2026 Registration Opens for RETURNING camp families on Wednesday, December 31st!

(Families NEW to Lake Nixon can begin registering on Thursday, January 15th.)

Dear Camp Families,

Happy New Year! The winter holidays are winding down and that means it’s time to make plans for summer day camp at Lake Nixon!

Thank you to all our friends from this past year for including us in your summer. We’re excited about 2026! We are planning a season of outdoor growth, fun, and friendship. To get ready, I want to share a few things about what you and your camper can expect this year.

Read on to find out about Registration, Staff & Volunteer Opportunities, Fun Plans, and Tuition & Add Ons.

REGISTRATION

Returning Camp Families Can Use the Campanion App to Register Beginning Wednesday December 31st

***Click Here to Download or Reinstall the Campanion App***

Be sure to opt-in to text messaging in the app. We will send a text message prompting you to open Campanion or go to the CampInTouch website and begin your registration! Campanion is a much easier way to apply using a mobile device!

You’ll receive a text message that includes your discount code for 10% off return camper registrations through the month of January!

STAFF & VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Summer 2026: Lake Nixon Wants YOU…to help lead a summer of fun in the sun for the coolest kids around!

In 2026, you can look forward to seeing familiar faces in our leadership team as well as our summer staff. You’ll see Director Andy Black who will be at Lake Nixon for his 8th summer! Be sure to catch him in the car rider line. This will be the third year of camp for Mandy Reid, year-round assistant director of Lake Nixon. And Hallie Hutson will be serving up great camp programming for the second year in a row in 2026. Look for other friendly folks like Ms. Cindy in the kitchen, Mr. Randall on the golf cart, and many more friends of Lake Nixon!

There will be more friendly faces joining our summer team and we’ll look forward to (re)introducing them to you this spring. In the meantime, we are always eager to connect with anyone who loves young people, loves the outdoors and has the ability to spend (even part) of their summer making a difference.

DO YOU KNOW ANY NEW FACES THAT WE SHOULD MEET?

We would love to hear from potential summer staff or volunteers, full-time and part-time! Please ask anyone who fits the description above to fill out this short interest form, and we’ll be in touch!

***Click Here for our Summer Staff & Volunteer Interest Form***

FUN PLANS

If you’ve been part of Lake Nixon for more than one summer, you’ll know that we’re always working to make a great experience even better. That will be the case this year as well. We’re looking forward to sharing some new additions in the months ahead.

For the last few years, we have had a blast with theme weeks. Again this year, each week will include special activities, crafts, special guests, a dress-up day, and more, related to the that week’s theme. Alongside 8 new themes, we will continue the camp favorites, “Christmas in July” Week and “Thanksgiving” Week (including the big “family feast”!) Look for more information about our theme weeks throughout the spring!

Plans are in the works to bring exciting new elements to our camp activities as well. We’ll keep you posted as work progresses on fun activities both in and out of the water!

The goal is the same as it’s always been: we want kids to go home from Lake Nixon each day “happy, dirty, and tired.” That’s how we know camp is doing it’s job.

Summer at Lake Nixon is special. It’s a special time–days and weeks playing in the fresh air and sunshine. It’s a special place–away from the walls and desks of the classroom, outdoors running through the trees and splashing in the lake, soaking in God’s creation. And it’s full of special people–new friends, best pals, and caring counselors providing safety while encouraging everyone to try new things.

Why do we welcome hundreds of young people to Lake Nixon each summer? For over half a century now, Lake Nixon has been a place that wants to build “kids of character.” We want to continue that legacy of character building this summer and always. We are honored that you choose Lake Nixon as a place for your child to grow and learn–appreciation for diversity, love of nature, expression of gratitude, curiosity at the wonders of Creation, confidence in themselves and the value of community. You may remember the camp mission statement we debuted last year that says it best:  Lake Nixon Summer Day Camp welcomes young people of all backgrounds to immerse themselves in nature, and to enjoy fun outdoor experiences that cultivate gratitude, foster curiosity, and grow confidence within a community of friends.

This is our mission. In the coming weeks we will recruit, interview, hire, and train staff. We’ll prepare the lake, the Activity Zone, and the Outdoor Classroom. We’ll process registrations and order gaga balls and make schedules and invite guest speakers. And we’ll do it all because we want to fulfill that mission for every camper at Lake Nixon!

A few quick words about registration, tuition and other fees for this year:

• Registration opens for returning families December 31st. This includes first time campers who have siblings that have attended Lake Nixon before. Registration for new families opens on January 15th.
• Please read the camper application carefully and note the deadlines for all discounts. The returning family discount expires on JANUARY 31st!
• Both the returning family discount and the early registration discount can be ‘stacked’ with the multi-week discount.
• If you would not otherwise be able to make camp a part of your family’s summer, please apply for the Campership financial aid program at registration. We may be able to help. Instructions are found in the application and info is on our Camp FAQ page
• You may add optional items like bus transportation, extended day, and lunch at a later time; no pressure to decide at registration.
• We are so excited to welcome all our campers to Lake Nixon for Summer 2026!!

***Returning families click here to register starting Wednesday, December 30th***

We are looking forward to the coming summer and we can’t wait to see your camper at Lake Nixon!

And remember, camp is for the young and the young at heart–so if you know anyone who is looking for a meaningful way to spend the coming summer, send them our way.

If you have any questions about camp staff, activities, tuition or add-ons that aren’t answered above, see our website FAQ page or email us at lakenixondaycamp@2bclr.com

Thank you for being a part of the Lake Nixon community!

Mandy Reid

Assistant Director, Lake Nixon Outdoor Center

(a ministry of Second Baptist Church, downtown Little Rock)