RVICS project for March 3 - March 25, 2008

Camp Tejas is a Retreat Center located near the Central Texas city of Giddings. Camp Tejas is not a program camp; rather it provides facilities, activities, and support for Christian groups to use. Its Christian life began on Valentines Day, 1981 when retiring director Billy Jones and family moved in. It has grown from serving about 1,000 to serve an expected 15,000 for 2008

Camp Tejas is in an expansion phase. They have acquired an adjoining parcel of land and are building a Meadows Retreat Center consisting of two housing facilities and the main retreat center along with food service and recreation facilities. The housing facilities have 18 rooms sleeping up to 6 each and are theme decorated. The Barn has 6 rooms representing the continents of the world. The Four Seasons has 12 rooms representing the months of the year.

Our stay at Camp Tejas has been busy. The men started by putting in baseboard and painting in three storerooms and installing trim and chair rail in the public restrooms of the new Meadows Retreat Center  (it was raining). We then moved outside where we installed about 2000 sq. ft of metal roofing and cedar trim on the exterior of the doors and windows. Our next project was installing wood flooring in the game room. Lastly, we started forming for sidewalks around the buildings. On the side we also hung doors, installed locks, installed door closers, laid patio pavers, prepared building for spray painting, and assembled swings.

Our ladies were equally busy working in the gift shop, serving meals, washing dishes, cleaning walls and dining room chairs, sanding and painting bathroom trim, pruning bushes, and cleaning fabric on about 200 chairs in the retreat center.

On tour days we visited a lavender farm, ice cream factory, LBJ Presidential Library, the Texas State Capital, and attended the spring fling at RVICS Village in Smithville.