|
_______________________
 Ten Reasons Parents Choose
Friends Camp:
- Quaker Values and Spirituality
- Friendships with other campers
- Recommendations from campers and parents
- Happy and excited returning campers
- Affordable camp fee
- Tolerance of differences among campers
- A non-competitive camp
- Interesting programs
- Community
- Campers love Friends Camp
Director and Staff
 Nat Shed, the director of Friends Camp, is a staff member of the New England Yearly Meeting of Friends. Nat has seventeen years of experience directing summer camps. He is a board member of the Maine Youth Camping Association, and is a professional member of the American Camping Association. Each spring, he carefully selects well-qualified and skilled counselors. Our counselors and staff are carefully screened with in-depth interviews, references, background checks, and ongoing supervision during the summer. Many of our counselors come with special qualifications in lifeguarding, sailing, arts and crafts, photography, music, ceramics, drama, nature, and sports. Campers receive ample attention during all program activities with our camper-to-counselor ratio of one to six.
Admissions Values
Friends Camp is a co-ed camp that welcomes youth from all races, religious affiliations, national origins, genders, and sexual orientations. Our ability to accommodate youth with physical or mental health issues is limited, but each session we welcome a few young people with many talents and strengths who sometimes find it hard to be accepted and/or supported in other youth programs or in academic settings. We are a tolerant community that looks for the light of goodness in each person, and we are very proud of our campers’ ability to love and care for each other. Please call our director if you have any questions about how your child would fit in to life at Friends Camp.
Facilities
Friends Camp is located on sixty beautiful acres of woodland in South China, Maine. Our waterfront is on China Lake, which is a short walk across the road and down a wooded path. We have twelve rustic cabins that house 7 to 11 campers, and two bathhouses. Our property includes three sports fields and a basketball court. We also have access to a small island in the middle of China Lake for day trips and overnight adventures. Most of our indoor activities take place in Aviary Hall, Big Bird Dining Hall, Cardinal Hall, and the two hundred year old Pond Meeting House that serves as our arts and crafts area.
Food
 Friends Camp has an excellent reputation for healthy meals cooked from scratch. We provide a full salad bar with lunch and dinner, and we offer a buffet of wonderful vegetarian and non-vegetarian options at each meal. Friends Camp is licensed by the State of Maine, and we follow all of the current health and safety requirements. Please contact us if your child has special dietary requirements.
A Typical Day at Friends Camp
Each morning after breakfast and clean-up, we hold a short meeting for worship, which is a youth-oriented time for silent reflection and sharing. Next, a daily meeting for business allows campers and staff to participate in discussions about how to shape our camp to best meet their needs. Following our daily community meeting, we have a morning activity period that lasts for about two hours. During this time, campers choose from one of ten different four-day programs. Each youth camp session has many unique activities and age-appropriate programming, and these programs vary each week. Each afternoon, campers have an opportunity to swim, canoe, sail, and relax at the camp’s waterfront on China Lake. After a snack, campers have an elective activities period with more fun and interesting optional activities. In the evening, our campers enjoy non-competitive group games. Then, towards nightfall, we gather to watch the sun set from our Vespers field over China Lake. Prior to bedtime, campers participate in an evening program that varies nightly. One of the many things that makes Friends Camp interesting and fun is that the program activities change from session to session, and are different each summer.
 Tuition and Fees
Friends Camp has a new voluntary three-tiered pricing policy. Families get to pick the price that fits their income level.
- Full Price Level ($875) - allows Friends Camp to cover all of its operating costs and will, over time, cover most of our capital replacement and improvement expenses.
- Medium Price Level ($825) - covers the operating costs and more accurately accounts for our true costs, including maintenance, and a limited number of capital improvements.
- Basic Price Level ($775) - is the camp tuition rate that covers most of the annual operating expenses, but does not reflect the true operating expenses or the actual long-term cost of running Friends Camp.
By choosing to pay a higher fee, families can help us keep our buildings, docks, equipment, plumbing, and property in a much better condition and will also help us keep the basic camp fee affordable.
This new pricing system is voluntary and in no way influences admission or the experience that any child will receive at Friends Camp. This new pricing will offer most families the opportunity to support the true cost of the youth camp experience. A one-week session (Jones camp only) costs between $435 and $485.
A late fee of $20 per camper, per session, will be added to any outstanding fees after June 6th. If you cancel your camp reservation at least nine weeks prior to the start of a session, you may request a refund of $400 for all two-week sessions, and a refund of $200 for the one-week sessions.
Click HERE for a copy of the Campership Application in PDF
|
