By Nancy B. Greer
President & CEO
Ask any adult in your family or circle of friends about their Jewish camp memories and chances are good they will share vivid, joyful stories about their experience.
No matter what your favorite camp memory is—whether it was sharing Shabbat traditions, edging out competing teams in color war, playing hard at sports, or just getting to know new friends—camp made a lasting impact in shaping your Jewish identity.
Because camp has so many proven benefits in fostering a sense of belonging to Jewish community, making it possible through scholarships for more children to go to Jewish overnight summer camp has long been a priority of your Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle. That’s especially so now, two years into a pandemic that has brought unique challenges for Jewish life and keeping Jewish connections vibrant and strong.
Your Federation is now accepting scholarship applications for the 2022 season. Now is the time to give your child the priceless gift of a camp experience by applying for a scholarship.
Our three local sleepaway camps—Camp Solomon Schechter, Sephardic Adventure Camp, and URJ Camp Kalsman—provide rich Jewish experiences to every child who attends. That takes resources for ensuring that kids get the most out of their time at camp. Through scholarships that our many generous donors, legacy supporters, and the Samis Foundation make possible, your Federation helps lower financial barriers so that more children have an opportunity to go to camp.
Your Federation, through our professional staff and lay leaders, works thoughtfully with the camps to ensure that applicants’ needs are met and, with the funds available, to make it possible for as many children as possible to have the camp experience.
Federation scholarships helped 199 kids from our community attend camp last summer, locally and across the country. That is so much more than a statistic—each of those 199 children will have a unique mix of stories to share and memories to cherish about busy days and fun evenings gathering, learning, enjoying, and experiencing the timeless beauty of Jewish traditions and what it means to belong to our Jewish community.
Making it possible for more kids to go to camp is all about our Federation value of Kehilla/Areivut, building and strengthening community for now and generations to come.
Your kids will have the time of their lives at camp. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends, help spread the word about this opportunity. The first-round application deadline is Friday, March 4. Please apply for a camp scholarship today. Help your child build a treasure trove of wonderful memories!
