What is Camp Quest? 

The purpose of Camp Quest is to provide children of freethinking parents a residential summer camp dedicated to improving the human condition through rational inquiry, critical and creative thinking, scientific method, self-respect, ethics, competency, democracy, free speech, and the separation of religion and government guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States. 

Camp Quest was first held in 1996.  The idea for the project originated with Edwin Kagin. From 1996 until 2002 Camp Quest was operated by the Free Inquiry Group, Inc. (FIG) of Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.  Since that time it has been operated by Camp Quest, Inc., an independent 501(c)(3) educational non-profit.  Edwin and Helen Kagin served as Camp Directors for the first ten years of the original Camp Quest, retiring at the end of the 2005 camp session.  Eight Camp Quest summer camps currently offer programs across North America. Camp Quest, Inc. operates the Ohio Camp Quest, and works to coordinate with and support the other independently governed Camp Quest programs 

Camp Quest is the first residential summer camp in the history of the United States for the children of Atheists, Freethinkers, Humanists, Brights, or whatever other terms might be applied to those who hold to a naturalistic, not supernatural world view.

Are campers at Camp Quest required to be atheists? 

No.  Campers at Camp Quest are encouraged to think for themselves and are not required to hold any particular view.  While we do emphasize critical and scientific thinking over faith, we also try to convey an objective understanding of the role of religion in society.  We also try to show how non-believers may cope and grow in a culture dominated by religion. 

When is Camp Quest of Michigan held this year?

 Our 2012 session will be held July 22 – 28

Where is Camp Quest of Michigan held? 

We are hosted by the wonderful folks at 4-H Camp Kidwell in Bloomingdale, Michigan. It is located between Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids near Allegan. This camp ground has a waterfront for swimming and canoeing, nature trails, activity center, playing fields, among many other amenities.  Campers also do ground initiatives and a high-ropes course.  A long term goal is to acquire land and establish a permanent home for Camp Quest. Contributions are sought and welcomed.

What ages of children are eligible for Camp Quest? 

Children ages 8 to 17 are welcome at Camp Quest.

How many kids generally attend?  What are their age brackets? What about boys vs. girls?

 Attendance last year was 35 campers – our campsite has a capacity of about 50 campers plus staff.  There is usually about a 2:1 ratio of girls to boys.

There are other Camp Quests that use the name with permission, are also focused around skepticism of the supernatural and have a very similar program to Camp Quest Classic.  For information about the dates and activities of the other Camp Quest locations please check out their websites listed below:

    *          Camp Quest of the Smoky Mountains

    *          Camp Quest West (California - Sacramento & Los Angeles areas)

    *          Camp Quest Minnesota

    *          Camp Quest Ontario

    *          Camp Quest Ohio

    *          Camp Quest Texas

    *          Camp Quest UK (Three sessions, three locations!)

    *          Camp Quest Chesapeake (Virginia) 

    *          Ireland

    *          Norway

    *          Montana

    *          South Carolina

    *          New England (Connecticut)

    *          Northwest (Washington) (TBA)

    *          Arizona

    *          Oklahoma

Is financial assistance available?

 We never want financial concerns to prevent a child from attending Camp Quest. We are very happy to work with parents to find a rate that is within their reach for their children. Every year, several campers have had either full or partial camperships. If the cost of camp is holding you back from registering, please let us know. We are happy to work with you discreetly.

What are the daily activities?

 The campers are given activities such as archery, astronomy, aviation, biology, campfires, canoeing, challenges, chess, computers, cooking, crafts (binders, drawing, bracelets, paper making, woodworking), creative writing, dancing, field trips, fossils, high ropes courses, horseback riding, nature center, outdoor camping skills, overnight campout, photography, ropes challenge, scientific method and critical thinking, singing, song writing, sports (basketball, volleyball, soccer), storytelling, swimming, theatre, tie dying, trolley walk & other cooperative games, tug of war, wall climbing, water balloon / sponge fights.  You might also want to check out the pictures on our web site to get a visual feel for the experience.

 There are some other important activities that we do every day but only take a few minutes at a time.  After every other meal we do "famous freethinkers" where a counselor gets up and talks about two or three famous people (either living or dead) that were or are atheist/agnostic/humanist/skeptic/freethinking.  Examples include Lance Armstrong, Isaac Asimov, Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, Ted Turner and Alice Walker.  At meals where we don't do that, we may cover world religions/philosophies.

Similarly, since most of our campers are raised in non-religious households, we offer objective discussions about religious beliefs.   We feel it’s important to understand the views of others from a cultural standpoint.  The lessons, while fun and aimed at kids, are academic and have a focus on tolerance and understanding.  These are not "this is what is wrong with what these people think" sessions--that said, we do occasionally use examples from religions when talking about errors in critical thinking.

 Who are the counselors and how are they chosen?

Despite the fact that we have an all volunteer staff, we have a wonderful group of returning counselors. Each year, we have staff members from a variety of backgrounds including airline pilot,  physician, engineer, firefighter, attorney, and  graduate students.

We have a staff application form on our web site and anyone is allowed to apply. Because we have so many excellent returning staff, we typically only accept one or two new staff members a year. We have accepted parents as counselors in the past, but we're very reluctant to do so. We feel campers get a lot more out of the experience if mom and dad are not at camp.

Do you do criminal background checks on staff?

 Yes!  The State of Michigan has strict requirements on obtaining criminal background checks.  We exceed State requirements by conducting checks on all staff (new and returning) every year.

Can I contact some campers' parents or campers themselves from past years?

 Yes!  Please send us an e-mail saying you'd like to contact some past campers or parents.

I want to help, what can I do?

There are two main ways to help out Camp Quest.  The first is to donate.  Donation money goes to help provide full or partial camperships to children who want to attend Camp Quest but need some financial assistance.

You can donate to the Helen Kagin Memorial Campership Fund by mailing a check to Camp Quest, Inc.; P.O. Box 2552; Columbus, OH 43216 and writing "Kagin Fund" in the memo.

The second way to help is to volunteer.  At Camp Quest we have a fairly full slate of returning volunteer counselors, but it doesn't hurt to fill out a staff application to see if we might have need of your particular skills at a later session.  The other Camp Quests located in other parts of the country may also need volunteer help.  You can get to their websites by going to their websites.  Contact them directly if you want to volunteer at any of the Camp Quests other than the Michigan camp..

I want to contact someone about including Camp Quest in a media piece or publication that I am working on.  Whom should I contact? 

Please email ohio@camp-quest.org if you are seeking information about Camp Quest for media or publication purposes.  If you are seeking information about all of the Camp Quest programs, please email camp@camp-quest.org.  Amanda Metskas, the Executive Director of Camp Quest Inc., would be happy to talk with you, or put you in touch with others who can give you the information you are looking for.

more to come . . . .