As a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Florida, Camp Weed provides summer camp experiences for over 500 campers every summer. Our convenient, central location in the Diocese of Florida allows us to serve youth from many areas. We’re located just an hour from Tallahassee, Gainesville, and Jacksonville, and we’re also a short drive from the western panhandle, south Georgia, and south Alabama.
Our mission is to build a safe environment that strengthens relationships between campers, staff, and God; that encourages participants to learn important life skills, to try new things, and to deepen their faith; and that allows all people to be themselves.
Our programming includes a variety of activities to engage campers and to help promote their spiritual, physical, and mental growth. Some of these activities include: kayaking, archery, wall climbing, swimming, arts and crafts, and so much more. Campers are divided into large groups, small groups, and cabin groups throughout the day to give them opportunities to get to know others, themselves, and God a little bit better.
Founded in 1924, Camp Weed has served youth of the Episcopal Diocese of Florida for more than 90 years. Camp Weed was founded in St. Augustine Beach but moved to St. Andrew’s Bay just a year later.
In 1942, the U.S. Army commissioned Camp Weed for the World War II military effort. The diocese moved the camp to a property at St. Teresa Beach, but that site too was soon commissioned by the Army. The site was moved to Hibernia, where it remained until 1946 before Camp Weed was moved back to St. Teresa at the end of the war.
As the area of the Diocese changed, it became necessary for Camp Weed to relocate to a more central location instead of being so far west. In 1978 the diocese purchased a property near Live Oak. It has added people, buildings, and structures, but the original heart, soul, purpose, and cross of Camp Weed remain the same.
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Faith - Camp Weed encourages spiritual growth and provides programming, mentors, and devotions to facilitate. Everything we do revolves around our Christian love for one another
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Creativity - Camp Weed is a place for campers and staff to break out of their boxes and comfort zones to reach their creative child inside.
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Open Mindedness - Camp Weed serves as a place for all of our campers and staff to feel safe and accepted in being themselves. Additionally, we want to teach all of our campers that it’s okay for people to be different than them.
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Love - Camp Weed approaches all of its campers, staff, parents, and alumni with an attitude of love. We put love first in our conversations, our thoughts, and our actions.
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Enthusiasm - Camp Weed strives to do everything with intense enjoyment. We want to have a ton of fun and to be incredibly enthusiastic and joyful about all of our people and activities.
For questions or more information, contact our director Sam Marxsen at 386-364-5250 or sam@campweed.org.
What is Camp Weed?
Camp Weed is sand and sandspurs, blue waters and a cool breeze, bricks and
wood and screen wire, permeated by devotion and sprinkled liberally with
joy. It is an oasis of refreshment and a crossroads for travelers on the
Christian highway.
It can be identified early in the summer by the sound of mighty busses,
followed by a herd of noise filled cars. From these, spill out a seemingly
never-ending line of eager faces and squirming bodies, all carrying suitcases
filled with anticipation.
Camp Weed is confusion with a purpose. It is energy with a halo. It is a case
of homesickness with a built-in cure. It is a ship of humanity gathered by the
star of divinity. No stranger comes within the gates, for, upon entering, there
is donned the apparel of friend.
Those who have been there will tell you that Camp Weed is knowledge in
shorts and worship in T-shirts. It is learning with laughter and prayer with
pleasant piety. It provides play that is testing, work that is wearying,
and rewards that have never been fully counted.
Camp Weed is character around a campfire. It is holiness in a wet bathing
suit. It is going to church by way of first base and meeting God in sacrament
and sports.
No age is beyond the reach of its influence. Its meaning must be experienced
in person to be fully understood. Camp Weed lives for a few months but its
life is everywhere, evident at all times.
Camp Weed is yours. Camp Weed is you.
-Rev. Alvin S. Bullen