The Blog

Little Bear Wheeler has had a significant impact on the Weinberger family.  For me personally, he is one of two people outside our family who has had the most important influence on me (the other is Doug Phillips). 

My parents first heard Little Bear at a homeschool conference, in years when Joel and I were too young to come along.  They came home and told us about a great speaker with a funny name who dressed in historical costumes (Joel and I loved that).  What was particularly amazing to us at the time was that Little Bear gave a message of Scriptural warning on icons of popular culture—including church culture—books, film, television, and music.  A good friend had a video of Little Bear speaking on these subjects, and loaned it to us.  This was the first time Joel and I saw Little Bear.  We had believed a lot of the information Little Bear was speaking on, but had never heard anyone speak on it, put it into words, and take the same stands.  And Little Bear had all the historical trappings to really catch our young imaginations.  We were hooked, and by the time we finally got to meet Little Bear at another homeschool conference a couple years later, Little Bear had already had a huge impact—especially channeling my already-strong interest in history to a new understanding of providential history, infusing a love of historical books, and introducing us to information about courtship.  Little Bear was one of our heroes. 

Through the years, Little Bear has become a dear personal friend and has been a blessing in so many ways.  For the past five years we have had the pleasure of spending a week each year with him and other friends at the family camp he organizes at Horn Creek, Colorado. 

 This year was no exception, and it was extra special traveling there with the Sherrys (for a reason that many blog readers already know about, and the rest will find out sooner or later).  As usual, it was great to spend a week in the beautiful scenery and good fellowship.  Our good friends, Cindy and Stephanie Cone, once again did a great job with the morning women’s sessions.  This year, Teresa and Sarah Sherry joined them for teaching crafts like quilting and stamping.  Joel and Conrad provided prelude music before the evening sessions. We all had what the characters in Pilgrim’s Progress would call “profitable conversations” with many other families at the camp, some of whom we knew from past years, and others who we met for the first time.  And as usual, a highlight of the camp was the evening message series from Little Bear.