About
Virginia 4-H Camping offers both residential and day 4-H camping programs that provide educational programming to thousands of youth annually through hands-on, experiential learning. Each 4-H camp is an independent educational event, and in Virginia there are four basic types of 4-H camps: Residential 4-H camps, Special interest 4-H camps, Day 4-H camps, and Cloverbud 4-H camps.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Residential 4-H camps are overnight programs that generally run from two to five days, and most last for five days with campers staying overnight for four nights.
For more than 80 years, Virginia 4-H camping has been a method of teaching youth life skills and has a history of providing educational programming to thousands of youth annually through hands-on, experiential learning. Cloverbud 4-H camps are programming events for youth 5–8 years of age, and youth must meet the minimum age of 5 between October 1 and September 30 of the following year and must not be older than the maximum age for Cloverbud 4-H camps. For residential Junior 4-H camps at the 4-H educational center in a youth’s geographic area, youth must turn 9 between October 1 and September 30 of the following year and must not have reached 14 years of age. Opportunities are available for teens 14 to 18 years of age to be trained and gain experience as 4-H camp counselors. 4-H camp is open to any youth in Virginia, and youth do not have to be 4-H members to attend 4-H camps; they will be given the opportunity to join. Each year more than 17,000 youth participate in 4-H camping programs at Virginia’s six 4-H educational centers.
Each 4-H center program staff person, as well as the adult and teen 4-H volunteers who participate in camp, are carefully selected and trained prior to the camping event, and each volunteer is carefully screened and provided with training before being able to serve as a volunteer at 4-H camp. Virginia’s 4-H camping program is recognized throughout the nation as a leader in 4-H camping programs. Each of the six Virginia 4-H Educational Centers has achieved and maintains American Camp Association (ACA) accreditation, and only about 25 percent of all camps in the nation are accredited by the ACA. Having ACA accreditation means that the camp meets standards for safety, food service and staffing, health care, and program quality, and each 4-H Educational Center maintains these standards annually, with all 300 standards reviewed every three years for reaccreditation. Virginia Cooperative Extension, which oversees Virginia 4-H camping, is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and local governments.
Sandra “Sam” Fisher serves as the State 4-H Office contact for Virginia 4-H Camping (email: [email protected]). Leadership at the 4-H educational centers includes: at the Northern Virginia 4-H Educational Center, Katie Tennant, Program Director, and Jeannette Reynolds, Center Director, along with Abbie Moore, Program Director; at Holiday Lake 4-H Educational Center, Heather Benninghove, Center Director, and Levi Callahan, Program Director; at Jamestown 4-H Educational Center, Sue Williams, Center Director, and Adam Parker, Program Director; at W. E. Skelton 4-H Educational Center, Nina Brooks, Center Director, and Rayna Wheeler, Program Director. At Airfield 4-H Educational Center, the Center Director and Program Director positions are vacant, and families are directed to contact Sam Fisher (email: [email protected]).
Last updated July 19, 2026.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Residential 4-H camps are overnight programs that generally run from two to five days, and most last for five days with campers staying overnight for four nights.
For more than 80 years, Virginia 4-H camping has been a method of teaching youth life skills and has a history of providing educational programming to thousands of youth annually through hands-on, experiential learning. Cloverbud 4-H camps are programming events for youth 5–8 years of age, and youth must meet the minimum age of 5 between October 1 and September 30 of the following year and must not be older than the maximum age for Cloverbud 4-H camps. For residential Junior 4-H camps at the 4-H educational center in a youth’s geographic area, youth must turn 9 between October 1 and September 30 of the following year and must not have reached 14 years of age. Opportunities are available for teens 14 to 18 years of age to be trained and gain experience as 4-H camp counselors. 4-H camp is open to any youth in Virginia, and youth do not have to be 4-H members to attend 4-H camps; they will be given the opportunity to join. Each year more than 17,000 youth participate in 4-H camping programs at Virginia’s six 4-H educational centers.
Each 4-H center program staff person, as well as the adult and teen 4-H volunteers who participate in camp, are carefully selected and trained prior to the camping event, and each volunteer is carefully screened and provided with training before being able to serve as a volunteer at 4-H camp. Virginia’s 4-H camping program is recognized throughout the nation as a leader in 4-H camping programs. Each of the six Virginia 4-H Educational Centers has achieved and maintains American Camp Association (ACA) accreditation, and only about 25 percent of all camps in the nation are accredited by the ACA. Having ACA accreditation means that the camp meets standards for safety, food service and staffing, health care, and program quality, and each 4-H Educational Center maintains these standards annually, with all 300 standards reviewed every three years for reaccreditation. Virginia Cooperative Extension, which oversees Virginia 4-H camping, is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and local governments.
Sandra “Sam” Fisher serves as the State 4-H Office contact for Virginia 4-H Camping (email: [email protected]). Leadership at the 4-H educational centers includes: at the Northern Virginia 4-H Educational Center, Katie Tennant, Program Director, and Jeannette Reynolds, Center Director, along with Abbie Moore, Program Director; at Holiday Lake 4-H Educational Center, Heather Benninghove, Center Director, and Levi Callahan, Program Director; at Jamestown 4-H Educational Center, Sue Williams, Center Director, and Adam Parker, Program Director; at W. E. Skelton 4-H Educational Center, Nina Brooks, Center Director, and Rayna Wheeler, Program Director. At Airfield 4-H Educational Center, the Center Director and Program Director positions are vacant, and families are directed to contact Sam Fisher (email: [email protected]).
Last updated July 19, 2026.
Is this your business? There is no cost, but you will be asked to sign up or log in.