for a visit, a tour of her incredible antique collection, and sometimes even a mug of apple cider!