Dear Camp Ramah in Canada family,
 
We hope that you and your family are well and that your Pesach was meaningful.
 
We wanted to share a brief update with you regarding camp for this summer. It is increasingly likely that we will not be able to start camp at the beginning of the summer as planned — but we remain hopeful that opening  at some point   will be a possibility.   We will, of course, do our best to accommodate all of our campers who are registered for both first and second sessions.
 
The safety and well-being of our campers and staff is our top priority and contemplating how to safely run a camp in the time of COVID is extremely complex and challenging. We are working closely with our medical team, partners and experts in the field, alongside public health officials to determine what would need to be in place in order to safely run camp. As are all institutions, we are waiting to better understand how these past weeks of social distancing and shut-downs have impacted the trajectory of the virus.
 
It is important for you, our community, to understand that the financial implications of closing a camp will be serious, as we have incurred — and will continue to incur — many fixed costs, regardless of what happens this summer. The business model of a summer camp depends entirely upon camp running in the summer. Money that has been collected for 2020 has been used since last summer to prepare for the upcoming summer and pays for our year-round operations. We have already implemented a number of cost-cutting measures to keep our expenses as low as possible, so that if we are not able to open camp this summer, our financial exposure will be minimized. Whatever happens, this pandemic will have a lasting impact on our budget, our programming, and our institution for years to come.
 
We also know that you, our community of Camp Ramah families, have been impacted financially by this crisis — many quite significantly.  Please know that if we need to cancel camp, we will offer refunds. We will let you know more details as this unfolds in the coming weeks.  We make this offer knowing that it will be extremely difficult for our institution from a financial perspective, but knowing that it is the right thing for us to do.
 
Finally, we recognize how important camp’s benefits are to the well-being of our campers; our kids and our community need the joyous connections and experiences of camp now more than ever. As camp professionals and leaders, we are in this work because we are fervent believers in the power of camp to elevate and transform. We remain committed to bringing this experience to our community to whatever extent possible. As conditions do not completely preclude running camp this summer, we still hold hope for the possibility of camp this summer. We are doing our best to anticipate all possible outcomes and to prepare for all possible scenarios. We are so grateful for your partnership, your patience, and support. We will update you again soon.
 
בברכה, with blessings,
 
Jordan, Aviva and Josh
 
Rabbi Jordan Bendat-Appell , Camp Director
Aviva Millstone , Associate Director
Dr. Josh Charlat , Chair of the Board of Directors