While we offer all the fun, traditional day camp activities like swimming, archery, GAGA and rock climbing, our program goes well beyond that. Our staff members are FAR from just babysitters! We prefer to call them Youth Development Specialists. Our engaging, genuinely caring and professional team of counselors create a nurturing environment where campers feel safe and supported to step outside of their comfort zone, challenge themselves with new adventures and make new friends.

At Camp SAM, we have three core values that guide everything we do. We believe strongly in these and intentionally interweave them into all of our camp activities. These commonly held beliefs and commitments guide our organization to achieve the Vision and Mission of Camp SAM. These core values guide our decisions, activities, actions, training, and expectations of campers and staff. Each one is connected and related to each other. They are concepts we live by every single day at Camp SAM.

Camp SAM provides children with long-term benefits and essential learning experiences. We provide a fun-filled family atmosphere, where kids can expand their range of coping strategies through activities intentionally designed to enhance learning. Campers grow and learn each day with us as they face challenges such as getting along with a new group of peers, learning how to ask for help from others, or taking manageable amounts of risks without a parent following them.

In a less pressured atmosphere such as camp, children can explore and develop their competencies in the following areas:

• Relationship Skills
• Confidence
• Creativity
• Communication Skills
• Critical Thinking & Problem-Solving Skills
• Leadership
• Responsibility
• Physical Activity
• Sense of Belonging

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COURAGE

At Camp SAM, we encourage all campers to not only Be Yourself but to also Believe In Yourself! Every camper is valued, loved and accepted into the camp community from the moment they arrive. We teach our campers to choose courage over conformity when faced with the pressure and temptation to forfeit their true selves in order to uphold the ever-changing standards of the world around them.

Camp SAM intentionally fosters an environment where all children are treated fairly. Counselors provide opportunities for campers to just be kids who are valued for who they are. Campers build courage as they realize their value to the camp community and stand up for what is right.

The safe and supportive atmosphere at Camp SAM makes it less overwhelming for our campers to try new things. We encourage and celebrate effort and design programs to boost self-esteem and confidence. Our counselors help children to discover their inner talents and find something to be proud of that they can do well.

INTEGRITY

At Camp SAM, we teach campers to set standards for themselves: not only to do the right thing, but also to do it for the right reasons. To clean up the lunch table for a fellow camper who forgot, and keep it to themselves. To pick up the trash thrown on the ground in the nature trail. To take just one popsicle during snack break, even though the counselors’ backs are turned and they could easily take two. To do all of this without asking for praise or recognition—to do it only because it is the right thing to do.

We also communicate that it may feel impossible to live up to these standards at all times. A significant part of integrity is falling short of these goals and owning up to it afterwards.

Summer camp provides the perfect environment in which to develop integrity. The close sense of community helps campers to feel accountable to their peers and to the camp as a whole. The campers see that good deeds tend to be recognized and appreciated more often at camp than in the real world. Campers develop a strong sense of pride when they practice doing the right thing when no one is looking, and become leaders and role models in the community.

COMMUNITY

Campers learn the true meaning of community while at camp. They feel a sense of belonging and connectedness with others and gain respect for each person. The camp community is one that is founded on honesty, trust, loyalty, accountability, and compassion/caring.

We provide a safe atmosphere where campers can celebrate the uniqueness that each individual brings to camp and also recognize shared common ground. Campers learn to appreciate peers with attitudes, values, and abilities that may be different from their own. They are encouraged to respect the differences between people, and are praised for choosing new partners and not always the same ones.

Camp SAM maintains a family atmosphere that enhances supportive relationships. Camp friendships are based on honesty and a deep sense of caring. Through teamwork and cooperation, campers learn responsible and positive ways to resolve conflicts and develop meaningful relationships that last a lifetime. Our campers are building and maintaining new relationships, not just with peers, but with trusted adults other than their parents.

Camp gives children the value of belonging to a community of their own.