Maya Gattman-Frank is one of two Jews in her class at Forest Elementary School on the outskirts of Santa Rosa. But she wears her Camp Swig T-shirt to school as a symbol of pride in her heritage.
“Camp made me feel so much more proud to be Jewish. It made me feel great to meet so many other Jewish kids because in my school I’m one of the only ones,” said the 10-year-old.
Last summer she returned from a two-week session at Camp Swig on a partial scholarship: Not only does she plan to return next year, but she also wants to become a camp counselor when she’s old enough.
Recognizing the value of a summer camp experience like Gattman-Frank’s, the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation’s Endowment Newhouse Fund has awarded a $100,000 grant for camp scholarships. The funds will be allocated by the S.F.-based Bureau of Jewish Education to assist deserving and needy families wishing to send their children to federation-affiliated Jewish residential camps next summer.
“Camp participation has long since been proven to be an ideal way to provide involvement in Jewish life,” said Newhouse committee member Stuart Aronoff.
The Newhouse Fund addresses compelling human needs in the areas of education, health, religion and elder care, Aronoff added.
During the past 15 years, the Newhouse Fund has made it possible for members of 2,000 families to attend Jewish camps, including Camp Swig, Camp Tawonga, Camp Arazim, Camp Moshava, Camp Ramah and Camp Young Judea West.
Nineteen-year-old Stephanie Kennedy attended Camp Tawonga from ages 11 to 15 on a partial scholarship. Last summer she was hired by Tawonga as the camp’s drama specialist and has an open invitation to return in that capacity.
Kennedy said the best part about camp was that everything focused on making the experience special for the campers.
“I walked away every summer feeling good about myself. It’s a wonderful feeling to be surrounded by a community that openly celebrates Judaism,” she said.
A drama major at San Francisco State University, Kennedy will be directing a Purim show at her synagogue in which the third-grade class will teach the other classes about the holiday.
“A Jewish camp experience is extremely important for a great number of kids, many of whom are unaffiliated,” said Kerin Lieberman, the BJE’s associate director.
Lieberman said she works with a volunteer committee of past and current BJE board members and lay representatives from each of the summer camps to review requests — which are anonymous — for scholarship funds.
The demand for camp scholarships has grown dramatically in recent years as camp fees continue to rise. Today it can cost as much as $1,900 to send one child to summer camp for just 19 days.
Consequently, a growing number of single-parent and unemployed families need financial assistance to send their children to summer camp. Last summer, 62 percent of the scholarship applicants came from single-parent homes and 42 percent from families with gross incomes under $30,000.
Lieberman said she has no reason to believe that the demand for scholarships will be less this year than in the past. If anything, she anticipates that more than 200 applications will be reviewed and ranked by need for the summer of 1997.
George Saxe, chair of the Newhouse committee, stresses the importance of helping children go to camp.
“There is no better way for them to have an outstanding Jewish experience than by going to camp,” he said. “we’ve seen the results with our own children and now our grandchildren.”
Financial assistance applications are available mid-December and are due back at the camp by March 2. For information regarding the Jewish Community Endowment’s Newhouse Fund, call Phyllis Cook, endowment director, at (415) 777-0411.