About Camp Tonkawa Outdoor Learning Center

Silhouetted teepee at sunset in an open field, with orange and blue sky

Our Mission

Connecting children and adults with nature through various outdoor immersion activities that teach essential life skills.

Camp Tonkawa Outdoor Learning Center’s goal is for everyone to be as knowledgeable of the natural world as the Native Americans who love, honor, and respect our planet earth.

We accomplish this with our hands-on teaching of the ancient Native American skills of


nature awareness, primitive wilderness survival and horsemanship.

Our patrons gain a respect and appreciation for our Earth, which helps preserve the environment and promotes sustainability.



Our camp is founded on the concept of helping people rediscover their connection to the earth. We all should be connected to nature - it is an essential part of human development.

Snowy roadside entrance with a sign reading “Camp Honesa”

At Camp Tonkawa Outdoor Learning Center, we help you to nurture that connection.

  • Unplug from a hectic lifestyle.
  • Learn important life skills.
  • Meet like-minded people who love the outdoors.
  • Experience peace and a connection to all living things. 

We believe and teach from the perspective that nature is our teacher.  By learning from the earth, people become truly alive, glowing with happiness, full of confidence and joy.


When a person moves away from nature, the heart becomes hard. - Lakota proverb


Listen to the voice of nature, for it holds treasures for you. - Huron proverb


All things are connected. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the  children of the earth. - Chief Seattle, Suqwamish and Duwamish

The history of Camp Tonkawa 

Camp Tonkawa was founded by the Holtzman family in 2002. Prior to founding the camp, the Holtzmans had formed a weekly scout group of homeschooled children called "The Trackers" that met for over ten years. They chose as curriculum Tom Brown Jr.'s “Books of Survival” and “Nature Awareness” as well as Jon Young's “Kamana Program” to serve as a guide with educational and fun hands-on activities to do outdoors. 


As the group grew, a safe place for children to freely wander and also take part in overnight camps became a pressing need. The Holtzmans filled this need by purchasing a 35-acre tract of land outside of Collinsville, TX. The land became the site for monthly weekend camps for families to attend and learn about camping, survival, and the plant and animal wildlife in the North Texas area. 


Beginning as a Sole Proprietorship, Camp Tonkawa became an official Outdoor Learning Center as well as a non-profit organization in March of 2009, when the Certificate of Formation for "Camp Tonkawa Outdoor Learning Center, Inc." as a Domestic Nonprofit Corporation was filed in the state of Texas. Articles of Incorporation are on file. We were blessed to have Heidi Kocher, attend our camp as a Girl Scout Leader, who saw our protential and wanted to protect it by changing us into a 501c3 non-profit. She donated her time and knowledge doing all this work work pro bono, a gift of love to us. The initial Board consisted of April Holtzman, Will Andrews, and Mark Blessing. The current members of the board can be found on this page.


In 2005, Cherokee Indian, Grey Wolf / Randy Scism, became a major participant at Camp Tonkawa. He has left his mark in every aspect of the facility and in the hearts of many. 

Group of campers posing in front of a Camp Tonkawa sign, wearing colorful shirts outdoors.
People standing around a large white teepee in a grassy field under a blue sky.

Visit Camp Tonkawa Outdoor Learning Center

Visitors are encouraged to contact Camp Tonkawa to learn more about upcoming camps, programs, and outdoor learning opportunities.