Sunshine and laughter.
Music and art.

Sports and waterplay.

Exploration and discovery.

Some things are simply

Putting Camp
Within Reach

better together.

Foundation for Jewish Camp
launches affordability initiative.

FOUNDATION FOR JEWISH CAMP

TM

T

he Foundation for Jewish Camp
(FJC) has launched BunkConnect
(BunkConnect.org), a new,
national program that matches eligible
families with high-quality nonprofit
Jewish summer camps at a more afford-
able price. This philanthropic business
venture has been developed in collabo-
ration with forward-thinking business
executives and leading philanthropists.
"BunkConnect marries best practices
from the business world, new technolo-
gies and learnings from the hospitality
industry, and takes a fresh approach to
addressing affordability in Jewish life,"
said Michael Leven, president and COO of
the Las Vegas Sands Corp., former camper
and counselor, and key program funder.
"I am very excited to bring this pro-
gram to a national stage and see how we
can help more kids have a summer expe-
rience like those that were so meaningful
to me many years ago7
Jewish overnight camp offers children
the opportunity to discover who they
are and build connections to the Jewish
future while having the time of their lives.
The experience is widely viewed as an
essential part of fostering Jewish identity
in children and creating a robust Jewish
community.
BunkConnect is an easy to use online
system. After income-eligible families
of all Jewish backgrounds supply some
basic, confidential information into
the new tool, BunkConnect matches
them with available camp sessions at
low introductory rates (40 percent-60
percent off list prices). This initiative is
modeled after the success of FJC's One
Happy Camper program — a need-blind
grant initiative for first-time campers.
"Families want to send their children
to Jewish camp. By matching their desire
with available summer experiences,
we are opening new avenues of access;
said Jeremy J. Fingerman, CEO of FJC.
"BunkConnect is changing how we look

Like sunshine and laughter, come experience
why Summer
and Hillel are better
together. For campers 2-5 years old.

For more information, contact Robin Pappas,
Director of the Early Childhood Center, at
248-539-1489 or rpappas@hillelday.org .

H
I LLEL
DAY SCHOOL

EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER

Mind and soul. Better together.

1963560

30

December 4 • 2014

at scholarship, affordability, and capacity
for Jewish camp and beyond7
Len Leader, former president of the
Venture Group of AOL Time Warner
Investments and BunkConnect funder,
said, "By using sound economic prin-
ciples and leveraging market dynamics,
we are seeing in BunkConnect an excit-
ing new philanthropic business form.
This is a model designed to be 'the gift
that keeps giving' to all parties involved,
especially the campers:'
BunkConnect launched nationally at
the end of November with 75 participat-
ing camps, representing various move-
ments and denominations. The program
is for first-time campers, basing eligibil-
ity on a family's adjusted gross income,
number of dependent children and place
of legal residency. For example, through
BunkConnect, a family with two chil-
dren living in Illinois with a maximum
adjusted gross income of $145,000 can
realize the dream of Jewish camp. Jewish
day school families are welcome.
BunkConnect is a program of
Foundation for Jewish Camp with
the Center for Entrepreneurial Jewish
Philanthropy (CEJP), made possible
by generous funding from the AVI
CHAI Foundation, the Leader Family
Foundation, the Michael and Andrea
Leven Family Foundation, and the Jack
and Goldie Wolfe Miller Fund with
additional support from Eileen and Jerry
Lieberman.
"The philanthropists we advise chal-
lenged us to create an outcome-driven
business approach that capitalizes on
the enormous impact of Jewish camp-
ing; said Joseph Hyman, president and
founder, CEJP. "BunkConnect is a game-
changing initiative that sets a standard
for other philanthropists and organiza-
tions to follow7
For more information, or to deter-
mine eligibility, visit www.BunkConnect.
org.

❑