The Antiochian Archdiocese runs summer camps for kids and teens ages 9-17, plus leadership programs for older youth. The flagship is Antiochian Village in Bolivar, Pennsylvania, but there are regional camps too.
Antiochian Village offers four two-week sessions each summer. Campers live in cabins, attend Divine Liturgy and vespers daily, get religious education from clergy and counselors, and do normal camp stuff, swimming, ropes courses, campfires, arts and crafts. It’s not a vacation with a chapel tacked on. The whole schedule centers on worship and formation.
The camp serves ages 9-17 in age-grouped sessions. Older teens can apply for the Counselor-in-Training program, which combines practical camp skills with spiritual leadership training. Some summers they also run specialty weeks like iconography camp.
Regional Options
Camp St. Joseph of Damascus and other diocesan camps follow the same model but serve specific regions. These tend to be week-long programs rather than two weeks. They’re closer to home if you’re not up for sending your kid to Pennsylvania, and they build connections within your diocese. The structure’s the same, daily services, catechesis, small-group discussions with counselors, outdoor activities in a safe setting.
Your teen might also hear about Teen SOYO retreats and the annual Youth and Camp Workers Conference. The conference is mainly for youth ministers and camp staff, but it shapes what happens at parish and diocesan youth events throughout the year.
What Actually Happens
Here’s a typical day. Morning prayers, then breakfast. Divine Liturgy or a teaching session. Activities, maybe swimming, maybe a service project, maybe learning to chant. Lunch. More activities or small-group time with your cabin. Vespers before dinner. Evening program, campfire, games, talks. Compline and lights out.
The counselors aren’t just lifeguards and activity leaders. They’re college-age Orthodox young adults who’ve been through formation themselves. They pray with the campers, answer questions about fasting or confession or why we venerate icons, model what it looks like to live the faith daily. For a lot of kids, especially those from isolated parishes or mixed families, it’s the first time they’ve been surrounded by Orthodox peers and seen what a fully Orthodox life can look like.
Why It Matters
If your family’s new to Orthodoxy, you might wonder if camp’s worth the cost and logistics. It is. Your kid will come home knowing the services better, having made friends who share the faith, and having experienced the Church as something bigger than your parish. They’ll have met priests and seminarians and older teens who can answer questions you can’t. They’ll have lived in a community where going to Liturgy isn’t weird.
And honestly? For kids in Southeast Texas, where they’re often the only Orthodox kid at school or in the extended family, that matters. They need to know they’re not alone.
Financial aid’s available through the Order of St. Ignatius and directly from the camps. Don’t let cost keep your kid home. Talk to the parish, there are often families willing to help sponsor a camper.
Session dates, fees, and registration open up each winter. Check avcamp.org for Antiochian Village or ask at coffee hour about regional camps. If your teen’s never been, start with one session. If they’ve been before, they’re probably already counting down the days.
