Greetings from JCamp 180 to all Jewish Camp Boards and Staff as we near the end of an unforgettable summer. We want to share with you the amazing progress Jewish overnight camps have made on the All Together Now Matching Grant and all that you have accomplished this summer. You should be proud of the impact you've had on your camp and your community!
As of this week, the Harold Grinspoon Foundation has released more than $8 million of our $10 million gift toward Jewish overnight camps. More than two-thirds of the camps have completed the match and so many are on their way to completing the challenge!
What does this accomplishment tell us? Early in the pandemic, armed with the matching grant opportunity, camps started reaching out with confidence, a clear message, and purpose to donors to unlock resources. And your donors responded! Thousands of individual gifts, including so many parent donors, showed up for you! Through this incredible outpouring, they showed how important camp is to their families and to their Jewish future. They also demonstrated how camp is a vital part of their philanthropic priorities. And, now we must collectively hold on to these new donors and continue to share our camp journey with them.
We can’t wait to tell you more about All Together Now in the coming months and share more about the success of Day and Overnight Camps at the JCamp 180 Conference October 18-20. Thank you for all that you have done to reach this incredible goal and we are here to help you keep going to continue to meet your funding challenges.
I had the opportunity to meet with Harold in person earlier this week in the office! Harold was just back from his annual white-water rafting trip in Idaho (to celebrate his 91st birthday!) and busy with so many projects. We had a wide-ranging and interesting conversation and he remains completely engaged in your progress and committed to your success.
Read more from this eNewsletter:
>> What's Coming Up - Conference and More
>> New CDC Camp Study on how four Maine camps safely operated this summer
>> Thank You! (And a song from JCamp 180 Director Sarah Eisinger and family)