Brooklyn Borough President

CAMP BROOKLYN MAKES DREAMS COME TRUE FOR KIDS ALL ACROSS THE BOROUGH

Almost 200 Brooklyn children are getting the summer experience of a lifetime!

Photograph by Kathryn Kirk
	In photo: Borough President Markowitz, Commerce Bank Regional Vice President Peter Meyer, Brad Korn, Corporate Director of Community Affairs for Continuum Health Partners, Bill Thiele from Best Buy, and Best of Brooklyn, Inc. President Bob Rozzi say goodbye to dozens of Camp Brooklyn kids.

Borough President Marty Markowitz said goodbye today to a number of Brooklyn children who are participating in Camp Brooklyn, an innovative program that is sending almost 200 Brooklyn kids to camp for at least two wonderful weeks this summer with the American Camping Association – New York’s Summer Camp Opportunities Provide an Edge (S.C.O.P.E.) program. The 191 children, between the ages of 7 and 16, are attending camps throughout the New York region. Camp Brooklyn has grown tremendously in just its second year, after sending 55 children to camp last summer.

“Normally I don’t want anybody leaving Brooklyn, but all of these campers have received a special exemption,” Borough President Markowitz said. “I know Camp Brooklyn will save lives because my experience at camp changed my life forever. Thanks to the generosity of Best Buy, Commerce Bank, Continuum Health Care Partners and many Brooklynites from across the borough, almost 200 children will spend part of this summer swimming, camping and exploring the wilderness. This is an incredible opportunity for children to go on an adventure of a lifetime, and experience things they never dreamed possible.”

“S.C.O.P.E. and the American Camping Association-NY Section is proud to have partnered with Borough President Markowitz for a second summer to give more Brooklyn children the opportunity to attend summer camp,” said S.C.O.P.E. Director Serena Orgel. “The increased awareness and generosity of members of the Brooklyn community who support this program enables us to provide camperships to more than triple the number of children this summer. Through Camp Brooklyn, more than 190 children will experience the magic of summer camp.”
The children will be attending these 17 camps this summer throughout the metropolitan area:
Camp Deer Run in Pine Bush, NY; Camp Edward Isaacs in Holmes, NY; Camp Fiver in Earlville, NY; The Fresh Air Fund in Fishkill, NY; Girls Vacation Fund, Inc. / Camp Oh-Neh-Tah in East Windham, NY; Incarnation Center in Ivoryton, CT; Camp Ma-He-Tu in Bear Mountain, NY; Camps Greenkill, McAlister & Talcott in Huguenot, NY; Mont Lawn Camp in Bushkill, NY; Camp Olmstead in Corwall-on-Hudson, NY; Camp Ralph & Rose Hittman in Southfields, NY; Surprise Lake Camp in Cold Spring, NY; Camp Sussex in Sussex, NY; Vacamas / Top of Pines in West Milford, NJ & Bear Mountain, NY; Camp Victory Lake in Hyde Park, NY; Camp Welmet in Putnam, NY; and Camp Wilbur Herrlich in Patterson, NJ.

Camp Brooklyn was made possible thanks to donations and support from the Best Buy Children’s Foundation, Commerce Bank, Continuum Health Care Partners, dozens and dozens of everyday Brooklynites and Best of Brooklyn, Inc., a not-for-profit organization whose mission includes improving the quality of life for all Brooklynites, particularly our youth. Eligibility was based on economic need, age, school enrollment and willingness by the child to comply with camp rules and regulations. S.C.O.P.E. oversaw the application process.