Kerron Donaldson and his mother recently moved to Los Angeles. Back home in Chicago, Kerron knew everyone; since moving to Los Angeles, where he knew absolutely no one, the rambunctious boy has been working hard to make new friends at school. Nevertheless, as the last days of school drew nearer last month, Kerron wondered what would happen once school ended, and summer vacation began. 

Kerron’s mother, Tamika, is a single parent, and like most single parents, she will spend her summer hard at work. So, when Tamika informed her son he would be attending Camp Max Straus for two weeks, “he was happy,” she says. “He was happy, but he also worried about not knowing anyone, about having to make new friends again.  I told him most of the kids who go to the camp for the first time don’t know each other when they get there, but that everyone leaves with new friends.”

Camp Max Straus is a residential summer camp located in Glendale, CA that provides recreational activities for underprivileged children between the ages of 7 and 12 who come primarily from single (or substitute) parent homes. Founded in 1938, the camp is owned and operated by Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters (a beneficiary agency of The Jewish Federation) and is open to children of all races and denominations who reside in Los Angeles County. The camp offers kids a variety of social, physical, and creative programs, including evening campfires, hands-on ranch and garden experiences, new games, archery, swimming, horseback riding, nature, hikes, camp skills, drama, music, handicrafts and photography.

“I knew that sending Kerron to a camp where he could meet other kids his age would be better than sending him to a babysitter and letting him be bored all summer,” Donaldson says. 

Donaldson adds that she knew before deciding on Camp Max Straus that she wanted to find a place where Kerron could socialize with kids from different backgrounds and do things he’d never done before. “Even though I don’t have the means to send my son to camp, I want him to experience all the possibilities that life holds,” she says.  “I did a lot of research on different programs for kids whose parents can’t afford to send them to camp. One of my friends sent her son to Max Straus, so I knew it would be a good place for Kerron to be.”

Each year, The Jewish Federation sends more than 1,100 underserved kids between the ages of 7 and 12 to camp.  Most go to Camp Max Straus; kids from recent immigrant families attend other local camps on Federation scholarships. On June 11th, the Federation held its annual Gear Up For Camp Day, when children receive clothing, toiletries, laundry bags and other camp necessities provided by generous donations from local Los Angeles businesses in a fun, carnival atmosphere.  For the first time this year, the event took place at Camp Max Straus itself.

“I really liked seeing where I’d be going to camp,” Kerron said. “I got a chance to meet some of the other kids, and now I’m excited to go.”

Adds Tamika, “Seeing all the friendly volunteers who were so nice and made sure we had everything we needed made me more comfortable about sending my son away to camp for two weeks, too.”

This article originally appeared in the July 2005 Federation in Focus. For more information on the Federation’s Gear Up for Camp Day, contact Michele Kirsch at (323) 761-8210 or MKirsch@JewishLA.org.