Preserving the land.
Building the next generation.
Kings Foundation Camp exists to protect wild, wooded, working land and put it to work forming young people, veterans, and families through outdoor education, conservation, and servant leadership.
“The greatest use of a life is to spend it on something that will outlast it.” — William James
Preserving a remarkable property. Strengthening communities. Serving future generations.
Kings Foundation Camp Inc. is a federally recognized 501(c)(3) public charity built around a simple belief: remarkable places should keep serving people while the natural beauty and character that make them special are protected, not paved over.
We're working to build a long-term community resource where individuals, families, veterans, senior adults, youth, churches, schools, civic organizations, and community groups can learn, serve, connect, and grow together — through conservation, outdoor education, recreation, leadership development, and family-strengthening programs.
This isn't only about acquiring and holding land. It's about creating a lasting legacy of stewardship, education, service, and community impact that shapes lives for generations to come.
The Four Pillars of Kings Foundation Camp
Every program, partnership, and acre of land is measured against these four commitments. If an activity doesn't strengthen people, protect the property, serve the community, or create meaningful outdoor learning, it doesn't belong in our plan.
Leadership & Mentorship
Developing responsibility, confidence, integrity, and practical skills through positive relationships, servant leadership, and hands-on experience.
Conservation & Stewardship
Protecting the natural beauty and environmental integrity of the land while teaching responsible land use and care for natural resources.
Community & Restoration
Creating a welcoming place where families, veterans, churches, mentors, educators, seniors, and community leaders can gather, reconnect, and serve.
Outdoor Education & Recreation
Using the land itself as a classroom for recreation, conservation education, traditional skills, teamwork, discipline, and personal growth.
Programs Built Around Real Community Needs
Programs grow in response to community need, partnerships, funding, and the capacity of the land — not the other way around.
Youth, Families & Mentorship
Outdoor experiences, positive role models, leadership, responsibility, and practical life skills. Family retreats, camping, fishing, hiking, paddling, sports, and service projects give families time together, away from constant technology.
Veterans & Military Families
Opportunities for veterans to mentor, volunteer, reconnect with family and community, and continue serving in meaningful ways — in a peaceful setting suited to fellowship and family-focused retreats.
Senior Adults & Intergenerational Connection
Retreats, nature-based activities, workshops, storytelling, and traditional skills that connect the wisdom and history of senior adults with younger generations. Identified as a priority need by the West Stanly Community Center Foundation, whose board voted unanimously, 13–0, to support the project.
Special-Needs & Underprivileged Youth
Inclusive opportunities for individuals with special needs and for youth whose financial circumstances might otherwise limit access to outdoor recreation, camps, mentorship, or skill-building. Partnerships and sponsorships are pursued so cost never becomes the barrier.
Horsemanship & Traditional Skills
Horsemanship teaches patience, responsibility, discipline, confidence, and leadership. Dewayne Noel, founder of Dry Creek Wrangler School, has offered to personally mentor and advise the program, alongside forging, traditional trades, and outdoor survival skills.
Conservation Comes First — Every Time
Kings Foundation Camp is actively working to secure wooded, shoreline land in the Tuckertown Reservoir area of Rowan County, North Carolina, to serve as our founding property. Conservation isn't a feature layered onto the plan — it's the condition that governs every future use of the land.
Development Principles
- Preserve the wooded character, natural habitat, shoreline setting, and scenic qualities of the property.
- Use existing clearings, roads, and disturbed areas where practical before creating new impact.
- Favor trails, primitive camping, and outdoor gathering areas over dense development.
- Phase improvements so use can begin responsibly, without requiring the full long-term vision to be built at once.
- Coordinate every improvement with applicable legal, environmental, safety, and accessibility requirements.
A Phased Approach
Phase One — Low-Impact Community Use
Trails, primitive camping, conservation education, outdoor gathering areas, mentorship activities, volunteer service projects, and basic site management.
Later Phases — As Need and Funding Allow
Simple cabins, program shelters, horsemanship facilities, and improved gathering areas — added only as funding, demand, planning, and responsible stewardship justify them.
Led By People Who've Already Done the Work
Kings Foundation Camp was built around a long-standing pattern of service, mentorship, ministry, and hands-on charitable projects — not a plan written from behind a desk.
Jeffery Owens
Jeffery grew up in the Challenge Program with Stanly County Parks & Recreation, camping, hiking, and canoeing at Morrow Mountain State Park — experiences that shaped his desire to create the same opportunities for young people and families who might not otherwise have access to them. Jeff and his wife Maria, alongside their four children, personally funded and helped construct a roughly 20,000-square-foot faith-based addiction rehabilitation center in Mexico, serving approximately 100 men at a time for seven years and counting.
Philip Thomas
Associate Pastor of Prospect Baptist Church. Years of experience in ministry, discipleship, and leadership development, with Fellowship of Christian Athletes outreach through Pfeiffer University, local schools, and the surrounding community.
Bradley Whitley
Decades of experience in church leadership, discipleship, youth programs, missions, teaching, mentorship, and volunteer service — strengthening the camp's ability to help people contribute positively to their families and communities.
Trusted By People Who Know the Need
Kings Foundation Camp isn't built around one program or one constituency. It's endorsed by leaders across military service, education, ministry, and community development who see the same need from different angles.
I see many veterans and active-duty members struggling with invisible wounds of stress, moral injury, and battle fatigue. Having a place like Kings Foundation Camp will help service members and their families reconnect, relax, recover, and rebuild.
Our Board of Directors voted unanimously, 13–0, to fully support this endeavor. We are confident this space will become a vital hub for uniting multiple generations around nature, wellness, and community.
This low-impact camp represents exactly the kind of thoughtful, community-focused project our region needs. It has tremendous potential to become a lasting community asset for generations of families.
Horsemanship helps develop patience, responsibility, discipline, confidence, leadership, and communication — qualities that can positively influence people for the rest of their lives.
Programs like this are desperately needed. Giving our youth positive outdoor experiences, life skills, and strong role models helps build stronger, safer communities.
Finding suitable locations for youth camp programs has become increasingly difficult in our area. Kings Foundation Camp would provide an ideal environment for mentoring our youth, offering them a safe, natural space to connect.
Help Us Build Something That Outlasts Us
Whether you represent a church, a school, a veterans' organization, a landholder, or you're simply looking for a way to serve — we'd welcome the conversation. Reach out and let's talk about how you can be part of it.
Richfield, NC 28137