BYG - Building Youth Groups for grades 3-5
 and introducing our newest program addition!
 BYG-ER - Building Youth Groups for grades 6-8
(Jump to BYG event information)                 (Jump to BYG-ER event information)

BYG is one of the fastest growing approaches to youth ministry.

THE PROBLEM--when children are old enough for the traditional youth group, they are already committed to other activities and your church has only one half, one third, or maybe only one quarter of the potential children attending regularly.

OUR SOLUTION--make the church a solid, fun option before all the middle school choices bombard your children.

BYG seeks to do build a sense of group unity in your 3rd-5th graders*.  A BYG weekend or summer week is designed to be a focus event for your group, including group leaders from your congregation.  The weekend or summer experience is taken with you when you return, bringing with it an energy and focus that can be drawn upon as your church programs for this age group take shape.

* If your church already has a group started that includes a different age span, we can usually accommodate for different ages--3rd-5th grade is just our suggestion.

Our intensively trained staff act as cabin counselors and facilitate the group-building process that takes place at these events.  Everyone is housed in our comfortable facilities, including carpeting, AC/heat, and low camper-to-bathroom ratio.
Also, it isn't unusual to hear something like, "THIS is camp food?--I eat better here than at home." (and that's the adults talking).

Most BYG weekends see several churches bringing their 3rd-5th graders.  There is an hour set aside on Saturday and a half hour on Sunday for each church group to gather separately with their leaders for an activity all their own to help build group unity.  If your church has a large number of children in this age group, you might want to consider working with us to schedule a BYG weekend for just your group.

Between 2000 and 2005 we averaged one spring BYG weekend, one summer BYG week, and one spring BYG weekend each year.  The word has spread! In 2009 we have 8 BYG and two BYG-ER weekends scheduled!!!

BYG Opportunities at Camp Agapé...
 (please contact Alissa for current pricing information)

BYG 2010 Spring Weekends:
   February 19-21
   March 5-7
   April 16-18

BYG 2010 Summer Week:
   August 8 - 13

BYG 2010 Fall Weekends:
   September 24-26
   October 1-3
   October 15-17
   November 19-21

Click here for a  2010 WEEKEND BYG group registration form.

Click here for a BYG Weekend Post Registration Packet
Includes Camper Profiles, Health Forms, Info on what to bring, etc.

Click here for a BYG Summer Week Registration Packet
Includes Camper Profiles, Health Forms, Info on what to bring, etc.

To view and print these forms you must have
 Adobe Acrobat Reader 6.0 installed on your system.
To download a copy, click the picture to the right
and follow the directions on the Adobe web site.

BYG-ER: A BYG program for 6th-8th graders! 
 

Over the past several years, the congregation-based BYG (Building Youth Groups) program for 3rd-5th graders has exploded!  Since the first BYG retreat in October 2003, over 610 campers and adults have enjoyed a weekend playing in the woods while bonding with their youth groups. Youth directors and parents have been so excited about BYG that they are asking, what about our 6th-8th graders?  Not to mention those campers who have aged out of the BYG program are asking when they can come back for another retreat. 

 

We’ve heard your requests and are pleased and excited to announce that Camp Agape is now thinking even BYG-ER!  A progression up from the BYG retreats with 3rd-5th graders, the BYG-ER retreats will help build youth groups even more with the 6th-8th graders.  We’ll have all of the fun of a BYG retreat with a few special additions.  We’ll work through an event or two on Agape’s low ropes course and discuss what we’ve learned from that experience.  Get ready to grow your bonds with your youth group even BYG-ER as we play in the woods Middle school style! 

 
BYG-ER Opportunities at Camp Agapé...

BYG-ER Weekends: (numbers updated 7/29/2009)

Spring 2010:

  January 29-31 - FULL

  March 19-21 - 10 spots available

  

To register for a BYG-ER weekend, complete the registration form and send it in with your deposit money.  Call the office for the most up-to-date spacing available. 

 

Click here for a Spring 2010 WEEKEND BYG-ER group registration form.

 

Click here for a 2010 Post Registration Packet
Includes Camper Profiles, Health Forms, Info on what to bring, etc.