Austin Eras
Where Camp Meets Calling: A Century of Impact in Austin
Key Takeaways
- ☀️ The legacy and evolution of Austin Sunshine Camps
- 🌲 How camp unlocks resilience, confidence, and curiosity in youth
- 💡 Erica’s journey from financial hardship to nonprofit leadership
- 🔁 Building a camper-to-counselor pipeline and workforce equity
- 🌉 Bridging opportunity gaps for 40,000+ kids in Central Texas
Meet the Guest
Erica Blue
Erica Blue is the CEO of Austin Sunshine Camps. After a six-year stint in the for-profit industry, she joined the non-profit world in 2008. Erica is passionate about supporting missions that positively affected the trajectory of her own life. When she's not at work, Erica can be found running on the trails around Central Texas or in South Austin, where she lives with her husband, Ray, and their two daughters, Ruby and Zoey.
Show Notes
Today’s guest is a powerhouse in the Austin nonprofit scene and someone whose personal story makes her leadership more powerful. Erica Blue is the CEO of Austin Sunshine Camps (ASC), a 100-year-old organization that provides free overnight camp experiences to Central Texas youth who wouldn’t otherwise have access. Under her leadership, ASC has not only deepened its impact, it’s also earned major recognition, including the 2024 Ethics and Business Award.
But Erica’s path to this kind of work didn’t start in a boardroom. It started with lived experience. Raised in Alief, a neighborhood in Houston, she knows what it means to navigate financial hardship firsthand. That background fuels her passion for youth development, equity, and building real pathways to opportunity.
In this inspiring episode, Adam sits down with Erica to explore how a century-old organization is changing lives—one camper at a time. The conversation dives into the nonprofit’s impact, Austin’s evolving social fabric, and the importance of mentorship, equity, and shared leadership in a growing city. Erica also offers a look at the future: expanding access, breaking down silos, and inviting more Austinites into the story.
About the Podcast
Austin Eras is a podcast that unravels Austin’s transformation into a 21st-century boomtown and explores its potential future. We invite listeners to explore the ever-changing landscape of this dynamic city through a unique format where each episode of Austin Eras unfolds a story of the city dissected through time.
We’ll explore the roots of vital topics, step into the present to take the current pulse of the city’s heartbeat, and leap into the future to envision the potential that awaits. Topics will range from BBQ to transportation, professional sports to land development – and everything in between.