Frequently Asked Questions
How do I register a camper? Camper registration can be accessed online by visiting www.winshapecamps.org and selecting "Sign In" from the menu. New campers will need to create a WinShape Account by clicking Register on the login page. For returning campers, insert your email address and password on the login page. Follow the process to select a new Session for your camper, pay your deposit, and update your camper’s information. Upon our receipt of the non-refundable/non-transferrable deposit and completion of registration, you will receive an e-mail of confirmation. What is the cancellation/refund policy? The deposit is non-refundable and non-transferrable unless your kid’s registration is not finalized by WinShape Camps due to space limitations or other reasons. If your kid is accepted and you cancel your kid’s registration: (A.) More than 30 days before the registered Session, you will receive a full refund (excluding the deposit). (B.) Less than 30 days but more than 8 days before the registered Session, you will be refunded one-half the paid balance (excluding the deposit). (C.) Less than 7 days before the registered Session, you will receive no refund. The deposit and payments are not transferable. No refund will be granted for a camper sent home during camp for misbehavior, homesickness, or other reasons beyond the camp’s control. Since camp weeks cannot be filled mid-Session, no prorated fee is available for late arrival or early departure. Our refund policy is strictly enforced. During camp, may I contact my camper by phone or visit my camper? No. Campers are not allowed to make or receive telephone calls, and there is no visitation for parents, relatives, or friends. Experience has taught us that this can be very disruptive to the camper’s settling into camp. You will, however, have the option to send one-way emails through CampGrams to your camper while she is at camp. Email messages are printed and delivered to your camper along with other care packages and “snail mail”. If there is an emergency and you need to speak to camp personnel, please contact our office and we will get a message to the appropriate person. Please allow ample time for camp staff to assess the situation and get back to you. Can I drop my camper off late or pick them up early? No. Campers are not permitted to be dropped off later than the designated Check-In times or permitted to leave camp during the Session (for vacations, practices, competitions, and other events), except in the case of a family, medical, or other emergency and with approval of the Director. Please keep this in mind as you select a Session. Will my camper need any spending money? No. Campers will not need to purchase any items while at camp. We provide snacks for campers throughout the Session at no additional cost. The Camp Store is open on Spectacular Starting Sunday and Chick-fil-A Friday Family Fun Day for families to purchase other camp items. What is the Counselor/camper ratio? We have an excellent Counselor/camper ratio of one Counselor to every 4 to 6 campers, allowing each camper to have adequate individual attention from the staff. How are the campers housed and placed in cabins? Girls are housed in dormitory-type facilities at WinShape Retreat. Campers are divided into groups (Villages) by grade and are housed according to their Village. Counselors live in the rooms with their assigned campers. Villages are divided as follows according to grade completed prior to camp:
- Grades 1-3 (Canyon)
- Grades 4-5 (Woodland)
- Grades 6-7 (Cascade)
- Grades 8-9 (Sierra)
- Grades 10-11 (Oasis)
- Grade 11 (Taiga – Adventure Program). May I make a roommate request? Part of the positive experience your camper will encounter at WinShape Camps is the opportunity to meet new friends. Therefore, WinShape Camps encourages you to not specify a certain camper to share your camper's Cabin as it may hinder her chance to grow in new relationship-building skills. You may, however, request one Cabin mate per camper. (Submitting a request for more than one Cabin mate will result in no request being granted.) We will try to honor requests if campers are in the same or adjacent grades and Village. Again, a Cabin mate request must be for one specific camper, not a group of campers. Also, a Cabin mate request must be mutual before it will be considered. With this in mind, please contact your camper's desired Cabin mate prior to listing her name in this section to ensure that she has also selected your camper via a Cabin mate request. A non-mutual request will result in the request not being granted. In order to most efficiently honor Cabin mate requests, the Cabin mate request deadline is April 1st. After April 1st, no changes may be made to any Cabin mate request. Must my camper have a physical? Yes, you will receive an invite from CampDoc to fill out all of your medical forms. We can accept a standard physical form, or you can download the physical form online. The physical must be filled out and signed by your doctor or nurse practitioner. Registered campers Health Profile are due by May 1st. Any campers with incomplete Health Profiles after May 1st will be moved to the waitlist and their spot offered to another camper. As a reminder, Health Profiles must be submitted by May 1, so that each camper Health Profile can go through a two-step review process—part of the next-level care our Healthcare Team provides for every camper. What is your policy on behavioral problems? Parents will be contacted if there is a continuous problem of non-participation in the program, bullying, stealing, telling off-color stories or using inappropriate language, or any other behavior that detracts from the Christian and wholesome environment the camp wishes to provide. Profanity is prohibited. The use of alcohol, non-prescription drugs, or tobacco in any form, including vaping, is not permitted by campers or staff. Violent, threatening, dishonest, dangerous, negative, or otherwise unsatisfactory behavior on the part of the camper could lead to her dismissal from camp. Our Honor Code, which we ask all staff and campers to abide by is: “Because I want to honor God, I will: be honest, be positive, and show respect to staff, property, and other campers.” What is a Skill? A Skill is an activity that campers can choose to specialize in during their time at camp. This includes a wide range of activities such as Archery, Crafts, Indoor Rock Climbing, and more! Campers in completed grades 1-9 will be placed in eight Skills and campers in completed grades 10-11 will be placed in four Skills. *Taiga campers will not participate in Skills due to other unique program elements. What is the Adventure Program? The Adventure Program (Taiga Village) is offered at our Mount Berry campus to campers who have completed 11th grade. This Village takes trips with staff who are trained in whitewater rafting, caving, and camping. These campers spend their first week of the Session backpacking offsite and return to Mount Berry for the remainder of the Session. The Taiga Adventure Program is offered all four Sessions as a one-time experience. Campers will sleep in tents, cook over a campfire, filter their own water, and will not have access to restrooms/showers while on the trails. Campers should be in good health and have the ability to participate in physically rigorous outdoor activities. While offsite, campers will carry a backpack between 30 to 50 pounds while hiking 2 to 3 miles daily. The weight range of the backpack will depend on what each camper packs and a portion of group supplies that each camper will help carry such as food and general camping supplies. If a camper is unable to meet the physical requirements associated with this program, WinShape Camps has the right to decline the registration of that camper for the Adventure Program. However, campers of this age group could register for alternatives such as the Oasis Village at Mount Berry and Cohutta Springs. What do you mean by "shorts of modest length?" We ask all of our campers to wear modest shorts during their time at camp. Each of us are created with unique body types, and it is our desire to intentionally craft an environment in which each and every camper either gains or maintains a positive body image. This is countercultural to the images our girls are bombarded with on social media and the realities of their everyday lives. However, we are determined to present a bold, uplifting opposition to this. Physical safety is also a concern, as we offer activities involving harnesses, recreational equipment, and exploration in nature.
To protect our campers as they engage with the aforementioned elements, we ask that these questions are kept in mind: (1.) Can I wear a harness without the rope touching my bare skin? (2.) Am I able to bend down toward my toes without exposing skin normally covered by my swimsuit? (3.) Does the hem of my shorts extend to at least the middle of my thigh? It is our highest priority to ensure the emotional, physical, spiritual, and psychological safety of our campers. We believe this is one way to do so. All of our Summer Staff and Full-Time Staff are held to the highest standards of modesty to model this well for our campers. We are grateful in advance for your support.
