Editor’s note: The event scheduled for March 14 has been postponed. The information below was posted prior to this announcement. Stay tuned for announcements regarding future 4-H Camp Timpoochee alumni events.

Alumni and friends of 4-H Camp Timpoochee will relive memories of sitting by the campfire and enjoying the outdoors when they are welcomed back to the camp’s annual alumni day on March 14 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central Time. Registration is free, though donations to support 4-H camping are appreciated.

Established in 1926, 4-H Camp Timpoochee is the oldest continually operating 4-H camp in Florida and the second oldest in the nation. Located along the shore of the Choctawhatchee Bay, Camp Timpoochee provides a living outdoor classroom for more than 800 campers each summer and multiple opportunities for youth to experience new adventures, step outside their comfort zones, and make lifelong friends and memories.

Florida 4-H is the youth development program of UF/IFAS Extension and operates three residential camps in the state: Timpoochee, Cherry Lake and Clover Leaf. More than 1,800 Florida youth attended residential camps last year.

“I won’t ever forget it,” said Amos Morris, who attended Camp Timpoochee as a camper in 1947. “You won’t ever forget Camp Timpoochee.”

During the camp’s first alumni day in 2019, Morris described his trips to camp as “a good education.”

“Get away from home, get away from the parents, and meet somebody else. It’s just good for them (campers). They ought to have more camps than what they have,” Morris said.

The annual alumni event celebrates Camp Timpoochee’s long, rich history, said Ariel Blanton, the camp’s director. “There is no better way to do so than by bringing together campers, new and old,” she said.

Attendees will be able to explore the campgrounds, play games, and socialize while making s’mores around the campfire.

A special station will allow attendees to fill out cards completing the statement “Because of camp…” Alumni completed the sentence last year with experiences like: “I found a place where I will always belong,” “I had the confidence to grow and learn and believe in myself,” “I can be myself for a week,” and “I found a home, a family, and a future I’d never dreamed of.”

Register for the annual alumni event online. For questions, contact Ariel Blanton at (850) 897-2224 or timpoochee4h@ifas.ufl.edu.

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