MAY 7 • 2020 | 15

won’
t be able to safely run camp at all 
this summer.” 
While no one is willing to say it 
publicly, the idea of any camps starting 
in June is becoming more and more 
unlikely. While delaying the start 
date is an option, nobody is rushing 
to decide. All this uncertainty should 
become clearer when the CDC provides 
guidelines, which, according to the 
American Camp Association, are 
expected in early May.
“We feel we owe it to our community 
to really think it through given the ever-
unfolding picture of this virus,” Bendat-
Appell said. “One of, if not the worst, 
outcomes for camps would be to run 
and then have to shut down.” 
Walden Director Liz Stevens said 
there’
s a lot of pent-up desire to get kids 
out of the house and doing something 
active and social. “Camp is an amazing 
outlet for that,” she said. “It’
s ironic. 
Camp is probably the best cure for 
social isolation, and yet because it’
s such 
a communal and intimate space, it’
s also 
a potentially unhealthy place.”
Lillian Harwin, a freshman at Walled 
Lake Northern High School, is the kind 
of teen who lives for camp. She’
s been 
going to Camp Tamarack since she was 
7 and has been looking forward to her 
upcoming Western trip for as long as 
she can remember. 
“When I go to school, what I think 
about in the back of my head is how 
many more days until I can go to camp. 
It gets me through school, knowing I’
ll 
be going back. I’
m not thrilled about 
the fact that I might not be able to go 
for my seventh year,” she said. “If I can’
t 

go, my birthday will 
be at home, and I don’
t 
remember the last time 
that has happened. If 
camp doesn’
t happen, 
I honestly don’
t know 
what I will do.” 
If camps do not 
open this season, the 
economic impact could 
be catastrophic. For 
some camps, their financial security 
depends on running each summer. 
As soon as one season ends, a camp is 
already spending money on staffing, 
infrastructure, insurance, maintenance 
and other things to get ready for the 
next summer, according to Stevens.
“If camps cancel, most camps, 
ourselves included, will refund families’
 
tuition, but we’
ve already been spending 
that tuition for half the year,” Stevens 
said. “It’
s a potentially existential crisis 
for every camp I know of. It’
s pretty 
clear that not every summer camp is 
going to survive this crisis because there 
is such a fundamental disruption in the 
business model.
“Do we think if we don’
t run this 
summer, Camp Walden will go away? 
No, not even close. It will make the next 
few years a little financially precarious. 
But I think if we don’
t have camp, it’
s 
going to be the best and safest decision 
we could have made, and, in the long 
run, it’
s going to benefit everyone.” 
Stevens added that their decision 
will be made based on the health and 
wellness of their campers and not their 
pocketbooks.
From a purely business perspective, 
the earlier a camp cancels, the better, in 
terms of preserving and safeguarding 
the camp’
s financial futures, Bendat-
Appell said.
“However, these are not just 
businesses, so we’
re really aware of how 
important camp is for our families and 
our campers,” he said. “Now, more than 
ever, our kids need camp and so we feel 
we owe it to them to keep going until 
it’
s clear that it’
s no longer viable.” 

What Local Camps
Are Saying

JCC DAY CAMPS
Judy Loebl, assistant executive director of the 
Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan 
Detroit, said they are in constant contact with 
the American Camp Association for all the 
latest guidelines and recommendations. 
“If we can do it in a safe way, we’
d like 
to be open for all, if not part, of the summer. 
Obviously, we’
ll have to wait and see how 
we can do it safely and if the guidelines are 
doable.”
Last year, approximately 550 campers 
attended JCC Day Camps. 

TAMARACK CAMPS
On May 4, Tamarack Camps sent an email 
to families and donors alerting them that 
all summer 2020 programming would be 
cancelled.
“This decision, ultimately, was driven 
by science and medicine, based upon the 
recognition that the known and unknown risks 
of transmission could significantly compromise 
the hallmark of our organization, an unyielding 
commitment to health and safety,” the 
announcement read.
Parents and guardians were presented 
with three different payment options: rolling 
over payment to summer 2021, donating all 
or part of their camp fees to the organization 
or obtaining a full refund. They could also 
combine the different options.
As of press time, Tamarack had scheduled 
virtual town hall meetings to discuss how 
they came to the decision and the financial 
implications. Check their website for further 
updates.

WILLOWAY DAY CAMP
Owners Arnie and Lorraine Fisher said as long 
as the guidelines allow for it, they are planning 
on running camp. 
“It’
s all maybes, but we’
re optimistic, and 
we’
re planning for summer. We have the 
staff, we have the facility, and we have the 
ability to be up and running in a short time,” 
said Lorraine Fisher, adding that if camps 
are allowed to open and social distancing is 
required, “We have 16 acres. I think we can 
figure it out.” 
Last summer, 500 campers attended 
Willoway. 

go, my
my bir
irth
thday wi
will
ll 

Lillian Harwin 
celebrating her birthday 
at camp last year. 

LILLIAN HARWIN