One of the most amazing things about camp is all of the different people who come together to make it the place that it is. Kids from all different backgrounds, races, cultures, religions and life experiences spend the summer laughing, playing and learning together. In most cases, kids meet other kids at camp that they may have never met in their small hometowns. Even campers who come from big cities have an opportunity to meet other kids from small, rural farming communities. Spending the summer at camp is a great lesson in inclusion and creating a global community.

Being surrounded by kids who come from a different place and have different life experiences helps to teach acceptance, tolerance and an appreciation for diversity. It also requires campers to step out of their normal cliques and interact with kids who they may not normally interact with in their everyday lives. Athletes and musicians bond over campfire s’mores, theatre lovers and adventure seekers team up during camp activities, bookworms and dance enthusiast’s share late night conversations in the cabins. Campers expand their social horizons by putting away their preconceived notions about people who are different than they are and confronting stereotypes head on.

When you get hundreds of young people together with different views, lifestyles, beliefs and opinions, it is a great opportunity for them to learn how to overcome differences in a respectful way. When they ask questions instead of making assumptions, they make steps towards educating themselves, which develops into understanding and acceptance.

Campers always come away from camp amazed at how much they learned from their new friends. Some campers come home with a brand new perspective on the world around them, and a new appreciation for how big and diverse the world really is. They teach each other new languages, educate each other on how their families celebrate holidays, explain traditions and rituals, and expose each other to a way of life different than their own.

Being at camp prepares campers for the real world, where they will constantly be working, living and playing with people from different cultures, races, religions and backgrounds. Camp instills the importance of respecting others from day one, and teaches to celebrate and embrace diversity.