for boys followed in 1924 in Thurmont, Maryland. The camps provided an
opportunity for Jewish immigrants to bond with their peers.

Located 8 or 9 miles apart in the Catoctin Mountains of western
Maryland, these camps were also affordable.

“Our camps were founded on a basis that no Jewish child who
wanted a camp experience shouldn’t be able to come due to economic
reasons,” says Lauren Perlin, the camps’ director of development.

That commitment has endured today. The Awesome Fund
campaign awards more than $400,000 to families annually and
continues to receive its support from the Straus Foundation.

These efforts support enduring traditions that have been a significant
part of the camp appeal since the beginning, including Friday night folk
dances and Shabbat.

“These kids are counting
down the days from the
moment they leave camp
until the following summer.

It’s pretty remarkable the
impact that we could have.”
—Alicia Berlin,
director, Camp Louise
Sometimes, these experiences were campers’ primary connection to
their culture.

“The songs, the prayers and the values—a lot of that I learned at camp
more so than Hebrew school,” says Mark’s wife, Kim, whose association
with the camp began as a camper in 1989.

With few Jewish peers where he grew up in Salisbury, Mark—whose Camp
Airy bonds started as a camper in 1987—formed his Jewish identity at camp.

Although they didn’t realize how important these connections were at
the time, relationships are one of the reasons the Fines send their children
to camp today.

Connections Camp activities now include more diverse options, but the essence of camp
remains the same.

“Camp is still, I think, at its core—then and now—about walking around,
goofing around and laughing with your bunkmates and your friends,” says
PHOTOS: PROVIDED BY CAMPS AIRY AND LOUISE; MARK AND KIM FINE
WOOD BACKGROUND: NUIIKO/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS
PHOTO FRAME: AS CREATIVE ATELIER/DIGITALVISION VECTORS
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