Located near Indianapolis, Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center serves individuals, families, churches, and groups through Christian camps and retreats designed to encourage meaningful growth and connection.
More Than a Camp
For more than 96 years Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center has been a place where people step away from everyday life and experience something deeper.
It’s a community where kids build confidence and faith.
Where families reconnect in ways that last long after camp ends.
Where churches gather, worship, learn, and grow together.
Where individuals find the space to slow down and hear God’s voice.
While activities, lodging, and facilities are important, they are not the reason Wabash Park exists. Everything we do is designed to create opportunities for meaningful experiences, authentic relationships, and spiritual growth.
At Wabash Park, we believe some of life’s most important moments happen when people slow down enough to listen, connect, and hear the whisper of God.
Wabash Park Mission and Camp Philosophy
At Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center, our primary goal is simple:
To share the love and truth of Jesus Christ with every person who comes to camp.
We recognize that every guest arrives with a different story, different experiences, and a different place in their faith journey.
Some come with a strong relationship with Christ.
Others may be exploring faith for the first time.
Our role is not to manufacture spiritual experiences. Instead, we seek to create an environment where the Holy Spirit can work personally and powerfully in each life.
Through worship, biblical teaching, prayer, meaningful conversations, shared experiences, and everyday moments, we strive to point people toward Christ and encourage them to take their next step of faith.
Sometimes ministry happens during chapel.
Sometimes it happens during a meal.
Sometimes it happens while sitting on a cabin porch, walking a trail, or talking beside a campfire.
Our prayer is that every person who leaves Wabash Park knows they are loved by God and encouraged to continue growing in faith, character, leadership, and discipleship.
Serving Churches, Families, and Communities Across Indiana and beyond
Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center welcomes a wide variety of guests throughout the year through camps, retreats, family programs, and special gatherings.
Serving Campers, Families, and Churches for Over 95 Years
Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center has been a place where people gather, grow, and experience God in meaningful ways.
What began nearly a century ago as a place for Christian gathering and renewal continues today through camps, retreats, and meaningful experiences for everyone who visits our camp and retreat center.
Generations of campers, families, church groups, and guests have walked these grounds, building friendships, strengthening their faith, and creating memories that last long after they leave.
Wabash Park is deeply connected to the Free Methodist Church and continues to serve churches, families, and communities through Christian camps, retreats, and gatherings rooted in faith and authentic connection.
While many things have changed over the years, the heart of Wabash has remained the same: Creating an environment where people feel welcomed, supported, and encouraged in their walk with Christ.
Today, Wabash Park continues that mission by helping new generations slow down, reconnect, grow in faith, and hear the whisper of God.
Focused on People, Not Just Activities
For generations, Wabash Park has brought together children, students, parents, grandparents, churches, and ministry leaders. It is a place where faith is shared across generations and relationships are strengthened.
Rooted in the Free Methodist Tradition
Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center is a religious nonprofit organization affiliated with the Crossroads Conference of the Free Methodist Church USA.
Our ministry is grounded in historic Christian beliefs and guided by the teachings of Scripture. While guests from many church backgrounds attend our camps and retreats, our ministry philosophy and programs are rooted in the Free Methodist tradition.
Wabash Park Camp Statement of Faith
Adapted from the Statement of Faith of the Free Methodist Church USA.
Meet the Team
For Deana Hayes-Black, camp ministry is about more than programs and facilities. It’s about creating sacred spaces where people can slow down, encounter God, and experience authentic Christian community. As Executive Director, Deana provides leadership and vision for Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center’s year-round camps, retreats, guest experiences, and future growth initiatives. She is passionate about investing in the next generation, encouraging spiritual growth, and helping Wabash remain a place where people can hear the whisper of God.
Deana is grateful to serve alongside a dedicated team, faithful volunteers, and ministry partners who share a vision for changing lives through camp and retreat ministry.
When she’s not at camp, Deana enjoys hiking, fishing, and traveling with friends and family. Whether exploring the mountains, relaxing by the beach, or enjoying a hot chai latte, she finds renewal in God’s creation and inspiration in the beauty of the outdoors.
In April 2025, God led Jeremy and his wife, Billie Jo, to become the caretakers of Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center.
Jeremy oversees the care and maintenance of the camp’s grounds and facilities, helping ensure guests enjoy a welcoming, safe, and well-maintained environment throughout the year. His strong work ethic, servant’s heart, and hands-on approach make him an essential part of the Wabash team.
A lifelong resident of Washington, Indiana, Jeremy enjoys spending time with Billie Jo and their two grown children, Austin and Jaylynn. Faith, family, and serving others are at the center of everything he does, and we are blessed to have the Allen family as part of the Wabash ministry.
Billie Jo brings warmth, compassion, and a genuine love for people to her role as Administrative Assistant at Wabash Park Camp & Retreat Center.
A familiar face to many guests, Billie helps ensure visitors feel welcomed, supported, and cared for throughout their experience. Her strong faith, servant’s heart, and dedication to helping others make her a valuable member of the team.
Billie has attended Washington Free Methodist Church since she was 12 years old and currently serves as Secretary of the Board of Administration. Her connection to Wabash Park began as a teenager attending camp at age 13.
“Wabash became a safe place where I grew deeply in my faith and connection with God. As an adult, I continued that connection by attending Family Camp with my husband and children, who later enjoyed attending kids camps each summer.”
Today, Billie is grateful to help create those same meaningful experiences for a new generation of campers and guests.
Jessica joined the Wabash team in October 2023 with a passion for helping share the story of camp ministry.
After her first visit to Wabash, she knew it was a place that needed to be experienced and shared with others. With a background in digital marketing, writing, and communications, Jessica helps bring the Wabash mission to life through promotional materials, storytelling, and guest communications.
Her passion for camp ministry is deeply connected to her heart for children’s and youth ministry. Jessica and her husband, along with their three children, are active members of Bedford Free Methodist Church, where they serve in a variety of leadership roles.
Jessica believes camp and local church ministry work hand in hand. Helping connect young people and families to life-changing camp experiences is a calling she is honored to pursue through her work at Wabash.
