Clubs & Camps
Beyond the school day, Boxerwood creates additional opportunities for kids to learn, grow, play, and thrive.
Our camps and clubs take place at Boxerwood, in schoolyards, and in natural locations across our county.
Camps
2026 Boxerwood Camps
Boxerwood day camps accommodate up to 30 young children per summer session, with plenty of delights, discoveries, and playtime in the Woodland Garden. Led by staff educators, our theme-based camps foster love of nature while also nurturing kindness and community-building.
Camps run Monday - Friday, 8:30 am – 1:00 pm, with two sessions in June and another the first week in August.
Camps fill quickly on a first-come, first-served basis. Camp fee is $250 per session, with all proceeds supporting Boxerwood's work. Need-based scholarships available.
Below are the three sessions we're pleased to offer for summer 2026. Registration for these camps as well as limited Junior Counselor positions (rising gr. 6 and up) opens February 2. Check back here for the registration link.
Earth Friends: June 1 - 5, 2026 ~ PreK 4 & 5 year olds
Description: All living creatures need one another: what can we discover about living together? In small counselor-led groups we will meet some of our special friends who call Boxerwood home. We will deepen our understanding of what it is like to be these other beings through movement, art-making, observation, story and song. With our new knowledge we’ll be ready to work together to befriend all life. (max 20 campers).
Talent Scouts: June 8 - 12, 2026 ~ Rising 1st - rising 3rd graders
Description: Exploring the woodland garden in small, counselor-led groups, we will get to know other marvelous creatures who live here too. We’ll use art, song, puzzles, science, creative movement and play to discover how these species use special gifts and talents to thrive together. Befriending this more-than-human community, we’ll also deepen the appreciation for the gifts all of us bring to this world. (max 30 campers)
Underworld Explorers: August 3 - 7, 2026 ~ PreK 4 year olds - rising 3rd graders
CAMP IS FULL AND NO LONGER ACCEPTING A WAIT LIST
Description: Who lives beneath our feet in the quiet and the dark? Through games, storytelling, observation, and art, we’ll discover this unseen and mysterious world, home to worms and moles, fungi and transformational insects. In small, counselor-led groups we’ll explore how these creatures have adapted to thrive underground. We’ll also construct tunnels and forts to simulate life underground, plus more cool stuff. (max 30 campers)
Junior Counselor Program: Any of the 3 camp sessions above - Rising 6th graders and up
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
Youth who are rising 6th graders or older are invited to apply to participate in camp through our Junior Counselor program. Junior Counselors serve for one camp week and assist adult leaders as extra eyes and hands during camp activities. They are an integral part of modeling stewardship values and fostering our camp community. Junior Counselor positions are limited and regrettably we may not be able to offer positions to all fine candidates. Reduced camp fee: $150, financial need scholarships available.
Partner Camps
As the local go-to outdoor provider, Boxerwood helps other partners achieve their summer dreams too. In recent years we’ve facilitated both single and/or multi-day programs with our friends from the Rockbridge YMCA, Programa SOL, and three public schools. We’ve based our adventures at Boxerwood, at Goshen Pass, Jordan’s Point, Natural Bridge State Park, Glen Maury Park, and Lake Robertson too. Working with these partners enables us to deepen our relationships with many children we also meet through Project NEST.
Clubs
Bay Club
Each year Boxerwood facilitates a once-in-a-lifetime adventure for 30 local 7th graders and their teachers. The students travel to an island environmental education center run by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF), then spend 3 days and 2 nights exploring the natural and cultural history of this unique ecosystem. Back home, the Club pays it forward with tree planting.
BEST, DREAMS, and YAS
For over a decade, Boxerwood has provided nature-based clubs for several high-need schools participating in a federally-funded afterschool program. Earth Yoga, Winter Birds, Storm Chasers, Tree Heroes, Eco-Puppets, Nature Photography, Map Makers – the list goes on! We provide family events and summer camps too. Thank you to Enderly Heights Elementary School (BEST), Maury River Middle School (YAS), Natural Bridge Elementary School (DREAMS) for wonderful times together.
EarthKeepers
This program brings together kids from two middle schools in shared enthusiasm for the outdoors. Convening at Maury River Middle School, the EarthKeepers trek to nearby Barger Pond for weekly adventures and stewardship actions. With Boxerwood educators as mentors, the youths build friendships with the Earth and one another.
Envirothon
Envirothon is a state and national competition in which teams of high school students demonstrate their environmental know-how and skill. For the past five years Boxerwood educators have recruited and coached our local team each spring. Thank you to the Natural Bridge Soil & Conservation District, the Rockbridge Envirothon sponsor.
