Short answer: Texas camps and retreat centers hire adults for kitchen and housekeeping work all year, not just in the summer. These are some of the easiest camp jobs to start in, because camps train you on the job and care most about being dependable, working as a team and treating guests well. Camp jobs on Camp Connection are for adults 18 and older. You can see Texas camp jobs and add yourself as a job seeker at /jobs/texas/.
Why kitchen and housekeeping matter so much at a camp
A camp can have a great program, but guests remember two things first: the food and whether their room was clean and ready. Kitchen and housekeeping teams make every retreat work. When a church group of 150 arrives on a Friday night, the beds need to be made, the bathrooms stocked and dinner ready on time. That is why camp directors value people who show up, work hard and take pride in the details.
Kitchen roles
Camp kitchens cook for groups that can range from a few dozen people to several hundred. Common roles include:
- Cook or lead cook: plans and cooks meals for each group, often from a set menu.
- Prep cook: chops, measures and gets food ready before each meal.
- Dishwasher: keeps dishes, pots and the kitchen clean between meals.
- Dining hall staff: sets up, serves and cleans the dining room.
Experience in a restaurant, school cafeteria or catering kitchen helps, but many camps will train the right person. If you already hold a food handler card, say so when you apply.
Housekeeping roles
Housekeeping keeps cabins, lodges, bathrooms and meeting rooms ready for each new group. The work includes changing linens, cleaning rooms and bathrooms, restocking supplies and doing laundry. Between groups, the team often has a short window to turn over a whole building, so speed and teamwork matter. Some camps combine housekeeping with laundry or light maintenance.
Year-round or summer
Many Texas camps host church groups, schools and retreats all year, so kitchen and housekeeping jobs are often year-round, part-time or full-time. Some camps also add extra help for summer camp. A few offer on-site housing for staff. Ask each camp which kind of role it is hiring for and what the schedule looks like on weekends, since that is when most groups arrive.
How to stand out when you apply
- Say when you can start and which days you can work, especially weekends.
- List any kitchen, cleaning, hotel or food service experience, even if it was short.
- Mention a food handler card or any other training you have.
- Show that you work well on a team and can handle a busy Friday or Sunday.
- If the camp is a Christian camp, be ready to talk about how you feel about serving in a ministry setting.
Get started
Add yourself as a job seeker on Texas camp jobs so Texas camps can find you. For more ideas, read about year-round camp jobs in Texas, summer camp jobs in Texas and how to get hired at a Texas camp or retreat center. You can also browse Texas camps and retreat centers to see where you might like to work.