Frequently Asked Questions

Each day campers have an opportunity to participate in a wide range of activities. Every program has the chance to swim, hike, use the jumping pillows, play group games, eat yummy meals in the dining hall, have a cook-out, and more! There are also activities that are specific to a particular program i.e. The Quest does various Minecraft related activities, Splish and Splash have waterslide inflatables carnival, Night Owls have a Glow Dance Party, etc. You can learn more about each session in their description on our website under Summer Camp>Camp Sessions or during the online registration process. campfontanelle.campbrainregistration.com

Perhaps even more important are the opportunities for personal growth and development. Campers experience living in community with others, they have the chance to participate in team building activities, shine as leaders, support others, connect with people who might be different than they are, interact with summer camp staff as role models, and build friendships that can last a lifetime. We also have daily times of Bible Study with varying activities for different styles of worship and learning. They get to experience worship with peers their own age that they might not have at their own church

The answer is almost always no. We do not have a camp store or snack shack during the week. The camp store is open only during check-in and check-out times when you would be with your camper to provide money if you desired to. The only exception to that is for programs like Zoobilee that take off-site trips where there may be some kind of gift shop where campers could purchase a souvenir. If extra money is an option, it will be indicated on the packing list for that particular program.

We several options for communicating with your child while they are at camp. You can mail them letters to the camp address with their name followed by the program they are attending, and then camp’s mailing address 9677 County Rd 3 Nickerson, NE 68044. There is also an opportunity to leave written letters with a staff member during check-in to be handed out during the week. Lastly, we partner with a company called Bunk1 to offer the option to send your camper emails during the week. These emails are sent to our camp registrar before dinner each day, they are printed, and then given to campers during the evening mealtime. Campers will not be able to reply to those emails unless you pay an extra fee to include a Bunk Reply which would then be scanned to Bunk1 by our registrar and then emailed to you by them. We do NOT allow campers to have their cell phones during the week. We encourage them to be present in the experiences during the week and disconnect from technology.
In the event of an emergency when you need to speak with your camper in a more immediate way, you can call the camp office at 402-478-4296 and a staff member can work with you to make that happen. If it is outside of business hours you can still call the same number and it will ring to the staff member on call.

The family or individual policy is the primary coverage for accidents and injury. The camp policy is secondary with a $15,000 maximum benefit. The health information form must be completed and signed by a parent or legal guardian before admission to the camp. All medications must be turned in to the camp healthcare coordinator during the check-in process, these will de dispensed by the healthcare coordinator during the week. Medical emergency vehicles are housed 4 miles away in Nickerson and a modern hospital is only 12 miles away in Fremont, NE.

We have a wide range of volunteer opportunities at camp! You can choose which activity would best suit your talents and abilities. You can visit the Serve section of our website for more information.

Volunteers during the summer camp season are required to take Safe Gatherings Training and undergo a background check before being able to volunteer. If you wished to volunteer during the week that your child was at camp that is possible but due to American Camp Association guidelines, you would NOT be able to stay in the same sleeping quarters as your child.

Almost all of our campers will sleep in Olson Lodge (this is a fully air-conditioned building) in one of the 5 bunkrooms. Each bunkroom has 8 bunk beds as well as direct access to bathrooms with showers. There will be two counselors in each bunkroom with campers.
Some campers may sleep in Riverview Lodge (also fully air-conditioned) in one of two bunk rooms. Each bunk room has 9 bunk beds and direct access to bathrooms with showers. Two counselors sleep in each bunkroom.
There are a limited number of programs, such as Night Owls that sleep in our Camping Caves, these are made from giant concrete culverts that have been converted into sleeping quarters. There are bunkbeds along each side of the culverts with a walkway in between. They are air-conditioned but are also naturally cool because they are partially underground. These campers would use the bathrooms and showers at Freiberg Bathhouse or at the 7:24 Shelter which are both nearby. Some programs also have the option, depending on the weather conditions, to sleep out in tree boats at Fort Jones, or at our Survivor Site.

The health and safety of our campers is our primary concern. We have storm shelters in both of our lodges and our 7:24 Shelter. The Camping Caves are natural shelters as they are partially underground. Camp has emergency plans in place in the event of severe weather and staff are trained on these procedures each summer. During orientation at the beginning of each week of camp these procedures are communicated to campers as well. We have two large bells on our property that we will ring in the event of severe weather so that all the camp is aware of the situation and can seek safety in the nearest available shelter. We also have walkie-talkies that are distributed to staff in each camper group so that communication can occur immediately and to every group at once.

We have a FABULOUS kitchen staff who make delicious meals each day for our campers. Most of the time campers will eat in the dining hall at Riverview Lodge. We strive to provide nutritious food options for campers including a salad bar available at most meals. Camp favorite meals include: Stromboli, chicken and rice, tacos, spaghetti and meatballs, and more! Meals will vary from week to week. You will have the opportunity to make us aware of any allergies or dietary restrictions on the health form you fill out for your camper. The cooks are happy to provide accommodation for those with allergies and restrictions so that they can have options as close to what the rest of the campers are eating as possible. Making sure to fill out that medical form ahead of time so the staff has time to prepare is extremely important and helpful.

Homesickness is a normal part of children being away from home, especially if its for the first time. Our staff take part in training leading up to the start of camp that gives them tools and strategies to help campers deal with homesickness. If those attempts are not successful they can contact a member of the lead team or full-time staff to help with the situation. In the event that the camper is still struggling we would reach out to the parents and talk with them about other possible ways to help the camper. In severe cases of homesickness we would then offer the opportunity for the child to speak directly with the parents to discuss options for moving forward. Sometimes the child is just not ready to stay at camp yet and that’s okay! We hope that they would try again the next summer and find they are successful at staying the whole week.
Sometimes parents also have a similar experience in dealing with their child being away from them for an extended period of time. That’s normal too! Camp staff is happy to chat with you and check-in with your camper to assure you they are safe and having a great time. There are some ways you can help with homesickness before and during camp. Talk with your camper about what types of things they will get to do at camp. If you have never been to camp before we would encourage you to attend our Open House event in late spring so you and your camper can see where they will be staying and meet some of the staff members. You can also ask questions! When writing emails or letters to your camper it helps to stay positive and encourage them in their time at camp. Sharing your hopes for what they would experience at camp is great. It also helps to avoid listing things they may be missing out on while they are at camp or overly focusing on how much you miss them and how sad you are that they are gone.

YES! We never want a child to miss out on camp due to financial reasons. The first thing we would suggest is to check with your local church, if you have one, and ask if they have scholarship money available for camp. Many churches in our area have these programs available. If you do not have a local church, or if they do not have funds available, we have scholarships available directly through camp. When you go through the registration process there will be an optional form to fill out to request scholarship. We base our scholarship on financial need so you will be asked to share the reason for the need on the form. These forms are kept confidential. After you have completed and submitted the form it will be reviewed by a full-time staff member. After reviewing the form, we will communicate with you how much we are able to provide in scholarship funds. Staff are not able to view the scholarship form until the registration is fully submitted. If you are unable to pay the required $50 deposit, please reach out to our Camp Registrar, Amanda, to get the registration submitted so that staff can review the scholarship application. She can be reached via email asiver@greatplainsumc.org or by called the office 402-478-4296.