Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center, 2239 Camp Roosevelt Rd, Fort Valley, VA 22652
About
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center offers outdoor, experiential education, worship, recreation, retreats, summer camp, and outdoor day-use activities. The program includes outdoor activities that emphasize the development of relationships in a simple environment that is disconnected from the distractions of technology and the world. It operates as a year-round retreat center with facilities, programs, and staff, and includes eight weeks of summer camp.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Eight weeks of summer camp
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center states that its mission is to provide unforgettable faith, education, and renewal experiences in God's creation for all God's people, encouraging spiritual renewal for the whole person by providing encounter with Scripture, experience of the environment, witness of staff, and opportunities for worship, recreation, and development of relationships. It works in support of and in partnership with parish ministries, encouraging continued growth in Christian faith and enabling people of all ages and needs to live lives of prayer, praise, thanksgiving, and service. The program describes itself as a Christ-centered community based on Lutheran theology while welcoming those of any belief and no belief, with an explicit emphasis on diversity, inclusion, and accessibility, and a commitment to anti-racism, social and economic justice, and environmental care.
The camp operates as a year-round retreat center with an activity building called Marston that includes original twin chimneys from the furnace era, St. John’s Chapel on the property, and a 1740’s era log cabin relocated to the site. The property includes the ruins of a Civil War era pig iron furnace, which is one of 50 charcoal furnaces in Virginia and is believed to have been built in 1835. The organization notes evidence of earlier settlements and a rich history connected to Native Americans, Colonial Settlement, the Revolutionary War, and the Civil War, and it offers a land acknowledgment of Eastern Siouan-speaking ancestors of the Monacan and Manahoac, Iroquoian-speaking ancestors of the Page Culture and the Tuscarora, and Algonquian-speaking ancestors of the Keyser Culture. St. John’s Chapel, from an early Lutheran congregation dating to around or before 1796, was relocated to the property, and the camp began life as a Summer Camp and Retreat Center when a 394 acre tract was purchased by the Virginia Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center has been serving communities since 1957, with camping and retreats that began by Lutheran families in Fort Valley starting in 1949, and its first year of summer camping was 1959. St. John’s Chapel came to the property in 1997, and the 1740’s era log cabin was relocated there in 1994. The organization reports that over 55 Caroline Furnace summer staff alumni are rostered leaders or currently in seminary, and that nearly 70% of ELCA seminarians, especially those going directly from college to seminary, list church camp as a major influence on their decision to go to seminary. It highlights a focus on the power of small groups and the life-changing potential of summer camp.
The camp is open for outdoor activities (day use) with advance booking by phone. It describes sustainability practices that include waste reduction, property and facility improvements, and “unlittering,” with goals for composting, limiting single-use plastics, group recycling and education, local sourcing of foods and camp store items, and improved energy efficiency. Long-range goals include pollinator gardens, foodscaping, and a large garden by the Farmhouse.
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center states that it works with ecumenical partners year-round, stands with local ecumenical partners, community organizations, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), aims to be a resource to the community, and serves other units of the church and works cooperatively with them in providing services. The leadership team includes Tom Powell, Executive Director; Monica Springman, Director of Programs; Melody Stachour, Director of Communications, Outreach, and Guest Services; Lee Ann Powell, Director of Food Service Operations; and Bryan Hepner, Director of Facilities & Maintenance.
Last updated January 19, 2026.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Eight weeks of summer camp
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center states that its mission is to provide unforgettable faith, education, and renewal experiences in God's creation for all God's people, encouraging spiritual renewal for the whole person by providing encounter with Scripture, experience of the environment, witness of staff, and opportunities for worship, recreation, and development of relationships. It works in support of and in partnership with parish ministries, encouraging continued growth in Christian faith and enabling people of all ages and needs to live lives of prayer, praise, thanksgiving, and service. The program describes itself as a Christ-centered community based on Lutheran theology while welcoming those of any belief and no belief, with an explicit emphasis on diversity, inclusion, and accessibility, and a commitment to anti-racism, social and economic justice, and environmental care.
The camp operates as a year-round retreat center with an activity building called Marston that includes original twin chimneys from the furnace era, St. John’s Chapel on the property, and a 1740’s era log cabin relocated to the site. The property includes the ruins of a Civil War era pig iron furnace, which is one of 50 charcoal furnaces in Virginia and is believed to have been built in 1835. The organization notes evidence of earlier settlements and a rich history connected to Native Americans, Colonial Settlement, the Revolutionary War, and the Civil War, and it offers a land acknowledgment of Eastern Siouan-speaking ancestors of the Monacan and Manahoac, Iroquoian-speaking ancestors of the Page Culture and the Tuscarora, and Algonquian-speaking ancestors of the Keyser Culture. St. John’s Chapel, from an early Lutheran congregation dating to around or before 1796, was relocated to the property, and the camp began life as a Summer Camp and Retreat Center when a 394 acre tract was purchased by the Virginia Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center has been serving communities since 1957, with camping and retreats that began by Lutheran families in Fort Valley starting in 1949, and its first year of summer camping was 1959. St. John’s Chapel came to the property in 1997, and the 1740’s era log cabin was relocated there in 1994. The organization reports that over 55 Caroline Furnace summer staff alumni are rostered leaders or currently in seminary, and that nearly 70% of ELCA seminarians, especially those going directly from college to seminary, list church camp as a major influence on their decision to go to seminary. It highlights a focus on the power of small groups and the life-changing potential of summer camp.
The camp is open for outdoor activities (day use) with advance booking by phone. It describes sustainability practices that include waste reduction, property and facility improvements, and “unlittering,” with goals for composting, limiting single-use plastics, group recycling and education, local sourcing of foods and camp store items, and improved energy efficiency. Long-range goals include pollinator gardens, foodscaping, and a large garden by the Farmhouse.
Caroline Furnace Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center states that it works with ecumenical partners year-round, stands with local ecumenical partners, community organizations, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), aims to be a resource to the community, and serves other units of the church and works cooperatively with them in providing services. The leadership team includes Tom Powell, Executive Director; Monica Springman, Director of Programs; Melody Stachour, Director of Communications, Outreach, and Guest Services; Lee Ann Powell, Director of Food Service Operations; and Bryan Hepner, Director of Facilities & Maintenance.
Last updated January 19, 2026.
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