In an article recently published in Psychology Today, Michael Unger Ph.D., a family therapist, a researcher at Dalhousie University, and the author of The We Generation: Raising Socially Responsible Kids, wrote a simple yet brilliant piece on the importance of summer camps in building resilient kids. The conclusions he reached were the result of conversations with 300 camp directors in both day camps and resident camps. Summer Camping – he said – provides 7 essential things that all children need. I call them the Summer Seven:
1) Camp helps form new relationships, not just with peers, but with trusted adults other than their parents. Just think about how useful a skill like that is: being able to negotiate on your own with an adult for what you need.
2) Camp can foster a powerful identity that makes the child feel confident in front of others. Your child may not be the best on the ropes course or the next teen idol when he sings, but chances are that a good camp counselor is going to help your child find something to be proud of that she can do well.
3) Camps help children feel in control of their lives, and those experiences of self-efficacy can travel home as easily as a special art project or the pine cone they carry in their backpack. Children who experience themselves as competent will be better problem-solvers in new situations.
4) Camps make sure that all children are treated fairly. The wonderful thing about camp is that nearly every child starts without the baggage they carry from school, and in those cases where the baggage travels with them, the camp will find opportunities to just be kids who are valued for who they are. No camps tolerate bullying.
5) At camp kids get what they need to develop physically. Ideally, fresh air, exercise, and a balance between routine and unstructured time.
6) Perhaps best of all, camps offer kids a chance to feel like they belong. There really is a purpose to all those goofy chants and team songs; it creates a sense of common purpose and attachment to the identity that camps promote go a long way to offering children a sense of being rooted.
7) And finally, camps can offer children a better sense of their culture. It might be a Shabbat song, or a special camp program, or maybe it's just a chance for children to understand themselves a bit more as they learn about others. Camps give kids both cultural roots and the chance to understand others who have cultures different than their own.
Any parent who would read this might be tempted to rush out and enroll their child in camp tomorrow, spending as much as they could afford to get the “best” camp possible, assuming that the more prestigious the camp, the more likely he or she is to get the most of the Summer Seven benefits. But here’s the rub. Cost and prestige doesn’t mean better; in fact, sometimes it may mean worse.
According to Dr. Unger, “The worst camps pander to children as if they are entitled little creatures whose parents are paying big sums of money. Children at camp can't be treated like customers if they are going to get anything out of the experience. They need to be treated like students whose caregivers, the counselors, know what the kids need to grow.”
Here at the Friedberg JCC Family of Camps, children’s growth and development is our number one concern. We’re not just a camp – we’re a social service agency, whose philosophies and programs reflect the best of the Summer Seven. Think about our STARFISH program (Sportsmanship, Tolerance, Appreciation, Respect, Friendship, Integrity, Sensitivity and Helpfulness) that permeates all of our camp activities and philosophies. When it comes to building character, friendships and sense of self, we’re number 1! So spread the word. Camp is good for kids, and our camps are GREAT!
Best,
Arnie
Friday, March 16, 2012
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
A Million Dollars Worth of Love
Philanthropy is the core of what we do. Without philanthropic individuals who contribute to the JCC, we could not exist. Scholarship for families who cannot afford the cost of camp or school, subsidies for seniors living on a fixed income, low costs for teen memberships to encourage participation at the JCC...all this can only occur through the generosity of others.
Nat Glanz, who sat on our Board of Directors for nearly a decade, was one of those “others.” He and his wife Muriel set up the “Glanz Challenge,” which funded the JCC’s special needs programs and Sunrise Day Camp. The premise of the challenge was simple: for every $2 raised, Nat and Muriel would put in a dollar of their own money, up to $10,000. Nat wanted to inspire others to give, and each year the Glanz Challenge succeeded in doing just that, bringing in $30,000 each year between their gift and the gifts of others.
We lost Nat in 2010, and when I say it was a loss, I mean it in every sense of the word. Nat’s passing left a hole in our hearts and in our agency; his generosity was only overshadowed by his sunny, gregarious personality. Nat made a room shine when he walked in, and the loss of his presence is still felt in our halls today. But what we didn’t know at the time was that we would lose Muriel soon after in 2011. Muriel, a deeply kind and generous person in her own right, used to accompany Nat to Board Meetings, and the folks around the table loved her so much that they made her an honorary board member – a position rarely bestowed upon anyone. Her loss, coming so soon after Nat’s, left us stunned. Two of our most loving, generous board members would no longer be with us, and the void left by their passing will always remain.
But the Glanzs’ believed in the future, and their wish was that the JCC – which they both loved so dearly -- continue to be a strong, vibrant Center long past their time with us. And so, just last week, we received a check from their estate for one million dollars. This was a legacy gift that Nat and Muriel had begun making provisions for years ago, their goal being that it help the JCC to grow for generations to come.
Part on the funds they left us will be used towards the construction of an addition to the JCC building, while the balance will be used to develop new programs over the years as well as increasing our services to special populations – all areas that mattered to them and which will help to secure our long-term viability. And because they loved our staff so much, a portion of their gift will be used to create some staff awards, to recognize and encourage the most innovative among us.
The Talmud says, “Just as my ancestors planted for me, I shall plant for my children.” Nat and Muriel, by looking to the future with generosity and forethought, have planted for generations to come. May their memories be a blessing, and may we all follow their example and remember those who will inherit the earth long after we are gone.
Best always,
Arnie
Nat Glanz, who sat on our Board of Directors for nearly a decade, was one of those “others.” He and his wife Muriel set up the “Glanz Challenge,” which funded the JCC’s special needs programs and Sunrise Day Camp. The premise of the challenge was simple: for every $2 raised, Nat and Muriel would put in a dollar of their own money, up to $10,000. Nat wanted to inspire others to give, and each year the Glanz Challenge succeeded in doing just that, bringing in $30,000 each year between their gift and the gifts of others.
We lost Nat in 2010, and when I say it was a loss, I mean it in every sense of the word. Nat’s passing left a hole in our hearts and in our agency; his generosity was only overshadowed by his sunny, gregarious personality. Nat made a room shine when he walked in, and the loss of his presence is still felt in our halls today. But what we didn’t know at the time was that we would lose Muriel soon after in 2011. Muriel, a deeply kind and generous person in her own right, used to accompany Nat to Board Meetings, and the folks around the table loved her so much that they made her an honorary board member – a position rarely bestowed upon anyone. Her loss, coming so soon after Nat’s, left us stunned. Two of our most loving, generous board members would no longer be with us, and the void left by their passing will always remain.
But the Glanzs’ believed in the future, and their wish was that the JCC – which they both loved so dearly -- continue to be a strong, vibrant Center long past their time with us. And so, just last week, we received a check from their estate for one million dollars. This was a legacy gift that Nat and Muriel had begun making provisions for years ago, their goal being that it help the JCC to grow for generations to come.
Part on the funds they left us will be used towards the construction of an addition to the JCC building, while the balance will be used to develop new programs over the years as well as increasing our services to special populations – all areas that mattered to them and which will help to secure our long-term viability. And because they loved our staff so much, a portion of their gift will be used to create some staff awards, to recognize and encourage the most innovative among us.
The Talmud says, “Just as my ancestors planted for me, I shall plant for my children.” Nat and Muriel, by looking to the future with generosity and forethought, have planted for generations to come. May their memories be a blessing, and may we all follow their example and remember those who will inherit the earth long after we are gone.
Best always,
Arnie
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