Since 1924 Camp Stewart has been at the forefront and heart of a movement across Texas to provide a resource and institution for character building and life skills to thousands of young men through intentional play and interpersonal/intrapersonal development in a sleep-away summer camp environment. By pairing quality, instructor-led lessons with fun and engaging daily events and activities, we strive to build positive, growth-based experiences for boys to practice leadership qualities and abilities to help them be motivated and successful in school and at home now as well as throughout their future.
Lifelong Benefits of Camp from Ragsdale Family Camps on Vimeo.
Camp Stewart’s unique setting (over 500 acres along both banks of one mile of Guadalupe River waterfront deep in the rustic Texas Hill Country) coupled with our rich history, innovative programming, and strong camper legacy provide a one-of-a-kind experience for boys to realize their individual potential as well as develop long-lasting friendships in a community with other young men from around Texas, the United States, and the world.
The Stewart Difference
Camper Age Range: 6-16 years old
Session Lengths: 4 Week Terms & 2 Week Terms
(We also offer several 1 Week “Taste of Camp” Terms for families of boys ages 6-11 who are looking to explore the numerous benefits developed over a longer 2 Week/4 Week Term but aren’t ready to commit to a longer term yet)
Location:
612 FM 1340
Hunt, TX 78024
Contact: (830)238-4670, Contact@CampStewart.com ; www.CampStewart.com
Our Purpose
Here at Camp Stewart, our mission is to provide a positive and supportive environment where campers can grow into well-rounded leaders of the future while they are still young men in their homes, schools, and communities. It is best illustrated in Camp Stewart’s long-standing camp motto: “Don’t wait until you are a man to be great, be a great boy”.
We don’t want our campers to simply be ordinary boys, but rather develop extraordinary and long-lasting character to positively impact the world around them as they grow into the men they will be. We look to do that through Camp Stewart’s Program, Property, and People.
Our Program
For years, Camp Stewart’s Program has been centered around a longer camp session grounded in summer camp basics for our campers, and it’s intrinsically tied to our Purpose. We believe campers gain the most growth through the opportunity to learn, practice, and develop skills over a 4 Week or 2 Week Session, and by doing so with added attention toward the fundamentals of a variety of activities they learn through.
At Camp Stewart, we utilize interpersonal and intrapersonal development in the construction of our campers’ experiences, whether through daily activities, evening events, or our Advancement Trail.
—-Daily Activities
Through 95 summers we have built our program through experience and adaptation with the goal to provide Camp Stewart campers the opportunity to excel at whatever their passion is no matter their skill level or age. Daily activities include horseback riding lessons, swim lessons, tennis lessons, pottery/ceramic lessons, archery lessons, riflery lessons, golf lessons, climbing and adventure lessons, and more.
We believe for our younger campers it is important to experience each one of our “skill-based, life-built” activities; those activities that will not only teach your camper technical skills (such as how to swim, how to ride a horse, how to shoot a bow), but will also teach them about perseverance, goal setting, handling failure, understanding teamwork and more. Therefore, we have our younger campers rotate through all of Camp Stewart’s main activities in order to give them a taste of each one and help them discover what they gravitate to most. The Camp Stewart staff teach our campers through a variety of engaging lessons so that they learn while having a blast; we like to call it “fun and gains” here at Camp Stewart!
For our older campers, they have the opportunity to specialize in different areas and activities that they choose, with the added responsibility of managing their schedule and goals personally. Their counselors will be there to help guide, direct, and mentor them, but they put the onus on the camper to plan and work towards their goals. We look to empower Camp Stewart campers to grow and learn from their decisions, and camp is a great and supportive place to do that, whether by their success or their failure.
—-Camp Events
With a focus on child development through skill-based learning in our activities, we don’t want our young men to miss out on the joy of just being a boy.
To help build a well-rounded young man, we incorporate and construct many fun and engaging daily and evening programs to connect campers to the program in other ways as well. Whether it’s giving their opinion and speaking in front of a group at Pow Wow, getting the courage to talk to a girl at a dance, having their face painted and eating cotton candy at Carnival, singing and dancing in the dining hall at lunch, or just getting dirty playing in the mud after some rain, we want our young men to learn and gain confidence and positive skills in a supportive environment of boy-based fun.
—-Advancement Trail
With an eye towards Camp Stewart’s Purpose and having campers experience all that Stewart has to offer, our directors developed a unique personal development program option for campers that focuses on helping push themselves internally to reach goals they never thought possible, all while developing hard and soft skills for their life.
Through seven age-appropriate ranks (Scout, Pathfinder, Hunter, Hunter-Warrior, Brave, Brave-Warrior, and Chief), Camp Stewart campers are challenged to complete various tasks and skill achievements that encompass a wide gamut of Camp Stewart daily life, with the added test of each rank’s requirements becoming increasingly more difficult to achieve.
Through the process, they develop discipline as they practice advancing their technical skills in certain activities (such as properly demonstrating a succession of forehands, backhands, and serves in tennis), social skills (such as preparing and giving a short public speech over the Thought of the Day), practical skills (such as how to give a proper handshake or how to make their bed), and emotional skills (such as how to handle failure or building their emotional self-awareness). When coupled with Camp Stewart’s overall Program, we feel the Advancement Trail gives campers a real advantage amongst their peers as it helps develop various personal skills that are often lacking in our culture today.
Our Property
At nearly 2000 feet of elevation, miles from the bulking cement structures and busy streets of big cities, you’ll find the cool river breezes and fresh air of Camp Stewart for Boys.
To some people, it might seem strange that we don’t install air conditioning in our cabins or that we seek to provide Camp Stewart campers time away in a technology-free environment, but it is intentional and integral to Camp Stewart’s Purpose. We believe that our campers gain the most growth by unplugging from those comforts and plugging into a simpler time when relationships mattered more than recharging their phone and exploring the outdoors was more comfortable than air conditioning and television.
When you travel through Camp Stewart’s facilities, you will notice an intentionally rustic quality; the cedar posts, the limestone exteriors, the screened-in buildings. These characteristics honor our history and location in the Texas Hill Country, but also provide campers the chance to step outside of their comfort zone and immerse themselves in a whole new environment. We believe that through this throwback to the past void of modern distractions that campers really begin to connect to each other as well as to the nature around them and experience positive internal growth.
They might go hiking together as a cabin and take in the beautiful views of rolling hills or catch a glimpse of a porcupine, whitetail deer, gray fox, or wild goat. Perhaps they will walk under a Texas live oak or along the banks of the Guadalupe River beside the towering bald cypress trees and catch perch, sunfish, or bass when throwing in a fishing line. Walking back to their cabin for bed they might even suddenly realize the millions of stars dotting the night sky in an environment void of light pollution. Exploring the ecosystem present here at camp and taking in all that it offers is a fantastic way to have a true taste of Texas and the outdoors.
Our People
While Camp Stewart’s Program and Property provide huge value toward our goals and what makes Camp Stewart unique, the most important tool we look to reach our Purpose with is through our People.
Our Camp Stewart directors carry within them a passion for hands-on, skill-based learning with leadership development benefits for a lifetime, and they desire to hire staff that can share that goal. They not only look for young men who can teach skills and who have similar passions to see children excel, but they ideally strive to seek out and bring in camp counselors who will also be positive role models to our campers.
Along with that, we look to help build the kind of young men that we personally want on our staff, and Camp Stewart directors encourage campers who have completed our Leadership Development program or who are attending college to return to camp and give back the positive experiences they gained through their summers at Stewart to the next generation. It is important for us that Camp Stewart campers share in the process of building our Program through giving back as counselors, and we love having them continue on their camping legacy on our staff.
We at Camp Stewart believe that our People make the biggest impact in our Program and on our Property, and we understand the responsibility of hiring quality role models for our campers. When researching a camp for your child, it is important that you discuss the hiring process with its directors and the safety precautions and selection process they use. It is very important to us, and we encourage you to call our office and speak with a director to learn more about Camp Stewart’s approach to hiring staff and what we do.
Testimonials
- Jennifer P.
“In one summer, Camp Stewart changed my son’s life – he came home a confident young man who had, literally, the best month of his life in his 12 years. I hope I am a great parent, but being at camp with wonderful young men as role models, the beautiful hill country, the completely unplugged, wholesome atmosphere, it’s just not something I can provide for him. Life is different now with competitive sports, high achieving academic pressures, and electronics as a way of life, and yet Camp Stewart is like a step back in time where boys can literally, just be boys. Get dirty, eat great food, and just have fun with other boys. I love the traditional uniforms – it just immediately creates a shared experience and “fitting in” to something special. Both my boys are there now for the June term. This is an investment in their lives and development and a reminder to them that life can be just about you, doing what you love, friendships and the outdoors. Thank you Stewart!” - Edward R.
“Our son had a bad experience at the first camp we sent him to. It took a couple of years for him to be ready to try another one. So when he went to Camp Stewart last summer we were nervous, to say the least…. but when we went to pick up our boy, we were pleasantly surprised to hear he didn’t want to leave! Amazing location and facilities, but the PEOPLE make this place so incredible! So happy he went and so excited for this summer. Glad to see they let our boys know it’s ok to still be boys but also being taught to become a man. Thank you, Camp Stewart! You’ve done more for us than you know.” - Barret B.
“My times at Camp Stewart were amazing. From a camper to a counselor I loved every second of it. The relationships I forged there followed me to college, business, and on trips around the world. From traveling to New Zealand to spend time with friends I made at camp, to running into fellow Camp Stewart alumni while studying abroad in Spain, camp is a diverse global experience hidden in the Texas Hill Country. Camp is one of the best gifts my parents ever sent me.” - Tristan H.
“I was a 5-year camper and counselor for 1 year. Attending Camp Stewart was such a formative experience in many ways. Not only was it a place of many firsts, whether it was archery, dunking my first basketball or horsemanship, it was also a place where I developed my soft skills: Leadership, team building and so on. I do not know yet whether I’ll return as a counselor for one or more summers, but one thing is for sure; if I ever have a son, I’d send him to Stewart in a heartbeat.” - Cassie G.
“Camp Stewart is one of the best things that has ever happened for my son. The people there are amazing. I never thought I would be comfortable not seeing my son for 4 weeks so far away until this camp.” - Grady D.
“Camp Stewart is like a second home! I can’t say enough good things about my experiences, memories, and how much I grew as a person while I was there. The Ragsdale family has been instrumental in so many facets of my life and I’m extremely grateful for their continued love and support. I would highly recommend Camp Stewart to any young man and his family!” - Heather B.
“Just picked up my 6 yr old. He was there for 2 weeks. He had the best time! His confidence has grown, and he tried things he may not have ever had the opportunity to try in regular life. Absolutely the best thing ever for him! He informed us about 5 min after getting there that he IS coming back next summer for a month. Thank you Camp Stewart for taking care of and loving my kiddo! See you soon!”
Learn More
Do you feel like Camp Stewart is the perfect fit for your son but have some questions first? Call and speak to a director today and we’ll be happy to connect with you and help you through your camp selection process.
We also provide personal tours year-round and would encourage you to travel down to the Texas Hill Country and take in camp for yourself.
Please call our camp office at (830) 238-4670, visit CampStewart.com, or email contact@campstewart.com for more information or to schedule a video call or camp tour.
Need a Girl’s Camp Too
Are you looking for a camp to send your boy’s sibling or relative to? Check out Camp Heart O’ the Hills for Girls. Heart O’ the Hills is our Sister Camp and they focus on the same overall development through traditional youth camping that we do.
Find out more at www.HOHCamp.com or contact Jane Ragsdale at Jane@HOHCamp.com or (830) 238-4650
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