Why Jewish Summer Camp Sustains our Jewish Community’s Future
For many young people, Jewish summer camp is more than just a place to swim, sing around a campfire, or play sports. It’s where lifelong connections are formed, Jewish identity is strengthened, and personal growth occurs. It is also where values such as community, leadership, joy, foundational Jewish learning, and resilience are lived every day.
Two landmark studies by the Foundation for Jewish Camp and the Jim Joseph Foundation served up data that showed how Jewish summer camp is integral to instilling and sustaining lifelong Jewish experiences and values.
One participant from the Jim Joseph study said, “[Camp] was a very different environment to anything I’d experienced before. I would say it opened my eyes to what community could look like in a way that I really connected with very strongly… I don’t think I really had a grasp on what a community was supposed to be before that.” These connections forged in a camp community last well beyond the camp years. Just peek through Herzl’s family news section of their newsletter, where you see a myriad of announcements of camp alumni’s engagements, births, other life events, and passings.
Yet for many families, the cost of Jewish summer camp is a barrier. Tommy Hoffman, the Executive Director of Herzl Camp, notes that “80% of Jewish kids don’t go to Jewish summer camp. One of the primary reasons is affordability. Scholarship requests continue to grow, as do the costs of camp. If you want to raise proud Jews who understand where they come from, love Israel, that is what a scholarship provides.” Scholarships help open the doors of this transformative experience to every child, ensuring that financial limitations never stand in the way of creating and cementing Jewish identity, belonging, learning of life and leadership skills, connecting with community, and Jewish pride and belonging.
For decades, the Minnesota Jewish Community Foundation (“Foundation”) and Minneapolis Jewish Federation (“Federation”) have provided scholarships to families to help defray these costs. Over the past several years, bases on community feedback, we have made a concerted effort to raise more scholarship funds for youth to experience the magic of summer camp. From 2023 to 2024, Federation and Foundation increased scholarship dollars by 44%! In 2025, Federation and Foundation were proud to award $250,000 to 431 Minneapolis youth.
One local family described the impact camp scholarships had on them, “Both our children had fantastic summer experiences at Herzl Camp and Camp Olami, respectively. We can already see the love for Judaism, Israel, and the bonds they are forming with the Jewish community at these young ages. Jewish education and engagement [are] high priorit[ies] for us, and costs can make day school, camp, and other Jewish activities cost restrictive; but thanks to the generosity of the Minneapolis Jewish Federation, the burden is a little less. Our kids are already getting excited for next summer at camp!!”
The Foundation also recently received a very generous bequest dedicated to needs-based Jewish camp scholarships from the estate of Robert E. White. Due to Mr. White’s incredible generosity, even more scholarship money will be available for camp sessions in 2026 and beyond.
How You Can Help Ensure Our Jewish Youth’s Jewish Future
Through your generosity, you can make it possible for every child to experience the magic of camp—where Jewish values come to life, and where the next generation of Jewish leaders and community builders begin their journeys.
Giving to a camp scholarship fund, or starting one in your own name, is a powerful legacy that will continue sending children to Jewish camp long after the gift is made—ensuring future generations of young people have the chance to benefit from the joy, learning, and lifelong impact of Jewish summer camp.
By making an endowment gift to support Jewish summer camp scholarships, you are investing not only in the lives of today’s campers but also in sustaining the strength and vitality of our Jewish future.
Please contact the Foundation at 952.417.2316 to find out how you can ensure a strong Jewish future through contributing to an existing camp scholarship fund or setting up your own.
