Parent Information

We want to do everything we can to help your child have a positive camp experience.

The information below will help you get an idea of how we operate camp.

If you choose to send your child to camp, it will also be helpful to review the items below with your child before coming to camp.

Forms

Once your child is registered for camp you will receive a confirmation email with a packing list and more information about camp. If you do not receive this email please contact us.

Why three prices?

THE CHALLENGE: WCRC is committed to offering an excellent summer camp program that is safe, fun, and Christ-centered. Over the years we have done our best to keep the price affordable. Unfortunately, what it costs to operate camp has increased at a greater rate than what our fees have covered.

THE SOLUTION: Realizing that families have differing abilities to help offset these increased costs, WCRC has implemented a new voluntary and confidential tiered pricing structure. Rather than raising all camp fees to levels that better help cover expenses–and risk missing out on ministry opportunities for those who might not be able to afford camp–we are giving you the option to pay more if you are able.

HOW IT WORKS: Simply choose the price that works for you! The price you choose remains confidential and does not influence the quality of the camp experience for any child attending camp.

Price A most closely reflects the actual cost of camp. If you choose this price, you are helping to sustain our ministry here and keep our camp running.

Price B is our partially subsidized option which allows us to cover more of our expenses. If you choose this price you are helping offset more costs.

Price C does not reflect the true cost of camp, but we offer it in the hope that families will be blessed by this more affordable price. Please choose this price if you need to!

Scholarships are still available for those who require further financial assistance.

It is completely up to you to decide what price you choose. However, we ask that you choose the highest price that you can afford to pay toward your child’s camp experience. By doing so, you’ll not only help cover the true cost of running camp but also protect every child’s chance to begin a relationship with Jesus Christ and grow in Him!

Weeklong Camps:
A: $500
B: $450
​C: $400

Mini Camp: 
A: $325
B: $300
C: $265

Day Camp:
A: $250
B: $225
C: $200

MLT Program:
​$550

Camp Rules and Discipline

Please do not bring valuable jewelry, watches, or expensive clothing.

  • Do not bring electronic equipment including: radios, tape recorders, I-Pods, CD players, cell phones, etc.
  • Do not bring cash to camp. The Camp Store will only be available during registration and pick-up.
  • Do not bring weapons, fireworks, pocket knives, snack food or candy.
  • Alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, vapes or other nicotine products, and pornographic material are STRICTLY PROHIBITED in camp.
  • Campers are not allowed to leave camp without the Camp Director’s permission and staff supervision.

As soon as all campers arrive counselors will explain the Camp Rules to their campers. Campers are held to these standards throughout the week.

  1. Obey/Respect your counselor and all camp staff.
  2. Be kind and respect one another. No fighting, no bullying.
  3. Use kind words. No put downs, profanity or name calling.
  4. Respect each other’s privacy. No boys in girls cabins or restrooms and vice versa.
  5. Respect other people’s property. No touching other people’s things without permission. Respect camp property: No markers, crayons or chewing gum on beds. Put trash in trash cans.
  6. Girls and boys act appropriately around one another. No public displays of affection (PDA).
  7. Stay with your counselor. Don’t go anywhere by yourself.
  8. Be modest in the way you dress.
  9. Keep food out of cabins.
  10. Snacks are eaten only during snack time.
  11. Always wear a shirt and shoes except when you are at the pool.
  12. Only use counselor bathrooms in the middle of the night and during rest time.
  13. Enjoy walking. Staff members are not allowed to give your rides in camp vehicles.

Golden Rule – Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If you are having a negative impact on the rest of the group, you will be disciplined.

Discipline – Camp staff are carefully trained to work with children in a positive and trusting environment. It is assumed that campers are amenable to normal camp discipline and will conform to the ideals and regulations of our camping program. Parents will be contacted if campers are having difficulty at camp for any reason.

Corporal punishment, denial of food at meals, isolation without supervision, ridicule by staff or campers, excessive exercise or deprivation of sleep are expressly prohibited as a means for discipline in our camp.

Any camper found in possession of alcoholic beverages, weapons, drugs, drug paraphernalia, cigarettes, vapes or other nicotine products, and/or pornographic material may be dismissed from camp. In such cases, parents or guardians will be contacted immediately. Any camper dismissed from camp for disciplinary reasons will forfeit any refund of fees.

Homesickness

Homesickness is a normal experience in the process of growing up, and every counselor at Summer Camp at WCRC is trained to help a homesick camper through encouragement, lots of activity, and building new friendships. Parents can help by writing friendly and encouraging letters, writing often, and not promising a camper s/he can come home if they get homesick. Please feel free to call and talk with the Program Director at any time. Plan ahead with mail; many letters arrive after a child has left Camp.

Here is some helpful information from the American Camping Association website on homesickness. Please check out their website for additional homesickness tips.

  • Encourage your child’s independence throughout the year. Practice separations, such as sleepovers at a friend’s house, can simulate the camp environment.
  • Involve your child in the process of choosing a camp. The more that the child owns the decision, the more comfortable the child will feel being at camp.
  • Discuss what camp will be like before your child leaves. Consider role-playing anticipated situations, such as using a flashlight to find the bathroom.
  • Reach an agreement ahead of time on calling each other. If your child’s camp has a no-phone-calls policy, honor it.
  • Send a note or care package ahead of time to arrive on the first day of camp. Acknowledge, in a positive way, that you will miss your child. For example, you can say “I am going to miss you, but I know that you will have a good time at camp.”
  • Don’t bribe. Linking a successful stay at camp to a material object sends the wrong message. The reward should be your child’s newfound confidence and independence.
  • Pack a personal item from home, such as a stuffed animal.
  • When a “rescue call” comes from the child, offer calm reassurance, and put the time frame into perspective. Avoid the temptation to take the child home early.
  • Talk candidly with the camp director to obtain his/her perspective on your child’s adjustment.
  • Don’t feel guilty about encouraging your child to stay at camp. For many children, camp is the first step toward independence and plays an important role in their growth and development.
  • Trust your instincts with most incidents of homesickness. If your child is not eating or sleeping because of anxiety or depression, it is time to go home. However, don’t make your child feel like a failure if their stay at camp is cut short. Focus on the positive and encourage your child to try camp again next year.

Dress Code

At camp, we encourage campers to view their bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit. For this reason we have a dress code to assist campers in focusing on the real reason that they are at camp: to make lasting uplifting friendships and to focus on their relationship with the Lord. Clothing that is revealing is distracting and demeaning. For this reason, we have set standards.

Clothing should not have words or images that are offensive or contrary to the Christian principles of the camp.

Campers are strongly discouraged from wearing skin-tight pants which are inappropriate for the active nature of camp life.

Boys:

  • Must wear shirts at all times except in water-related activities, such as the swimming pool and waterslide.
  • Sleeveless shirts are not permitted.
  • Underwear should be worn, not seen.

Girls:

  • Shorts should be modest (no shorter than fingertips when hanging arms loosely at the sides of the body).
  • Shirts should be suitable for recreation and not revealing. Please do not bring overly baggy or tight shirts, spaghetti strap tops, tank tops or mid-riff revealing shirts. Shirts should have a modest neckline as well.
  • Swimsuits should be modest one-piece or midriff covering tankini style.

If a camper’s clothing doesn’t meet the dress code, parents will be contacted to bring additional clothing. Please encourage your camper to pack modest clothing.

Packing List and Lost and Found

Click here for a printable camper packing list and here for a day camp packing list. We recommend using the list to record the items your child brings to Camp. Pack the list in your camper’s luggage so that he or she can look over the list at the end of the week making sure all their belongings go back home with them.

Cornerstone, Solid Rock, Night Owl, and Keystone Campers should bring a change of darker clothing for night time games.

Label all belongings clearly. Items left behind are held in Lost & Found for two weeks, and if unclaimed, they are then donated to a local charity. Please contact the Camp WITHIN TWO WEEKS if you are trying to locate lost items.

Keeping in Touch with your Camper

Mail and Care Packages: Parents of younger campers should consider writing often. Consider sending letters during the week before your child comes to camp; many letters arrive once the camper has already left.

Please do not send your child food, gum, or candy in either letters or packages.

Don’t worry if your child doesn’t write back. Usually, their excuse is, “I was just too busy having fun!” If you should receive letters that cause you concern as to your child’s adjustment or well being, please advise us immediately. It is our goal to make camp a good experience for all of the campers.

E-mail: Feel free to send your camper e-mail messages to ginger@wcrc.info. Messages will be printed and distributed at mealtime with other mail. Please write the camper’s name in the subject area. We are not able to guarantee the confidentiality of these messages. Please do not send attachments or e-cards as we are unable to print them. Campers are not able to email parents back; however, they may write letters in response.

Telephone: Telephones are not available for camper use except in staff supervised business or emergency situations. If parents have urgent messages that require a telephone call, please ask to speak to the Program Director or Assistant Program Director, and your message will be written down and delivered to the child, normally at the next mealtime. IN CASES OF EMERGENCY, DO NOT HESITATE TO CALL THE “AFTER HOURS DUTY PHONE.”

Visitors: “Drop-in” visits can create a number of problems, sometimes disrupting programs, diverting staff, or setting off homesickness in susceptible campers. First day check-in and last day checkout are good times to visit with staff, not during the week. If for any reason visitors come on property they are asked to check in at the office. Please do not ask to take other campers from camp.

Camper Photos: During camp a few photos may be posted on our Facebook page throughout the week. A full album will be posted once the week is finished.

A Typical Day at Camp

This schedule will give you an idea of the general order of a camper’s day; however, the times when activities happen to change each week depending on the ages of the campers. The younger campers go to bed between 9 and 9:30pm. The older campers go to bed between 10 and 10:30pm.

7:30 – Wake Up
8:00 – Breakfast
8:30 – Cabin Clean Up
9:00 – Cabin Devotions
10:15 – Activity Time 1
12:00 – Lunch
12:45 – In Cabin Rest Time
1:45 – Activity Time 2
3:15 – Snack
3:30 – Pool Time
5:30 – Dinner
6:15 – Evening Worship
7:00 – All Camp Games
8:00 – Snack
8:15 – Night Time Activity
9:00 – Showers
9:30 – In Cabin Personal Reflections
10:00 – Lights Out

Check-in and Pick-up Procedures

Check-In: Registration begins on the first day of camp at 6 p.m. Please do not arrive early for Check-in. Staff will not be able to assist until 6 p.m. Check-ins will take place at the Commons in the Cabin Village. There will be signs to direct you. Remaining balances can be paid during registration.

Pick-Up: Weeklong camps will end with a Closing Program on Thursday at 7pm in Magnolia Center. Family members are invited to attend. Campers should be signed out immediately prior to the Closing Program.

There will not be a Closing Program for Mini Campers who will be picked up at 1pm on Tuesday.

Please inform the office if you will be picking up your camper late. Let us know ahead of time if someone other than those listed on the “Payment and Pick-Up Form” will be picking up your child. We are not able to release campers to people not listed on the form without your permission.

Camp Store

Camp items will be available for purchase during registration as well as at Pick Up. Campers should not be given money to purchase items during the camp week. We do not want to invite the possibility of campers losing or having their money stolen during camp.

Health and Safety

At Summer Camp at WCRC it is our goal to run a safe Christ-Centered camp. For this reason, all of our counselors are trained in first aid and CPR. While we do not employ a full-time summer Camp Nurse, we have a Camp Healthcare Coordinator on-site to administer medication and provide medical care as necessary for minor injuries and sickness.

Any time a camper requires medical attention outside of camp, has an injury that prevents them from participating in camp activities or is sick (fever/vomiting) a parent will be contacted. For more information on when we will contact a parent or what requires a child to be sent home please call or speak to the Camp Healthcare Coordinator at registration.

All prescription medication brought into Camp should be in their original containers with the original label attached. Please write instructions including dosages and times on your camper’s medical form. This will assist us in administering the medication in the same way that it is done at home. All medications, including non-prescribed vitamins, creams, lotions, aspirin, etc., must be turned in and dispensed by the Program Director, Assistant Program Director or Camp Healthcare Coordinator. Do not repackage drugs or substitute another person’s prescription; this is prohibited by law.

Please do not take your children off of their medication, especially ADD medication, while they are at camp.

Scholarship Information

Williamsburg Christian Retreat Center will pay up to but not exceeding 60% of registration fees pending approval. In cases of extreme hardship, WCRC will make an effort to find additional assistance for the remaining 40%.

The person making the request, their parent, pastor, or social worker should complete the application.

WCRC will review applications for assistance and will determine eligibility. If approved, the person submitting the application will be notified within 20 days.

A Scholarship Application should be submitted at least 30 days prior to the start of the chosen session of camp. Include all information requested. All information is confidential.

Click here for a printable scholarship form. Once complete the form should be mailed to WCRC, Attn: Program Director, 9275 Barnes Road, Toano, VA 23168, faxed to (757)566-4875 or emailed to ginger@wcrc.info with “Scholarship” in the subject line.

We’re here to help you.

We want to serve you any way we can. Contact us today to talk with one of team members – we’re excited to meet you!

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