Jewish camps are often described as the number one experience for building Jewish identity among children and teens, according to Noa Havivi.
“I went to camp for 18 summers, and one of the best parts of my job is to be able to offer this opportunity and lower the [camp costs] for families to have this real gift that I feel gave me so much,” said Havivi, the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington’s associate director of community impact. “I think it’s one of the best things we do.”
Every year, the Federation offers grants to families looking to send their children to Jewish overnight camps across the country. Havivi says there are two different types of grants: need-based and “need-blind.”
The need-blind grant, called the One Happy Camper Grant, is a one-time incentive grant the federation runs in partnership with the Foundation for Jewish Camp, a nonprofit that raises funds every year for Jewish day and overnight camps in North America.
“The intended purpose of the grant is to incentivize choosing overnight Jewish camp, as opposed to maybe a non-Jewish camp or a private camp,” she said. “It’s supposed to lower the barrier to entry.”
The grants only help fund campers attending nonprofit camps and to families whose campers do not attend Jewish Day School.
Havivi explained that campers’ families can apply for the grant and do not need to provide any financial information. “There’s no financial threshold. There’s no questions about minimum household income or average household income,” she said. “One Happy Camper is the incentive to take the first step — and that a camper will fall in love with whatever camp they choose to go to, [with] their support from Federation and the community to continue that journey summer after summer.”
However, support from the Federation does not stop there. The Federation also offers financial aid scholarships to campers through the camps themselves.
“Part of what’s really special about this program is that we actually don’t know who the [recipients] are,” Havivi said.
“[The] Federation allocates funds to camps, who distribute the scholarships based on their financial aid (need-based) criteria – so their identities remain anonymous to [the] Federation,” she explained. “This dignity and privacy piece is really important to us.”
Although the Federation does not find out who receives this form of financial aid, officials do know that the funds are appreciated by the recipients.
“What we really know is that it makes a huge difference for families,” she said. “We do a survey that we ask the camps to send out on our behalf — because we don’t know who these families are — to talk about the impact and the decision making.
Havivi shared with Washington Jewish Week some of the feedback the Federation has gotten from those surveys: “For my family, camp financial aid is truly transformative. It goes beyond helping cover the cost of tuition for my daughter. Jewish sleepaway camp was the first time she built independence outside of home, formed lifelong friendships and connected [with] Jewish identity.”
“The support you give makes the difference between camp as a dream and camp as a life-changing reality. It’s not just a subsidy, it’s an investment in children, families and the future of the Jewish community. When a family in need receives the support it brings hope, dignity and assurance that their child has access to the same joyful and formative experience as their peers.”
“And that’s just one parent [who] submitted this on their survey anonymously,” Havivi said. “Once you get your foot in the door, you’re in for a life changing experience.”
