Camp Hope is a "summer camp" where teens travel to Western Maryland for a week to fix up houses for elderly, disabled and low-income homeowners. Camp Hope is hosted by Frostburg United Methodist Church. The program, which began in 1977, consists of four consecutive, one-week sessions. UMC Savage usually attends the last session which usually occurs in the first week of August. During each session, youth groups from five to eight churches throughout the mid-Atlantic participate. Campers stay in Frostburg State University dorms. Local churches host dinner each night.
Campers typically work from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Once they are done with the day’s work, campers get a chance to participate in activities like volleyball, Frisbee, capture the flag and Bible study. On Wednesdays, participants have the option of working for only half a day. They can spend the rest of the day having fun at Rocky Gap State Park. On Friday nights, the day before the campers leave, homeowners are invited to come to dinner and a small communion service. Afterwards, there is a slide show presentation, so the participants and homeowners can see all the projects that were completed during the week.
Pictures of previous years at Camp Hope can be found here.