Timber Lake Camp — Local services in Town of Lexington

We, like many other brides and grooms had an expectation of what our wedding day/weekend would look like... With all of the planning, work effort and love that went into it, we'd expected it to be the best weekend and day of our lives. Our expectations had been clearly explained in detail with our "event coordinator". However, they WERE not even close to met.

We arrived on Thursday morning only to be greeted by Reggie and Sheila who live on site and manage the day to day operations of the camp. They were incredible, and did everything in their power to help us have a great weekend, we loved them... however.. we're pretty sure they didn't know a wedding was happening that weekend.

When we arrived many of the cabins were still dirty from the weekend before. Half of the private cabins (that we'd been promised were going to be fully renovated) were disgusting and filthy.. with graffiti written on the walls, and dirt, grime and empty liquor bottles among them. OUR BRIDAL SUITE had a moldy fridge, and dirty linens wrapped in a ball on the floor, along with the filthy towels from the weekend prior. Our BRIDAL SUITE REMAINED THIS WAY FOR THE DURATION OF THE WEEKEND, EVEN AFTER REPEATEDLY ASKING FOR IT TO BE CLEANED ON THURSDAY FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT. It's a good thing that the groom had brought sleeping bags with him.. otherwise we would have been sleeping on that dirty mattress.

Our Event Coordinator didn't show up until about 8pm that night... alone... We had been promised a team of 6 staff to help us with setup.. Instead, we had our family running around like slaves.. in a commercial kitchen cleaning the glassware and silverware we had had to purchase and bring ourselves, since they didn't provide anything wedding-appropriate. All of the things wed made 7-8 trips to camp with and left in a storage area had to be carted to the dining hall. We had to move every single table and chair in the dining room ourselves to set it up. (Thankfully Reggie was able to help us with some of this) Our question is... where was the rest of the staff? I certainly didn't expect I would be breaking my back the two days before my wedding day!

Friday, again we ran around like nut-jobs to set up the dining room, at some point 2 other staff members showed up, alongside the owner Jay Jacobs. We practically missed our entire rehearsal bbq because we were busy trying to salvage what was left of the weekend with Jay Jacobs..in HIS IMMACULATE HOME, we met with him to express our discontent, he simply stated " Perhaps your expectations are the problem, and not the service".... meanwhile.. our bridal suite remained littered with previous guests filth. See pics... it was truly lovely.

Saturday... our makeup and hair artists arrived and were shown to the dance studio where I would be getting ready. The mirrors were filthy... and there was a GIANT broken window on the right side... In the 33 degree weather and hurricane like winds... the room was freezing cold and for FOUR hours we battled the weather.. and asked repeatedly that they cover the window with SOMETHING, ANYTHING, wood, plastic garbage bags, or anything to keep the wind out... The breaker kept blowing every time a hair dryer or space heater was turned on, and each time that happened it delayed us getting ready by an HOUR because of the severely understaffed camp and their inability to react to loss of power with any kind of haste. By the time I was ready to get into my gown, not only was I an HOUR and a HALF LATE for my ceremony, but I was freezing to death, had not taken a single photo with my mother, bridesmaids, or family... (to no fault of the photographer) and was forced to PUT MY GOWN ON IN A HALLWAY! We paid an extra couple of thousand dollars to have the zipline and pools open.. the only problem is that 90% of the guests had no idea they were open... since the pool was covered in leaves. Oh yeah, we also froze all weekend since the only space heater that was available was that little JOKE shown in the picture).HONESTLY I CAN GO ON... SAVE YOUR WEDDING AND DONT DO...

Timber Lake Camp surpassed our wildest summer camp wedding dreams.

And by “wildest summer camp wedding dreams”, I mean: swimming pool, zip line, climbing wall, water slide, ropes course, canoes, paddle boards, bonfire and s’mores, and sports galore! We even put on a talent show in the AWESOME Timber Lake Playhouse. And while many of our family and friends slept in shared cabins just like summer camp, there were also plenty of nice private rooms for our guests as well! Priorities for us when looking at camps were the cleanliness and comfort of the housing and bathroom situations - for both shared cabins and private rooms… Timber Lake definitely checked those boxes.

The grounds themselves are unmatched. So beautiful, well-kept and conveniently laid out. When trying to describe it, we would say “It’s like a summer camp country club” or “It’s like if Disneyland were a summer camp”

Besides the Timber Lake Camp property and the facilities, the staff were also above and beyond. For us, meeting Scott after touring the camp for the first time was the final piece of the puzzle that solidified our decision that Timber Lake Camp was the place for us…even the staff was the right fit. Throughout the whole process, Scott was hospitable, professional, friendly, and fun.

On our wedding weekend, from the moment we arrived on camp to start setting up, the members of the TLC team were all “YES” people. I honestly joked a few hours into set up, “I’m waiting for the moment you say ‘no’ to one of my requests” (P.S. - It never happened)

Scott and Jordan both have such calm and can-do attitudes. Very comforting for a stressed and anxious bride!

The kitchen is run by the amazing duo, Reggie and Sheila. Who, in addition to clearly working hard and making some AWESOME food (we even had them do our reception meal), they also seemed to have a great time all weekend and they seemed to truly care for us.

When we asked for ice in the theatre, it was there in minutes. When we asked if we can make the campfire happen at 10:20 instead of the scheduled 10:30, it was ready at 10:17. I ran out of time to strain the giant tub of cold brew iced coffee I made for the weekend, and they made it happen without hesitation. When we asked for sandbags last minute for the ceremony, it wasn’t just a “yes” but “would you like green or white sandbags?”

Jay (the owner, himself) was literally cracking glow sticks and helping with other preparations before the reception, in the final minutes leading up it.

These are just a few examples of how much their team not only stepped up to every request - but they did it happily and joined in our festivities as well! And by the end of the weekend, they felt like part of the family.

To the couples who are looking at Timber Lake as a venue, I will say this... weddings are a secondary and pretty new business venture for the camp. In addition to hosting hundreds of kids at the summer-long camp, they have a lot of other events that take place before, during and after the season.

I say this only because responses are delayed. Rest assured, emails always do get a response with thoughtful attention. Have patience knowing that the people responding to your emails are the same people who are manning those other events.

So remember that this means they are incredibly attentive and hands-on for YOUR event as well!

If you are “more traditional” in the sense that you may require a little more hand-holding in the planning process, you may want to explore other options… This IS a summer camp, not a 5-hour event space that hosts weddings every other weekend.

If you are specifically looking for a truly spectacular and unique summer camp wedding at a breathtakingly beautiful location, with some really lovely, kind and FUN people… without a doubt, check out Timber Lake Camp.

I may or may not already be planning a 5th anniversary party there, if that tells you...

We were drawn to have our wedding at Timber Lake Camp (TLC) after seeing a video of a previous wedding there! We reached out to this couple and they assured us it was the most magical weekend they ever had, and we in turn became friends and went all-in on our camp wedding. We were all set to wed in Fall of 2020, but then COVID hit, we were panicked about what to do, but Meredith of the TLC events team held our hand, listened to our concerns, and even helped to arrange to reschedule our wedding to the Fall of 2021 without any hassle or additional costs.We were so relieved and grateful!

So, now on to the lead-up to our wedding weekend! The TLC team was a delight to work with on site tours, Scott was super knowledgeable and laid back, and Reggie won us over with his intimate understanding of the camp paired with his enthusiasm and charm! They were great at keeping our planner in the loop and always had a team approach from start to finish. We are a very laid-back couple, so the TLC approach to planning was the perfect fit for us, as they are not micro-managers they serve up what they offer and then match your needs and energy.

When the start of our wedding weekend began, we and our guests were greeted and directed to our cabins with warmth and care. Our welcome events were amazing. The barbeque was flawless with Reggie at the helm! We hosted a Roller Disco at the Timber Dome (TLC's roller-hockey rink). The music system worked well, Scott was such a great help at making this all come to life, and it really was a dream come true. My only note would be to practice walkie-talkie communication with the staff at your venue tours, because it can become a little tricky to acclimate and make multiple welcome events run smoothly (In our case, barbeque, roller disco, and bonfire).

Now for the main event, the day went off without a hitch! Reggie and crew were at the helm for breakfast, and all of our guests fell in love with him. The activities for the day involved the waterfront, pool, zip line, and adventure course. The team at each activity station was more than gracious and helpful whilst always keeping safety at the forefront. Special shout-out to the zip-line and adventure course team for really allowing for flexibility for our guests. The ceremony and wedding reception were expertly prepared by the TLC staff and our vendors. All seating was set to our specifications, they really made that day easy for us by ushering and helping guests down the ceremony site and reception sites. The show stopper was definitely the saddleback mountain that served as the backdrop for our wedding and reflected creating a mirror image in the lake! Our ceremony and subsequent reception were absolutely magical, they managed to be a little elevated, a little casual, but all together unforgettable! The majority of our guests had never been to a camp wedding and were completely blown away by the experience and now over a month later I am still getting constant texts from guests saying that they're dreaming of going back to TLC. The weekend was absolutely transformative and it's everything that getting married should be it was a relaxing environment for folks to let their guard down, connect with each other, and celebrate not only the love of the couple getting married but love in general. I would get married there...