Want to bring your church’s families to the Minnesota northwoods for a week of outdoor activities, fellowship and worship?
Consider planning a Family Camp like one Twin Cities church did in August 2025.
We’ll tell you what their week looked like to get an idea of what’s possible. Then you can come up with your own ideas of how it can look for your church community.
Way of the Lord Church (WOTL) in Blaine, Minnesota has been familiar with Okontoe for decades. It’s a small congregation with a strong emphasis on community. It also has a lot of families with young children.
So one of their leadership team, Sam, decided to plan a Family Camp based at Okontoe. It was a way to further deepen their community while providing many ways to take advantage of our facilities and local area.
Sam and his leadership team planned everything: lodging, meals and activities. Our staff hosted them and joined in when we were invited, which we really enjoyed.
The Logistics of Cabins and Campsites
The number of cabins and campsite your Family Camp uses depends on the size of your church and how many families will come.
In total, WOTL had about 80 people come, half of them children 12-and-under, to be part of the camp for varying lengths of time.
Some could only come for the weekend, some for a few days and about a third for the entire week.
Sam reserved the Retreat Center (RC) with its four cabins and the Dining Hall, as well as Red Cedar Cabin and White Pine Cabin. He assigned those cabins to specific couples and families he knew would need them to accommodate specific needs.
Then he had individual families reserve their own campsites.
This combo of Sam doing some of the planning while requiring families, couples and singles to take responsibility for their end of things proved to work very well
Meals
The WOTL crew had two community meals together at the RC: an evening barbecue and potluck early in the week, and a pancake breakfast at the end of the week.
Other than those two meals, each family unit was responsible for their own meals and snacks.
This worked really well for several reasons:
- Everyone could eat what they wanted according to their own dietary preferences and needs
- Everyone could eat according to their own schedules and around their chosen activities
- Community meals take extra prep and cleanup time, so the number of these was limited to leave more time for activities
All our cabins have kitchens in them with cookwear, dishes, fridges and gas stoves. This makes it easy for meal planning and prep.
Our campsites have firepits and picnic tables. Most campers have their own stoves and cookwear, whether they have a tent or RV.
For those who needed access, the Dining Hall kitchen was open to campers throughout the week as well since it was rented as part of the package.
Local and In-Camp Activities
The list of possible activities right in camp and in our local area is long and varied.
Here’s what the WOTL crew opted for:
- One group of 8 did an overnight Boundary Waters canoe trip. Sam got the permit well in advance and rented gear from a local outfitter.
- Two day canoe trips to Rose Falls: one day for dads and their sons, a second day for moms and their daughters. This left either dads or moms in camp to watch over the younger children. They rented from Hungry Jack Outfitters.
- Local hikes—One group hiked the Honeymoon Bluff trail one day, with other possibilities available, too.
- Hike the Bow Lake Trail—accessed via the forest service road on the south end of Camp. A whole passel of parents and kids even hiked it in light rain!
- Family games—Sam planned several fun family games for Sunday afternoon, all held outside at the RC.
- The swimming beach was available all week for parent-supervised swimming.
- Canoes and kayaks were available all week for parent-supervised paddling at the three lakes around Okontoe. Sam had assigned one of the dads (a former YMCA camp director) to hold a paddling-skills session early in the week.
- Fishing on shore or from canoes throughout the week on Bow, Quiver or Shoko Lakes.
- There was also plenty of relaxing and chatting among families and individuals all week long, and with Okontoe staff.
- Campfires—The WOTL crew joined the Community Campfire on Saturday evening. They also held their own campfires several evenings at their various campsites.
- Night games for adventurous adults and older kids.
As you can see, there’s plenty to do around here to easily fill up a week-long Family Camp!
Daily Devotionals
Sam also planned morning and evening devotional times for those who wanted to take part. He and his planning team had chosen a theme for the week, so those who shared had that in mind.
They held the mornings devos in the Dining Hall at the RC and the evening devos in the Chapel.
Because of all the children, these had to be short and sweet, geared towards engaging the young ones.
One night was especially meaningful, as the two dads assigned to that evening asked everyone to split up into small groups and pray for each other.
Most of the children were fully engaged in these prayers, as well as the older ones and parents, because this is part of WOTL’s church culture.
Devotional times like these can, of course, be tailored towards your own church culture.
Baptisms in Bow Lake
We’ve lost count of how many people have been baptized at the Bow Lake swimming beach over our 50+ year history.
The WOTL crew decided to include that option in their Family Camp as well.
Several of the children made the decision to be baptized, which was a meaningful experience for the whole community.
How the Planning Spread Out the Responsibility
Sam asked a few other adults from WOTL to be part of the planning team for their Family Camp. This helped spread out the responsibilities by assigning leadership for each activity so the load wasn’t just on him.
While this needed to stay fluid during the week, it worked out pretty well for them overall.
Plan for Weather and Bugs
As you think about planning your own church’s Family Camp, two of the biggest uncontrollable factors to keep in mind are the weather and the bugs.
We wouldn’t plan one of these in June, which is typically the worst of bug season!
Generally, the further into the summer we get, the fewer bugs we have. Of course, this varies year by year with how much rain we get, overnight temperatures and other factors.
The weather can also vary greatly, even during the course of a week. We always recommend you keep a close eye on the forecast before coming up and have your families plan footwear and apparel accordingly.
For our area, we like AccuWeather the best to get a pretty good forecast for our area. We can be very different from Grand Marais, so we set our location at West Cook UT.
This Family Camp was a Success
From both our point of view and Way of the Lord’s, their Family Camp was a success!
Sam wrote this:
“On behalf of our entire church group, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you for the absolutely fantastic time we had at the Okontoe Family Campout!
“The campground offered the perfect combination of cozy cabins, spacious campsites, RV hookups, and great hangout spots that allowed our group to spread out comfortably while still feeling connected.
“With approximately 45 adults and 40 children (ages 12 and under), we had a wonderful turnout—and every single person had an amazing time!
“From scenic hikes to peaceful canoe rides and some great fishing, there was no shortage of outdoor fun.
“One of the highlights of our experience was the dining hall, which provided the perfect meeting space for meals, fellowship, and shared memories.
“The Selin family and all the volunteers at Okontoe went above and beyond to make sure all of our needs were met. Their kindness, hospitality, and attention to detail truly made us feel welcome and at home.
“When we asked our group if they’d come back next year, the answer was a resounding YES—many are already making plans!
“Thank you again for such a memorable and joy-filled experience!”
Jody Selin, on-site staff, wrote this:
“We had the privilege of hosting the Way of the Lord Church Family Campout in August. It was such a privilege to have them here!
“Camp was filled with families and children running through mud puddles, enjoying the kayaks and canoes, and swimming in the beach.
“They organized all of their own activities for their group, including morning devotions and worship times in the evenings.
“Okontoe staff and volunteers were able to join in as we were able and we all had a wonderful time together!
“We invite you and your church group to come and organize your own Church Family Campout. Come make some memories together in God’s beautiful creation!”
Comments from Participants
A couple of the parents also offered their thoughts:
“There’s nothing like going up north to Okontoe to get away from the business of the cities. Every time our family spends time in the northwoods we are refreshed and make lasting memories. What a special place!” ~ Kyle
“Okontoe was a highlight this summer for our family—the wilderness is such a wonderful place to have community with friends.
“Elliot, age 9: ‘My favorite part was being on the lake fishing. Berit, age 7: ‘My favorite part was kayaking on the lake.’ Annika, age 11: ‘My favorite part was everything.’
“I personally loved the opportunity to be in the BWCA again, and being able to watch my daughter enjoy it was very special.
“Doing a family camp with others is a great way to get to know people in a different setting. Watching kids and adults enjoy nature makes my heart happy.” ~ Britta
Start Planning for Your Family Camp
If this kind of adventurous northwoods family camp sounds fun to you and the families in your church, reach out to us when you’re ready to set your dates.
Email info@okontoe.org or call 218-388-2285 to get the process going.
(Written by Sharon Brodin, member of Way of the Lord Church and Family Camp participant)