Registration is presently underway at lionscamp.com for Texas Lions Camp 2025.
Originally established as the Lions Camp for Crippled Children, Texas Lions Camp celebrated its 75th anniversary last year and changed its name to help more kids with special needs. Located on 515 acres in Kerrville, Texas, there is no charge ever for the attending child or their parents.
However, camp is not free. The $3+ million annual budget is paid for by fundraising and donation support from individuals and companies, in addition to approximately 20,000 Texas Lions members,
Special needs children participate in activities such as camping, hiking, horseback riding, swimming, arts and crafts, archery, zip lining and wall climbing, just like at any other summer camp. Ages served are approximately eight years old to 16, depending on the kid’s needs.
Camp is for a week, but there are other specialized lengths. If a parent is not happy giving up the child, then family camp is a shortened term, and parents and siblings are allowed to participate with the child. Last summer a new program called recreational day camp was formed. It is like family camp, but the parents are free during the day. This allows the child to participate on their own and parents have the day to explore and enjoy the hill country and then rejoin the child for dinner and enjoy nighttime activities with them. This also is a shortened version of camp.
There is a two-week session for diabetes, and during one of these weeks Dr. Ponder, a San Antonio pediatrician specializing in childhood diabetes, closes his office and his entire staff comes to camp to educate and support not only the children but also their parents with the disease. Ponder attended the camp as a child with diabetes and it changed his life.
The counselors who work at the camp are well trained and educated in the areas that they work. They come from all over the world just to participate in this camp, with many coming from Europe, Australia, Canada and from all corners of the U.S.
Texas Lions Camp is accredited by the American Camp Association and licensed by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
For additional information, call 830-896-8500 or 830-896-3666 or email tlc@lionscamp.com.
