A $400,000 Community Impact Grant is helping Indianapolis-based nonprofit Camptown take the next step in developing its new 26-acre Base Camp property while expanding opportunities for local youth to connect with nature.
The grant, awarded through a new partnership with Lowe’s Companies, will support the first phase of improvements at Base Camp, located near 64th Street and Grandview Drive. Planned upgrades include a lake expansion, native tree plantings, campsites, a new council ring gathering space and facility improvements designed to better serve thousands of young people each year.
Brent Freeman, president and chief executive officer of Camptown, said the investment comes at a pivotal time for the organization, which moved to the new property about seven months ago.
“It is an incredible injection of momentum,” Freeman said. “We are only now seven months in at this new Base Camp. To receive this kind of support towards deepening our impact and our ability to host kids from our city is really incredible. We’re just grateful.”
Founded to provide outdoor experiences for urban youth, Camptown’s mission is “transforming the lives of urban youth through outdoor adventures that build character, confidence, and hope.”
Through activities such as camping, canoeing, biking, climbing, fishing, caving and backpacking, the organization helps young people develop confidence while building relationships with peers and mentors.
“Nature provides a really beautiful classroom for learning through challenge and building confidence by tackling new experiences with groups of people in a supportive community,” Freeman said. “It really is a fertile ground for growth in young people.”
Freeman said research continues to demonstrate the physical and mental health benefits of spending time outdoors, including reduced stress, improved creativity and better overall well-being.
Camptown has also seen measurable benefits among program participants, including improved school engagement, stronger family involvement and greater emotional health.
“We are really encouraged to hear that it helps kids feel more at peace and more calm,” Freeman said. “Providing a space where they can step away from the heaviness of day-to-day and have respite and rest and just enjoyment and have a space to be a kid is really meaningful.”
The organization serves youth from a variety of backgrounds, including young people involved in the justice system and child welfare programs. Freeman said many participants are navigating challenges such as trauma, housing insecurity and exposure to violence.
The Community Impact Grant will fund a large volunteer project on June 13, when more than 300 volunteers are expected to work alongside Lowe’s employees to improve the property.
One of the project’s centerpiece additions will be a council ring, a communal outdoor gathering space overlooking the lake.
“They will focus on the installation of a council ring, which is a communal outdoor space that will eventually seat over 100 people and allow for us to do things like debrief or campfire skit song type of activities,” Freeman said. “It’s going to be beautiful.”
Additional work will include painting and refreshing existing facilities, replacing ceiling tiles, improving bathrooms, planting at least 100 native hardwood trees and establishing native wildflower meadows to support pollinators and local wildlife.
“We’re restoring habitat here on this little sliver of land in Indianapolis,” Freeman said.
Camptown expects more than 3,000 youth to visit Base Camp during 2026. While volunteer registration for the June 13 project has been strong, Freeman said opportunities remain available, and volunteers are welcomed throughout the year.
“This is only the beginning,” Freeman said. “We’re creating a place where Central Indiana youth can connect with nature, build confidence and experience outdoor adventure in meaningful ways for generations to come.”
To learn more and register to volunteer, visit lowes.com/events/register/lowes-community-impact-project-camptown.
Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth.
Hanna Rauworth is the Health & Environmental Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper, where she covers topics at the intersection of public health, environmental issues, and community impact. With a commitment to storytelling that informs and empowers, she strives to highlight the challenges and solutions shaping the well-being of Indianapolis residents.
