Damascus Experience Inc.

What Damascus Experience Inc. does

Damascus Experience Inc. is a 501(c)(3) Catholic nonprofit founded in 2001 (incorporated 2006) and headquartered in Centerburg, Ohio, that operates Catholic youth summer camps, year-round retreats, a full-time missionary formation program, and digital faith content. The organization runs three physical campuses (a 471-acre Main Campus in Ohio, Great Lakes in Brighton, Michigan opened in 2023, and Summit Lake in Emmitsburg, Maryland scheduled to open summer 2026), with a combined summer capacity exceeding 5,500 campers. Beyond summer camp, Damascus operates middle school, high school, confirmation, parish/school, men's, women's, and adult retreats, the Empower Young Adult Conference, and a national traveling-missionary program that delivers retreats directly to dioceses. The organization reports 250+ full-time missionaries serving more than 40,000 individuals annually across 1,000+ parishes and schools.

The organization is supported by a 2-year Mission Academy that trains full-time missionaries (with 112 formation sessions and 8 retreats), a 12-week Summer Missions staffing program, and a 3-year Youth Leadership Institute for high school students priced at $150/student. Digital products include the Damascus mobile app (built on Firebase with Apple/Google sign-in, Stripe payments, and prayer tracking, streaks, community, and achievements features) and the Damascus+ subscription ($7.99/month individual, $59.99/year, $14.99/month family up to 6 members, $119.99/year family). Camp registrations are processed through the Ultracamp third-party platform, with photos served via Bunk1.com and donations processed through Givecloud and Constant Contact.

Revenue is generated from a mix of camp and retreat registration fees, the Damascus+ subscription, the $10 Digital All Access Pass, the Saint Paul Society giving program (with tiers from $2,500 to $10,000+), monthly and one-time missionary support gifts, and corporate sponsorships. The organization is recognized as a Private Association of the Faithful by the Bishop of Columbus and is governed by a board chaired by Matt Schlater (Jones-Schlater Flooring) with vice-chair Marc Hawk (former CEO of RevLocal). Damascus is currently raising a $6 million Road to Damascus capital campaign to fund the Summit Lake expansion.

Name

Damascus Experience Inc.

Legal name

Damascus Experience Inc.

Website

https://damascus.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Damascus Experience Inc. is a 501(c)(3) Catholic nonprofit that operates high-adventure youth summer camps, year-round retreats, missionary formation programs, and faith-based digital content across three U.S. campuses, serving 40,000+ participants annually through 250+ full-time missionaries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Faith-Based Youth Ministry Services

NAICS

Recreational and Vacation Camps (except Campgrounds) (721214), RV (Recreational Vehicle) Parks and Recreational Camps (7212), Religious Organizations (8131), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based Missions & Evangelism Organizations (Domestic & International) (BPAGAJAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Group Camping & Scout Camps (THAGAOAI), Multi-Activity Enrichment Camps (Academic + Arts + Sports) (EDAMALAA), Faith-Based & Mission Service Programs (EDAIAGAI), Religious Retreats & Spiritual Wellness Travel Agencies (THAKAHAM)

Keywords

• Catholic youth camps
• Faith formation retreats
• Missionary training programs
• Youth ministry services
• Worship ministry resources

Headquarters

HQ city

Centerburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Camp and Retreat Registration Fees: Revenue generated from registration fees for summer camps, winter camps, confirmation retreats, parish and school retreats, men's and women's retreats, and other events. Pricing varies by program type.
2. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Damascus receives donations through various giving programs including the Campership Fund, Annual Fund, Saint Paul Society giving program, recurring gifts, and missionary support partnerships.
3. Missionary Support Partnerships: Donors can directly support missionaries through monthly or one-time financial gifts. Missionaries raise support to cover their living expenses during service.
4. Damascus+ Subscription: Optional auto-renewing subscription for the Damascus mobile app unlocking full video library and premium features. Options include individual monthly ($7.99), individual yearly ($59.99), family monthly ($14.99), and family yearly ($119.99).
5. Digital All Access Pass: One-time fee of $10 for access to summer talks, homilies, worship and highlight videos available throughout the year.
6. Medical Volunteer Support: Healthcare professionals volunteer their services; while not direct revenue, this supports camp operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Damascus Experience Inc. operates a portfolio of Catholic youth summer camps, year-round faith formation retreats, and missionary training programs delivered at three physical camp locations (Ohio, Michigan, Maryland) and through traveling missionary teams deployed to dioceses nationwide. The organization supplements its in-person ministry with the Damascus mobile application for prayer tracking and the Damascus+ subscription for premium video content, plus the Beyond Damascus Podcast and Damascus Worship music ministry.

Product overview

Damascus is a Catholic missionary movement offering a portfolio of camps, retreats, and digital resources organized around the mission of bringing revival to the Catholic Church. The core offerings center on Damascus Summer Camp (formerly CYSC), operating at three physical locations (Main Campus in Ohio, Great Lakes in Michigan, and Summit Lake in Maryland), alongside year-round Retreats and Events including Middle School, High School, Confirmation, and Adult Retreats. Digital products include the Damascus App for prayer tracking and the Damascus+ subscription for premium video content. Supporting programs include the Youth Leadership Institute (3-year high school formation), Mission Academy (2-year missionary formation), Summer Missions (12-week staff program), Damascus Worship (music ministry), and the Beyond Damascus Podcast. The Missionary Partnership and Saint Paul Society programs enable donor support. The organization was founded as Catholic Youth Summer Camp in 2001 and rebranded as Damascus in 2016 with the opening of its Ohio campus.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Damascus Worship: Music ministry and worship content produced by Damascus
• Beyond Damascus Podcast
• Digital All Access Pass
• Damascus+
• Road to Damascus Campaign
• Saint Paul Society
• Youth Leadership Institute

Products and services

• Damascus Summer Camp
• Retreats and Events

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 40,000 individuals encounter Jesus through Damascus programs annually
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Our Lady of the FieldscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost site partner for Damascus Great Lakes camp location in Brighton, MI. Our Lady of the Fields provides their camp facilities for Damascus programming, enabling service to campers in the Michigan region since 2023.
• VanDevere Auto BunchminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor providing a 2024 Kia Sportage for a raffle fundraiser benefiting the campership fund. Supports financial accessibility for campers in need.
• UltracampcoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party registration platform provider handling all camp and retreat registrations, account management, forms, and payment processing for Damascus programs.
• Firebase (Google)coreTechnology or IntegrationBackend infrastructure for the Damascus mobile app including authentication, Firestore database, storage, cloud messaging, and analytics services.
• ApplecoreTechnology or IntegrationPlatform provider for iOS app distribution and in-app purchase billing for Damascus+ subscriptions through Apple ID.
• Diocese of ColumbuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDamascus is recognized as a Private Association of the Faithful within the Catholic Church by the Bishop of Columbus. The organization works in close collaboration with the diocese on safe environment policies and ministry alignment.
• Archdiocese of BaltimorecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchbishop William E. Lori has endorsed the Road to Damascus Campaign to bring Damascus programming to the Mid-Atlantic region, serving youth from Baltimore and surrounding dioceses.
• Travel Insured InternationalminorOthersProvides optional camper protection policy available for purchase during summer camp registration, offering travel insurance and cancellation coverage.
• Corporate Sponsors (Various)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerMultiple corporate sponsors including Buckley Toyota, Cintas, Franciscan, and others provide financial support and event sponsorships. Complete list includes over 25 sponsor logos displayed on the website.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• NET Ministries (National Evangelization Teams): Catholic youth ministry organization that sends teams of trained young adult missionaries to parishes and schools for retreats and evangelization. Closely comparable business model: young adult missionaries, diocesan partnerships, and parish/school retreat delivery.
• Catholic Youth Organization (CYO): Diocesan-based Catholic youth sports, camps, and retreat programs. Operates summer camps and parish retreat services for Catholic youth across multiple dioceses — comparable camp and retreat programming.
• Steubenville Conferences (Franciscan University of Steubenville): National Catholic youth conference series serving tens of thousands of teens annually with faith-formation events. Comparable in targeting Catholic youth, scale, and diocesan endorsement model — Damascus board member Fr. Dave Pivonka is president of Franciscan University.
• Catholic Youth Summer Camp network (e.g., Camp Lakota, Camp Veritas): Independent Catholic youth summer camps (e.g., Camp Veritas, Camp Lakota) operating overnight camp programs with faith formation and adventure activities. Direct competitors for Catholic families seeking summer camp experiences.
• Life Teen: Catholic youth ministry program serving parishes with retreats, summer camps (XTreme Camps), and discipleship formation. Operates the same summer-camp-plus-parish-retreat model targeting Catholic middle and high schoolers.
• Catholic Heart Workcamp: Catholic youth mission and service trip organization offering summer work camps across the U.S. Operates the same faith-based youth formation model with traveling teams, parish partnerships, and summer service programming — directly comparable to Damascus's Summer Missions and retreat offerings.

Emerging players

• Hallow: Catholic prayer and meditation mobile app with prayer tracking, daily reflections, and a premium subscription tier — directly competes with Damascus+ for the same Catholic-youth digital subscriber base.
• Ascension Press: Catholic media and content publisher producing Catholic Bible studies, the Ascension app, and Formation programming. Competes with Damascus+ in Catholic digital subscription content and youth faith formation.

Broad incumbents

• FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students): Large Catholic collegiate evangelization organization with missionary staffing model and donor-funded operations. Comparable in missionary formation and donor-supported nonprofit structure, though targeting college students rather than middle/high schoolers.

Regional players

• Christ in the Wilderness Retreat Center: Catholic retreat center offering parish and school retreat programming in the Midwest. Operates a similar faith-based retreat and youth formation model, though without Damascus's multi-location footprint or missionary pipeline.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@BeyondDamascus
• Facebookfacebook.com/DamascusCatholicMissionCampus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/damascus-catholic-mission-campus

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Damascus Experience Inc.