About CSM
We are a summer camp and retreat center founded in 1933 with the goal of providing ‘wholesome recreation in a religious atmosphere’ for boys and girls aged 8-16. We are located in the heart of beautiful northern Michigan, just 7 miles west of the city of Gaylord, on M-32, 45 minutes from Petoskey and a 3.5 hour drive from Detroit.
CSM is a Catholic community and our grounds are dedicated to the Blessed Mother. A statue of St. Mary stands at the highest point of our grounds. Our busy summer sessions are built around the framework of our faith and our resident chaplain celebrates Mass with us every day in our chapel and we return there to end each day with a prayer service. We seek to be welcoming to campers from all faiths and are happy to share our beliefs with those who attend camp from other backgrounds.
- Campers pray the Angelus.
Campers attending a session at CSM can expect to be given an action-packed experience, full of outdoor activities, sports, water-sports, arts and crafts, fellowship, laughs and the staple of any one or two-week stay – a day-trip to Mackinac Island.
We hold a license for up to 200 campers at a time. We invite you to look around our website and get to know what CSM is about. But if you want to know more, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Memberships & Accreditations
CSM is an accredited member of American Camps (formerly the American Camping Association), which is the highest governing body of camps in the U.S. We have held and maintained this status since 1985. Our latest accreditation visit took place in the summer of 2010.
American Camps provides us with guidelines and advice to help all our programs, facilities and practices meet appropriate standards of safety and quality. As of 1999, we are members of Christian Camping International, which is an organization promoting Christian values in camping programs. We are inspected each summer by the State of Michigan, with whom we are in excellent standing.
