Events
Ranch Events
HCYR puts on a variety of special events throughout the year to raise funds and awareness for all 3 of our campuses.
For information about current events, please contact Tim Campbell at tcampbell@youth-ranch.org
HEALING HEARTS LUNCHEON
September 19th, 2023
Open House Series
Summer
Headwaters of the Frio Marathon
April 1st, 2023
47th ANNUAL HEALING HEARTS LUNCHEON
The 47th annual Healing Hearts Celebration, Style Show, & Auction will be held at the Y.O. Ranch Hotel & Conference Center on Tuesday, September 19th.
Come on out to enjoy a delicious lunch, updates from Hill Country Youth Ranch's Executive Director, a performance by the children, a Style Show of the best fashions from the HCYR Thrift
Store, Raffles, Silent Auction, Live Auction, and shopping for fashionable clothing, jewelry, and accessories from the Thrift Store Boutique!
Reservations by check should be made payable to the HCYR Auxiliary and sent to:
Carolyn Richardson
515 E Nottingham Dr., San Antonio, TX 78209
*Please also include your email address and phone number to confirm your
tickets.
OPEN HOUSE SERIES
The Summer Open House Series has concluded for 2023, but tours are still available! Please contact Wynita Yancy at marketing@youth-ranch.org for more information and scheduling.
Our Open Houses are the perfect opportunity to see firsthand the impact of our work and to discover ways to get involved!
You will have the chance to tour our facilities, meet our staff, and learn more about our programs and services. Whether you are interested in volunteering or advocating for HCYR, we welcome you!
Headwaters of the Frio Trail Marathon, Half, 12K, 5K
This is truly a special event, and we’re looking for a special kind of participant! If you’re the kind of person who finds joy and fulfillment in physical challenges like marathons, half marathons, 10K’s, or 5K’s, whether running or walking, AND have a heart to help kids by supporting worthy nonprofits like Hill Country Youth Ranch / Big Springs Ranch for Children, you’re just the kind of person we’re looking for! The event is limited to 300 total participants. Plan now to join us on April 1st, 2023 for our 5th annual Headwaters of the Frio event!
The Headwaters of the Frio Trail Marathon, Half, 12K, & 5K is a challenging run/walk event across the rugged and isolated terrain of one of the most beautiful ranches in the Texas Hill
Country. This annual event highlights the vital mission of Hill Country Youth Ranch and Big Springs Ranch for Children which work to bring healing and restoration to children who have been
victims of abuse, abandonment and neglect.
This wonderful event happened on April 1st, 2023. Stay connected for updates about future events!
Holidays at HCYR
A part of the healing process includes making good memories. We work hard to create an environment where kids can have fun and embrace their childhood. Here are just some of our events that we put on annually for our Ranch family:
Easter Weekend
Every Good Friday since 1978, our
Founder Gary Priour has retold the Easter story under the same old oak tree, to residents and staff, before our annual garden planting. The planting of seeds, he explains, parallels
the Easter story. The miracle of transformation follows a time of darkness.
After planting, fun activities fill the weekend, including a traditional Easter egg hunt, pictures with the Easter Bunny, and a delicious meal. Easter is presented as a weekend of good news,
with a unifying story of healing and new life, as well as an occasion to look forward to!
Thanksgiving
Gathering for a Thanksgiving meal while sharing reasons to be thankful is the oldest tradition at the Youth Ranch, dating back to a simple picnic in 1977 when volunteers gathered under an oak tree on the undeveloped land. To this day, we repeat the ritual faithfully.
Expressions of gratitude bring out the best in everyone, especially when bonding over holiday food! After dinner, we listen to songs and poems, and watch perfomances that the children put together. We are glad we have a holiday focused on the good things God has done.
Christmas
Most of our children have unfortunately been deprived of the magic of Christmas. We approach this holiday as a time to shower children with gifts, holiday food, and fun events in order to give them a whole new experience. Every year our children get to create their own Christmas list so that they can feel special, appreciated, and valued.
For many of our Alumni, this yearly program is a time that they often look back on and share. It is a time for making new memories with new friends and becoming part of a new tradition that they can share with their own families in the future.