SUMMERPROGRAM
How to launch a truly Catholic Summer Camp
What is Summer Program?
An 8 week Catholic summer camp for children ages 4-14 run by high school and college students. Children register by the week and a different set of camps/classes are offered every week. Camps run from 8:45am-noon and extended care is offered beginning at 6:30am and ending at 5:30pm.
Pricing is aimed at being at the low end of the summer camp spectrum, which multi-child discounts to celebrate large Catholic families.
Christ is infused throughout the camp with instructors beginning every day with Mass, the children beginning their days with song and prayer and the whole camp starting Fridays with Mass together.
Why run a Catholic Summer Camp?
It’s what the New Evangelization is all about!
- 50% of all Catholics who leave the Church do so during high school.
- 66% of all Catholics who leave the Church do so between the ages of 13 and 23.
- 85% of confirmed Catholics stop attending Mass by the age of 28.
The New Evangelization has to be about our youth. This is a game changer.
Catholics are sending their children to Protestant and Evangelical summer camps because they need summer child care and Catholic day camps presently aren’t an option. We’re walking our children out the Church door.
Young Life, a protestant youth ministry, hosts more than 50,000 summer campers annually.
In 2006-07 there were 6,288 Catholic elementary schools in the U.S. We have the facilities, staff and children ready to go. We should dominate the summer camp market.
This is all about evangelization.
It’s the only reason for a parish to launch a summer camp.
The two pronged purpose for running a Summer Program
1) Children – to provide them with a Catholic summer camp where they can grow in the faith and be surrounded by great, young, Catholic role models who love Christ.
2) Instructors – to provide them with a summer job in a Catholic community where they can grow in their faith through daily Mass, theology and Eucharistic Adoration.
Benefits
Spiritual:
- Teens grow in faith and develop a Catholic community
- Children grow in faith and have great Catholic role models
- Parish experiences spiritual vibrancy
- Vocations to priesthood and religious life will be discerned
- Youth ministry takes on a life of its own
Financial:
- Summer Program can earn money for youth ministry
- May be able to finance year-round youth minister position
- Families will join the parish – increase in weekly collection
- Increased school enrollment
(3 children/yr at $5,000 tuition = $315K over 6 years)