Camp Camby offers housing, job training for families experiencing homelessness

CAMBY, Ind. (WISH) — A former church camp is now being used to help families experiencing homelessness. 

The organization running the camp says they could use some help to house more families. 

The camp is in Camby and is called Camp Camby. It’s run by a non-profit called Active Grace.

Active Grace opened the 41 acre camp last summer and then opened a food, clothing and sanitation pantry. 

Then the camp started bringing in homeless families that they met while in the community or received referrals for from other organizations and churches. 

There are about 25 families living there now. The families can stay one to two years, ideally. 

There’s a motel they are using as apartments, and cabins that are also housing families. 

They’d like to tear some of those down and build new ones, and are looking for sponsors for that. 

The camp also offers job training, teaching the people who live there skills in transportation, technology, food service and housekeeping. 

“Anything we can help them with a skill and we feel like that’s a great thing we can offer here at the camp and hopefully give them a hand up instead of hand out,” said Ryan Chapman, one of the people who runs the camp.

“It’s been very rewarding, obviously there’s ups and downs and there’s success stories and occasionally we have stories that we’re not so proud of, but it’s, God is good and it’s neat to see his hand in this,” said Amber Chapman. 

If you’d like to help the camp, either through volunteering or donations, click here.