(RNS) — After nearly four decades, a summer camp for Hindu children and teens has a permanent home.

On Saturday (Nov. 18), the Hindu Heritage Youth Camp, the predominant Hindu summer program based in Houston, officially began construction of the Texas Hindu Campsite on a 52-acre plot of land.

While construction was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the campsite is set to open for a new round of campers by the summer of 2024, just one year before the camp’s 40-year anniversary.

“This will unite the Hindu community,” said Vijay Pallod, a longtime volunteer of HHYC and founder of hindusofhouston.org. “This is where the future Hindu leaders are going to come from.”

Saturday’s Bhumi Pujan, or ground-breaking ritual to Mother Earth, was attended by members of various Hindu religious organizations, among them priests from the 45 temples in the greater Houston area who blessed the land.

This Bhumi Pujan meant even more to volunteers like Pallod, whose wife and children have been heavily involved with the camp since the ’90s. To them, the dream of having a space just for the needs of Hindu youth has finally been realized.

This story was originally published in religionnews.com. Read the full story here .