Hello Again

A Page From Greg’s Sketchbook…

A sketch of Camp Albemarele from the master planning process

Camp Albemarle is the third master planning partnership between Lloyd Griffith and Greg Copeland. They worked together at Camp Becket in the 1980s and Camp Sea Gull from 1994 to 2002. After Lloyd and his wife Cille retired from their roles as directors of Sea Gull and Seafarer, Lloyd transitioned to the ministry at the First Presbyterian Church in New Bern, North Carolina. Having left one of the largest YMCA camps in the United States, they were able to successfully translate their experience to this small site along the bay. As this camp is in touch with the sea, Greg and Lloyd both see much potential and many possibilities in Camp Albemarle.

Established in 1953, Camp Albemarle is a year-round mission-driven center dedicated to serving children, youth, families, and adults of all faiths and denominations. Their mission is to provide safe, fun and meaningful activities that allow campers, families and adult guests to build relationships with peers, staff, and God. With 61 years of service, Camp Albemarle has reached 40,000 campers. With 700 connections to Christ each summer, Camp Albemarle is connecting in a big way. They are blessed with a wonderful site on the sea, which serves as the basis for their distinctive ministry.

Camp Albemarle is located on 29 acres on Bogue Sound, in Newport, North Carolina and is bordered by Highway 24 to the North. Two vacant parcels border the east (8.6 acres) and west (7.2 acres ) sides of the property, both consisting of heavily wooded areas with dense understory plants. The southern boundary includes over 1,125 linear feet of shoreline and the views across the sound extend 2.5 miles to Indian Beach and Emerald Isle.

Camp Albemarle includes 21 buildings used for operations, staff housing, camper housing, and programming. The pier, which should have been the original focal point of the camp, was severely damaged by hurricanes and needed to be totally rebuilt. The Master Plan proposes replacing several buildings in order to meet the development objectives. It is understood that although changes of this magnitude would be difficult, it is a once in a lifetime opportunity to build facilities that will match the natural glory of the site and fulfill the mission of Camp Albemarle.

The key to the success of the Master Plan is the development and celebration of the waterfront. The most unique aspect of this site is the water. Salt-water based camps are rare throughout the country, making Camp Albemarle a very attractive site on a national level. It is essential that the waterfront program reflects this significance. This translates into the designing for a state-of-the-art pier, a diverse boating program, opportunities for fishing, aquatic studies, and travel across the sound to the many public resources on the islands. The plan maintains the natural beauty and spiritual significance of the Vesper Dell, the camp's outdoor chapel. 

The Master Plan is arranged so that the camper housing is in a continuously linear form, giving each cabin a prime view of the waterfront. Four other areas, also centered on the waterfront, have been further developed within the Master Plan, including a day camp area, land-based activities area, the waterfront area, and facility-based activities.

Camp Albemarle pier

The new pier was completed in 2009. The first element of the Adventure Course and Alpine Tower was added in 2012. The camp also has an extensive and technical tree-climbing program with 3,000 tree climbs per summer. Albemarle is currently working on developing the Day Camp Area.

Tips from Greg’s Sketchbook:

1. Put your best foot forward. In this case, that means using the water as a central focus for the camp’s Master Plan. 

2. It’s about relationships. When Greg first worked with Lloyd of on the Master Plan for Camp Becket, he had no idea that they would collaborate twice more.

3. Develop Potential. Lloyd and Greg could see the potential of “a camp in touch with the sea."