JULY 17-18-19-20, 2026!
Friday–to–Monday
Registration Opens On March 15th.
Introducing Born to Drum Camp 2025
We are excited to be back at Bort Meadow in the East Bay Regional Park! We will present a 4-day camp again this year. Camp begins on Friday July 17th and will end on Monday, July 20th. This schedule gives us the opportunity to have 2 full days of 4 class periods on Saturday and Sunday along with evening activities. Friday and Monday will have 3 class periods each day along with the opening and closing ceremonies, and evening activities on Friday included.
Here is the 2026 BTD Camp Schedule. Please note that the schedule is subject to potential changes to accommodate needs that may arise.
We are also going to present our famous Faculty Concert on Thursday night (July 16) before camp at La Peña Cultural Center in Berkeley, Ca. You can purchase your tickets for the show through La Peña.
New for BTD 2026
We have some new offerings this year that we are totally excited about!
WELCOME NEW FACULTY MEMBERS: We have 2 wonderful new teachers this year: Thaís Bezerra who came all the way from Rio de Janeiro to be with us, and Katiana Vilá who has done extensive musical studies in Spain! Katiana is going to share the rhythms of Flamenco with us with palmas and cajon. Thaís along with Michaelle Goerlitz are going to create an exciting Brazil-in-Oakland Experience with 5 classes of Brazilian music!!
NEW TEACHING TENT: We have a new magic canopy for classes this year in the meadow above the Pine classroom. We are calling it Pine Meadow. It will be a large canopy and will host all the Brazilian classes and Debbie Fier’s Middle Eastern classes. It is also another hang out area in that part of the meadow when it is not being used for classes.
FOOD! My favorite thing! Last year we initiated our catered dinners offering and it was a HUGE success. This year, in addition to catered dinners, we are offering a lunch-time sandwich/salad bar option. We will have all the makings for salad and sandwiches put out every day at lunch. We are hoping to make it easier to come to camp by providing lunch and dinner options.
Registering for Camp
Registration at Bort Meadow is not complicated. In the registration form, you will choose the days you want to attend. The cost is the same for day attendance or camping overnight attendance. The table below shows the cost of camp for 2026. Children ages 0-4 attend for free and children ages 5-17 attend for half-price. Girls of all ages and boys ages 0-12 are welcome to attend.
Register for camp as an attendee through this link: Born to Drum Camp Registration Form 2026
*Registering as faculty, staff, or vendor? Please use this link instead: BTD 2026 Faculty, Staff, and Vendor Registration Form
Food at Camp
We will offer a catered dinner plate for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with a different cuisine each night. In 2026, we will also offer a lunchtime salad and sandwich bar all four days of camp. You can reserve dinners for $25 per day and lunch for $5-10 per day through the registration form.
Please keep in mind that dinners and lunches must be reserved in advance and cannot be purchased at camp. And of course, you can opt out of the catered dinners and bring your own food. Please note that we do not provide breakfast and we provide snacks more on an emergency/urgency basis. Please bring enough food/drinks to cover all your needed meals and snacks.
We have a NEW option this year for a catered dinner plate for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with a different cuisine each night. You can reserve dinners for $25 each through the registration form. Please keep in mind that dinners must be reserved in advance and cannot be purchased at camp. And of course, you can opt out of the catered dinners and bring your own food. Please note that we do not provide breakfast, lunch or snacks. Please bring enough food/drinks to cover all your needed meals and snacks.
Cancellation Policy
We have a firm cancellation policy. There is a graduated fee for cancellations, with no refunds possible after July 6th. The detailed cancellation policy is listed on our General Bort Meadow Information and Guidelines page. Thank you for your attention to these deadlines.
Financial Support and Paying It Forward
Women Drummers International is committed to making camp as financially accessible as we can to all women, and children. Our community at large has always given us generous support for this goal. We thank you ahead of time for your continued support. If you would like to donate to our scholarship fund, please do so on the registration form. No amount is too small and it goes a long way! For all those in need of financial support, you will be able to request this assistance through the registration form.
Volunteering
Bort Meadow is a rustic camping area and there are a lot of jobs that need to be done to create the space and make it comfortable for all. It takes a village to make camp happen! Everyone will have the opportunity in the registration form to sign-up to volunteer. This year we will be asking women receiving scholarships to help us manage and maintain camp by volunteering one shift for each day of camp.