By Levi

I would like to bring to parents’ attention what some younger campers experienced in overnight camp years ago, especially during their first years away from home.

Before anything else, I want to make it clear that there has been a lot of positive change over the years. Camps today are more aware, more sensitive, and many staff members genuinely care deeply about the campers. This is not meant to attack any specific camp or person. The point is simply to help staff members be more attentive and kinder this summer, especially to younger children.

When people talk about difficult camp experiences, they often focus on a camper being publicly singled out. But what I remember affecting many younger campers just as much was the effect it had on all the other children watching it happen.

As a young camper years ago, that fear could stay with you the entire summer.

Speaking from my own experience back then, many boys who were never punished still felt anxious in camp every day. Not because they were being targeted personally, but because they were constantly afraid of becoming the next camper singled out publicly.

At 9 or 10 years old, boys arrive in camp excited. They spent months begging their parents to let them go. They are happy to see friends and excited for the summer ahead.

Then, within minutes of camp beginning, the atmosphere could suddenly feel different.

Back then, I remember the head staff walking into shul loudly trying to establish order. The room became tense immediately. Many younger campers felt that one wrong move, one word spoken too late, or one small mistake could suddenly make them the center of attention in front of hundreds of people.

For younger campers, that feeling could be overwhelming.

Many older campers eventually learned to brush it off. But younger children often did not.

I still remember the tension many campers felt during davening, bentching, lineup, bedside inspection, or before trips. Sometimes, as a younger camper, it no longer felt like the goal was to enjoy camp or grow. It felt like the goal was simply avoiding embarrassment.

And the strange thing is that many campers still went back the next year.

Part of that was because overnight camp was such a major part of the social culture. Boys wanted to be where their friends were. Many were too embarrassed to explain to their parents what they were really feeling emotionally during the summer.

Again, I want to stress that camps today are better than they once were. There are camps making real improvements. There are wonderful counselors who are patient, caring, and warm. Many regular counselors were the highlight of camp for younger boys.

But I still think it is important for staff members to realize how much younger campers absorb emotionally from the atmosphere around them.

One thing I often wondered back then was why camps sometimes felt such pressure to stay perfectly on schedule at all costs.

Sometimes, a dining room full of excited boys simply took a few extra minutes to calm down. Looking back now, I sometimes wonder whether it would have been better to let things run a few minutes late rather than publicly call out younger campers just to restore immediate silence.

That type of patience can completely change the tone of camp for a child.

There is obviously an important need for discipline and safety in camp. Camps have swimming areas, forests, trips, buses, and hundreds of children to supervise. Staff members carry enormous responsibility, and nobody is minimizing that.

But even years ago, younger campers could usually tell the difference between firm guidance and fear.

Some of my strongest memories from camp are not the trips or prizes, but moments where younger campers were called out publicly while everyone else watched silently and nervously.

I also think exhaustion played a role. Head staff members worked unbelievably hard and often slept very little. By the middle of the summer, everyone was drained. Looking back now as an adult, I can understand how patience sometimes disappeared simply because people were overwhelmed and exhausted.

This is why camp directors play such an important role. Younger staff members need guidance, boundaries, and reminders that every camper is someone’s precious child.

Many camps have already become calmer and more thoughtful than they once were. That is a very positive thing. I am writing this only because I hope that progress continues.

A younger camper may forget the trips years later. But he usually does not forget how the adults around him made him feel.

As camps begin this summer, I hope staff members remember that younger children experience everything more intensely than adults sometimes realize.

A little more patience, a little more kindness, and a little less public embarrassment can make camp a completely different experience for a child.