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Seminars for hope, healing, wholeness

Kirk and Sally Scammell pose in the Cowboy Room at the Newman Conference Center at 6701 N. Idaho Road. The center hosts an ongoing series of workshops ranging from parenting and family issues to anger management. (J. BART RAYNIAK / The Spokesman-Review)
By Cindy Hval dchval@juno.com
Kirk and Sally Scammell pose in the Cowboy Room at the Newman Conference Center at 6701 N. Idaho Road. The center hosts an ongoing series of workshops ranging from parenting and family issues to anger management. (J. BART RAYNIAK / The Spokesman-Review)

Lance Yarwood’s anger was killing him. A rancorous divorce had left him with feelings of rage and bitterness. His blood pressure was skyrocketing. The 45-year-old truck driver from Post Falls said, “I was getting ready to end my pain.”

He found help in an unexpected place. Yarwood said his father told him about the Newman Conference Center in Newman Lake.

Opened in fall 2007, the 10,800-square-foot facility was built entirely with donations. The center was the vision of Sally Scammell, associate pastor at Word of Life Church in Newman Lake. She said for several years the church had been hosting a series of immensely popular video seminars on topics like marriage, parenting and finances. “We were running out of space,” she said. In addition, she longed to create a place for those who would like to attend the seminars but might not feel comfortable in a church setting.

“We wanted to provide a neutral, safe environment,” said Diane Leuders, community outreach coordinator for the center.

While the facility looks carefully designed by a professional interior decorator, organizers say community members simply donated what they had. Amazingly, it all fit together.

Volunteers chose to capitalize on the center’s rural setting by incorporating decorative touches like pine cones, tree branches and fishing gear into each room. The center boasts a large meeting room that can seat 240, and several smaller rooms, each with a distinct outdoors theme. Walls painted with warm colors like terra cotta and hunter green add to the welcoming atmosphere. A flagstone patio offers a relaxed setting with a scenic view. Leuders said they wanted the conference center to be especially comfortable for men.

Yarwood appreciated the laid-back atmosphere when he attended a seminar titled, “Overcoming Anger.” He said he’d taken anger management classes before and found them to be of little help. “I didn’t want to manage my anger,” he said. “I wanted to get rid of it.”

The seminars offered at the Newman Conference Center are all biblically based. However, Scammell, who oversees the center with her husband, Kirk, stresses that the classes and workshops are open to everyone, regardless of religious background. Leuders agreed and stated, “We’re here to bring hope, healing and wholeness.”

The center is staffed by a large team of trained volunteers who facilitate the seminars. In addition to Overcoming Anger, seminar titles include Empowering Relationships, Love and Respect, and Financial Success. Because of their accessible location, Leuders said, they regularly host people from Rathdrum, Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene, as well the Spokane area.

Joanie Fish, a youth leader from Kettle Falls, has brought several members of her church youth group to seminars at the center. “The people are so hospitable,” she said.

Scammell said their choice of classes reflects the underlying message of the center. “There really is hope and solutions for things that seem hopeless.”

Yarwood knows exactly what she means. “My blood pressure is coming down and my health is better,” he said. “I lost my anger and I’m not picking it back up. I’m free.”