2012-Annual Report

Camp
Onas
Annual
Report
Friends Camp
Association of PA, Inc.
Suzan Neiger Gould
Director
Josh Laker, Assistant
Director
Holly Hecht, Incoming
Director
October, 2011
to September,
2012
Inside this report
The 2012 Summer
1
Summer Programming
2
The Transition
2
Operations and
Improvements
2
Camper Statistics
3
Our Meetings
3
Financial Aid
4
Off-Season Group Use 4
The Onas Chronicle
4
A Parent’s Email to Camp
A few minutes ago, the mailman brought me my
mail. Each day I have waited
quietly to see if my little one
might write me a note during
camp.
Ethan's first summer. Never away from home
before. Since camp started last
week, no sound from him.
Today, a postcard. It says,
"Dear Mommy,
I love camp!
I miss u a little.
I have lots of new freinds!
Love, Ethan"
Much thanks for doing all that
you do so that I can get notes
like this.
The 2012 Summer
Within the 8 weeks of
summer camp, we celebrated the past, created the
present, and helped secure
the future.
The 90th anniversary was
celebrated by camper projects and activities designed
to connect campers with
Onas’ past. A long lost tradition of Christmas in July
was brought back with holiday themed activities such
as tree trimming, caroling,
an appearance by Santa and
camp-made gifts exchanged
in each bunk.
Each “half” of the summer created something special for the 90th. A canvas
mural was created by first
half campers with help from
a visiting artist, showing
beloved Onas elements and
the signed handprints of the
2012 Onas staff. This mural
hangs at the back of the
stage providing a backdrop
for Onas plays and concerts.
In the second half of the
summer, graduate campers
planned and helped run a
Blue and Gold Day with
classic Onas activities. The
day ended with MFW in
which small groups made up
of brother and sister bunks
reflected on an aspect of
camp—such as friends, nature, counselors, simple fa-
cilities—that makes Onas
such a special place.
While we celebrated our
past, we made sure that our
2012 campers were safe and
happy. We prepared Camp
for the American Camp
Association accreditation
visit. This process, occurring
every three years, includes
all aspects of camp operations, management and programs. Senior staff members
worked hard to prepare the
documentation and ensure
that all procedures were in
place, and everyone helped
Camp look its best for the
day long visit. While we
have not received the official notification of accreditation, based on how well the
visit went, we are confident
that we passed.
Each summer, we plan
some special improvement
for our campers. This summer’s was a GAGA Pit.
GAGA, also called Israeli
dodge ball, is played in an
octagon and involves dodging, running and jumping
with the object of hitting
opponents with a ball below
the waist while avoiding
being hit. All ages can play
together making it the perfect camp game. The
GAGA Pit was expertly
built by our Property Com-
mittee at our spring work
day and provided countless
hours of fun for our campers.
The long planned septic
system was installed this
summer beginning a week
before summer camp and
ending the day after camp
ended. Campers and staff
moved safely around the
large machinery and installations and when the drip
field began operating, no
one noticed—just what we
wanted to happen.
The guidance of our
Board and hard work of our
excellent staff has ensured
that Camp can continue to
offer a quality camp program for our present and
future families. Campers will
enjoy Onas summers far
into the future because of
our efforts today.
Page 2
Suzan Neiger Gould
Summer Programming: Continuing the Goals of the Strategic Plan
The 2012 summer programming was very successful continuing the goals set
in the Strategic Plan. Both
new and traditional activities were planned to promote Service, Creativity,
Individual Development,
Spiritual Awareness, Environmental Stewardship,
and use of Specialists.
A simple lunch for the
whole camp consisting of
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and vegetables was
prepared by volunteer
graduate campers. Spoken
Word poetry activities gave
campers new skills in writing, performance and a
unique kind of poetry that
many were unfamiliar with.
Progression activities in
rock climbing, art, and photography taught campers
skills sequentially so they
could build upon what they
had learned to achieve
greater mastery. A silent
night hike was held by the
whole camp that ended with
a Meeting For Worship in a
natural setting. In this alternate timing and presenta-
tion, a much greater number of campers felt moved
to share. In addition to
continuing to compost
every meal, garden work
was added to the crew
(chore) schedule that campers do each day. They
helped harvest vegetables
that were taken to the
kitchen to be eaten by the
whole camp. The Boys and
Girls Sides had a friendly
competition to see who
could reduce their water
usage the most week to
week. A special opportu-
nity brought singer-song
writer Dar Williams to
camp for a concert that was
opened and closed by
camper performances. She
then returned the next day
to help campers plant bee
friendly perennial flowers in
our vegetable garden.
A Smooth Transition to New Leadership
After Holly Hecht was
chosen in March to be the
next director at Onas, Sue
Neiger Gould, Holly Hecht,
and the Camp Onas Board
of Directors worked together to ensure a smooth
transition of leadership. This
process was aided by Holly’s
familiarity with Onas — she
was a camper and a staff
member — and by careful
planning for the transition
process on the part of Sue
and the Camp Onas Board.
Holly and her husband,
Matt, were able to join the
Camp Onas staff several
times during the 2012 season, helping with one of the
Spring school groups, and
spending two weeks at Onas
during the summer. During
that time they met most of
the campers and staff and
were able to participate in
the renewal of Camp’s
American Camp Association
Accreditation.
In June at the Camp Reunion, Onas alum celebrated Sue’s tenure as Director and welcomed Holly
as the next Director.
In the upcoming year,
Sue has offered to remain a
resource and sounding
board as she transitions
from Director to her new
role as Camp’s Number 1
Supporter.
David Gould, Jane Neiger, Sue
Gould, Russ Neiger, Holly and
Matt Hecht greeting Onas alum at
the Camp Reunion.
Operations and Improvements
Close to 1,700 people
participated in some aspect
of Camp this past year. In
addition to normal maintenance, several projects were
completed to enhance the
use of Camp. The Barn basketball court was remodeled
with a new floor and backboards, and the middle bay
floor was replaced making it
safer for large group gatherings. A pond walkway was
built over a muddy area with
a $10,800 grant, allowing
people to enjoy the pond
and protecting wetland
plantings.
Some of our campers
enjoyed new beds and mattresses as we move to all
vinyl mattresses to prevent
bedbug infestations and
steadily replace old beds
with new. An additional tent
was built on the Boys Side
to accommodate increased
numbers during the two
sessions serving one-week
campers.
The new drip septic system was installed in the
midst of our summer activities with everyone working
cooperatively to maintain
safety and keep the project
moving forward. Over the
summer the Camp kitchen,
Girls Side, Texas Building
and House were connected
to the drip field. The drip
field lies in the conservation
easement area and cannot be
detected. In September, the
members of the Tinicum
Conservancy toured the site
and were very impressed
with its low impact.
Suzan Neiger Gould
Camper Statistics
Our Meetings
Camper Statistics
2012
2011
2010
Total enrollment (1)
589
581
559
Number of Meetings
% full (600 in 2012) (2)
98%
101%
99%
Represented - 11
Boys
284
275
267
Girls
305
306
292
483
478
464
Boys
240
237
228
Girls
243
241
236
340
339
182
Number of campers
One session campers
Boys
One week campers
Boys
Page 3
Bucks Quarterly Meeting
Bristol-0
Buckingham-0
Doylestown-4
Fallsington-3
Lehigh Valley-7
Makefield-0
Middletown-3
Newtown-14
369
Plumstead-1
Quakertown-0
176
189
Solebury-7
Southampton-0
38
30
n/a
Wrightstown-5
Yardley-4
14
18
Total number of campers from BQM:
2012-48
Two session campers
105
109
95
Boys
44
43
39
Girls
61
66
56
Returning campers from ‘11 308
291
246
% of eligible campers
79%
76%
76%
Friends Meetings outside of BQM
Boys
78%
72%
73%
Number of Meetings Represented - 23
Girls
80%
78%
78%
New campers
175
182
209
2011-45
2010-37
2009-36
Brooklyn- 5
Central Phila..- 1
Chester- 1
Downingtown- 2
Framingham, MA- 2 Frankford- 2
Number of Friends
92
95
91
Germantown- 2
% Friends
19%
20%
20%
Haverford- 2
Horsham- 2
Kennett- 2
Graduating Campers
98
78
77
London Grove-1
Moorestown- 4
Plymouth Mtg.-2
# of Friends Graduating
20
14
12
Princeton-2
Providence- 1
Unami-1
Unity-1
Valley-2
Washington, DC- 1
West Chester-1
Westtown-1
Wilmington-2
Notes on Total Enrollment:
(1) Total enrollment is the number of available session openings in a summer. It differs from number of campers because some campers stay two sessions.
(2) Because of the increase in one-week campers, 600 was
the total possible enrollment in 2012. So although we had
higher enrollment, the percentage full was lower. This
was due to last minute cancellations that could not be
replaced.
Green Street- 3
Total Friends Meetings
represented, including
Bucks Quarter Meetings:
2012-32
2011-39
2009-42
2008-45
Page 4
Financial Aid
Camperships
2012 Financial Aid Contributions
We continue to be able to help every family who asks
for financial assistance send their camper to Onas. More aid was
requested, and more campers received financial aid this year
than last year.
We are so thankful to all those who gave. Here is the
breakdown of contributors to the Camper Aid Fund in 2012:
Camper Families
$6,344
Summer Staff
$1,530
T-shirt and hat sales
$1,945
BQM Meetings
$2,715
Alum and friends of Onas
$3,966
Total Camper Aid Fund, 2012
$16,500
SCOPE-NY Grant
$4,000
2012
Group Type
# of groups
people
served
Schools-8
460
(from these schools, 21
campers came to summer
camp)
Recreational
219
Organizations-5
Faith Based Groups-3
143
Including Young Friends
44
Onas Sponsored
309
Friends & Neighbors Day
Winter Camp
Family Camp Weekend
Camp Onas Alum Reunion
65
17
107
120
Total groups served-20
1,131
people
 8 campers received $500 from SCOPE and additional
money from the Camper Aid Fund
 31 campers received aid from the Camper Aid fund alone.
Range of aid - $200—$975
 19 campers received $500 or more
 20 campers received less than $500
Aid Given in 2012
The Russ and Jane Neiger Camper Fund was not used this
year. The Fund stands at $69,646, and is held as a special fund
used only for camper aid and camper projects. The section below details our efforts to increase the Russ and Jane Neiger
Camper Fund.
Off-Season Group Use
39 Campers attended Camp Onas with the help
of the Camper Aid Fund.
From Camper Aid Fund, 2012
$16,500
From SCOPE
$4,000
Total
$20,500
Total Aid Given in 2011—$19,915
Total Aid Given in 2010—$21,151
The Onas Chronicle
This year, we completed work on was raised through the 2012 Camp Onas
The Onas Chronicle – an album that
Alum Reunion this past June.
captures photographs, videos, letters
and memories spanning the 90-year
history of Camp Onas - all on a tiny
flash drive.
The Chronicle was designed to
raise funds for the Russ and Jane
Neiger Camper Fund, which provides camperships and money for
projects that benefit Onas campers.
Our fundraising goal for the project
is $30,000.
This year, $15,582 was raised for
the Russ and Jane Neiger Camper
Fund by offering the Onas Chronicle as a thank you gift for qualifying
donations. Of that amount, $12,905
One of many photographs in the Onas Chronicle.
Campers in 1961, taken in Rushland, PA, the original
location of Camp Onas.