Wesley Camp & Retreat Center today announced the launch of the For the Love of Camp campaign, a two-month fundraising effort dedicated to providing camperships for children and youth when the center reopens in summer 2026. With a goal of $10,000, the campaign will help ensure that every child—regardless of financial circumstance—has the opportunity to experience the life-changing impact of camp.

After several years of planning, prayer, and construction, Wesley Camp & Retreat Center is preparing to welcome campers back to a campus that has undergone extensive upgrades designed to create a safe, sustainable, and deeply welcoming environment. Improvements include maintenance facility upgrades, safety enhancements, cabin, lodge, and dining hall renovations, trail and worship space upgrades, and more.

“We’re building something new at Wesley,” said Rev. Ann Marie Carley, Director of Engagement with Children, Youth, and Young Adults for West Ohio. “A place that is safe, sustainable, and Christ-centered—where kids can meet God in nature, grow in faith, and be transformed by community.”

Camp Changes Lives—And Donors Help Make It Possible

The For the Love of Camp campaign invites donors to invest not just in a place, but in the lives of the young people who will gather there.

“When you support Wesley, you’re not just donating to a camp. You’re investing in faith that sticks, leaders that last, and stories that begin under the stars and around a fire,”  said, Rev. Carley.

To break down the financial barriers that keep many children from attending camp, the campaign will raise funds for camperships. A full campership costs $550, but since many families apply for partial scholarships, a single gift has the potential to impact multiple campers.

“We want the summer of 2026 to be the beginning of something extraordinary,” said Rev Carley. “Not only for Wesley as it reopens, but for every young person who steps onto this holy ground.”

How Many Kids Could You Send to Camp This Summer?

Donors are encouraged to consider how many children they can help send to camp by contributing to the For the Love of Camp campaign. Whether it’s a partial scholarship or sponsoring an entire cabin’s worth of campers, every gift moves West Ohio closer to the goal of ensuring all kids have access to the transformative power of camp. Donors can give at the West Ohio Conference website at www.westohio.org/donate or mail a check to: UMF West Ohio c/o For the Love of Camp, 32 Wesley Blvd. Columbus, OH 43205.

Churches with unused campership funds can contact Susan Black at the United Methodist Foundation of West Ohio to discuss how to release these funds to support the campaign. Call 380-223-9257 or email at sblack@wocumc.org.

To learn more about Wesley Camp & Retreat Center, click here.