Although our hometown team, the Villanova Wildcats, did not bring home a championship, we still consider this event to have been a slam dunk! We wanted to thank everyone for their participation and say congratulations to all the winners! With your help (all 100+ of you who made brackets), we were able to raise $2,000+, which will help cover medical supply costs for our Health Center as well as program supplies (including basketballs!).

We look forward to an even bigger Hoops for Camp Jamison event next year but in the meantime please consider participating in Camp-A-Jawn, our month-long fundraising and awareness-raising campaign to support Camp Jamison and spread the word about the benefits of summer camp for everyone! Camp-A-Jawn will be going on throughout the month of May and our goal is to raise $25,000 to provide two sessions of Camp Jamison opportunities without worrying about finances. We have several events you can participate in, including our first ever Hike-A-Thon, which will be conducted both virtually for those based outside of the Philadelphia area and in-person on Saturday, June 4, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. at John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum, where a group of us will hike the popular 3.5-mile Wetland Loop there. To learn more about Camp-A-Jawn and our Hike-A-Thon, please visit the link below. We look forward to seeing you (virtually or in-person) there!

https://campjamison.org/camp-a-jawn/

Dear Camp Jamison Supporters,

Think back to two years ago today. At that time, the COVID-19 pandemic was still new and packed with uncertainty and fear. Recently we have been able to get closer to life as we knew it before 2020. But as we embrace a return to the familiar, we also have the opportunity to do things differently. Bettina Love, a fabulous educator and thought leader, contends that we simply cannot go back to the way things were. And at Camp Jamison, we agree. We must reimagine our world with children first, the whole child, and every child.  We must listen first. Not listen to incorporate, but listen to help young people take agency and transform the world into a more just place. At Camp Jamison, we listen to children, and that’s why, year after year, campers return to spend their summers with us.

One of those campers is now an almost 19-year-old Philadelphian. As a camper, he loved hiking Tumbling Waters, staying up too late, and keeping his counselors on their toes. At 14, after his week at camp, he wrote, “during the summertime, there isn’t a lot to do due to the heat in Philly, but I’m glad that I was able to come to camp, see my friends, go hiking and play basketball. It’s nice to see nature that we rarely get back in the city. Thank you for giving me this chance.”

Fast forward to the summer of 2021, after completing his first year as a counselor for other campers like himself, Jamel stood confidently in front of a room of reporters and celebrated what summer camp had done for him and its importance in our world. He said, “I have been going to camp for as long as I can remember. I owe the world to Camp Jamison for showing me another world outside of my city, a world that just felt so free and helped me strive as a Black man by teaching me leadership, how to care for others, and to keep going when things get hard.”  That is the life-changing impact of summer camp.  We are also happy to share that Jamel is now finishing his first year of college and joining Camp Jamison for his second year as a counselor. His campers can’t wait to see him!

Campers like Jamel and their families have been telling and asking us for more Camp Jamison since 2011!  And after these last few years, we can’t wait any longer to give the children of Philadelphia more summer camp.  We know our kids have dealt with so much and deserve more worry-free fun in a safe and inclusive community. That’s why we are asking you to help us fund our Double the Camp, Double the Impact Initiative.

In the summer of 2022, Camp Jamison will be by offering two sessions! This will allow us to double the number of campers able to attend and therefore double the positive impact of summer camp.

There is so much to look forward to, but it can only happen with your support. This year, with your help we have raised $76,000 for our 2022 sessions!  However, we still have a gap of $135,000 to ensure Camp Jamison has TWO sessions and sends 170 kids to overnight summer camp. With your help, they will be able to enjoy a fun-filled experience of hiking, swimming, and just being a kid while breathing in the fresh air of the Pocono Mountains.  Our campers leave transformed, having learned leadership, how to care for others, and how to keep going when things get hard.  They’ll go back into the community ready to lead and care for others.

Click here to make your tax-deductible gift today.

With gratitude,

Jacqueline McDonough

Founder and Executive Director of Camp Jamison

Donor Levels

Come to learn about the importance of summer camp for children in the summer of 2022 more than any other summer before as we see the devastating impacts of our mental health national crisis.  Camp Jamison is a prevention from violence and a solution for every child who deserves to experience the benefits of a safe, inclusive, diverse overnight camp where they are celebrated, loved, and having fun.

This is open to anyone who would like to learn more about Camp Jamison and those who have a vested interest in the future of Camp Jamison in 2022 and beyond.

Being able to double our session is in jeopardy when our children need it more than ever.  If we don’t act now, it will be too late for the kids who need a safe place this July.  It’ll be too late for the kids who deserve summer camp magic and only get concrete and bullets.  So come join me to learn and engage in how summer camp heals, creates, and transforms children while having fun in nature and why you should join us to help make it happen.

Yours in Camping,

Jacqueline

Founder and Executive Director of Camp Jamison

Link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/4856212619?pwd=TWtBRS9iVzV4V2VUdEN6czdKSnRSdz09

The NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournaments starts with a bracket of 64 teams. Before Thursday, March 17th you can try your hand at predicting the winner for each one of the 63 games. Your methodology is entirely up to you, whether that’s taking a deep dive into the statistics, flipping a coin, or having your dog make picks for you.

To join us:

First, make a suggested donation of $25 for 1 bracket, $50 for 3, or $100 for 7 at https://lght.ly/igbhmi5 or via Venmo to @CampJamison.

Then, join the Hoops for Camp Jamison group at https://lght.ly/28nbfn3 to lock in your picks.

Finally, sit back and watch the madness unfold, and either revel in victory or witness your bracket get busted before the first weekend!

As the games progress, you’ll get points for every winner you picked correctly. Those points increase every round. Games in the second round are worth twice as much as games in the first round, and so on.

At the end of the tournament, the participants with the most points will win some exciting prizes!

Here’s what’s up for grabs:

Basketball signed by Jay Wright
Philadelphia Flyers tickets
Villanova Wildcats tickets
$100 Amazon gift card
$25 Toni Roni’s gift card

We hope you’ll join the Camp Jamison community for our first-ever March Madness fundraiser, Hoops for Camp Jamison!

All proceeds from this fundraiser will help us to provide a life-changing camp experience to Philly-area kids this summer.

Thank you for your support and good luck!