Camp days begin long before the kids walk through the doors at Lubbock Impact.
On Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, the building fills with a different kind of energy. Themed decorations go up, snacks are prepared, activities are set out, and campers often wait outside 30 minutes early, eager for the afternoon ahead. Once everyone arrives, four hours of laughter, play, and adventure begin, giving kids room to simply be kids.
Beneath the games, crafts, and snacks, this summer’s Kids Camp has centered around something even more meaningful: practical life skills that campers can carry with them long after summer ends.
Baking, cooking, budgeting, social skills, science, history, and art may not be what first comes to mind when you think of summer camp, but they’re intentionally woven into every week. The goal is simple: to give kids opportunities to discover new interests while building confidence and skills they’ll use for years to come.
Campers have baked cookies with Program Director Haley McBrayer, created pottery with core volunteer Kristi, and learned to budget and cook a meal from scratch with summer intern John. Field trips to the National Ranching Heritage Center, the TTU Museum, Holly Hop Ice Cream Shoppe, H-E-B, and our core volunteer Karen’s farm helped bring those lessons to life.
One favorite day among volunteers transformed the Social Room into an ice cream parlor. Campers took turns serving customers and placing orders, practicing kindness, patience, and good customer service. The following week, they put those same skills into practice during a visit to Holly Hop Ice Cream Shoppe.
Summer Camp has grown tremendously under Haley McBrayer’s leadership over the past five years. What began as a two-hour afternoon built around a visiting mission team has grown into a two-day-a-week, half-day camp spanning ten weeks, all because the kids kept asking for more time together.
“They had ideas for activities that they wanted to explore,” Haley shared. That curiosity became the foundation for this summer’s focus on real-world experiences. Camp gives kids the chance to explore new interests, develop life skills they can share with their families, and discover passions they may never have known they had.
“This hopefully empowers them and further equips them to prepare for life by choosing the things that make them happy, excite them, and help them find their passions,” Haley said.
Alongside those practical skills, campers also spend time learning about Jesus. Each summer, The Road, a youth mission team from Faithbridge Church in Houston, joins camp for the final two hours of the day, leading Bible stories, worship, skits, crafts, and games.
Their presence not only creates meaningful moments for our campers but also gives the middle school and high school students on The Road the opportunity to grow as servant leaders. For many of our older campers, these students become relatable role models who encourage and invest in them throughout the week.
None of this would be possible without the incredible generosity of our community. Local churches and individuals have donated decorations, snacks, supplies, and countless other items that transform our building into a new adventure each week. Betenbough generously sponsored every field trip, making experiences beyond our walls possible for every camper.
Our volunteers, many of them students spending part of their own summer break serving others, bring immeasurable joy to camp. They create a safe, welcoming environment by offering one more smile, one more listening ear, and one more helping hand.
When asked what she looks forward to most each summer, Haley doesn’t mention a favorite activity or field trip. “It’s the time with the kids themselves,” she said. “As a kid, you only get so many summers to be a kid and go on adventures and learn new things. I feel so honored to be a part of their summers and make memories with them.”
That is what Summer Camp at Lubbock Impact is all about: creating memories, building confidence, discovering new passions, growing in faith and equipping kids with tools they’ll carry long after summer is over, one recipe, one adventure, and one friendship at a time.