Camping in Tough Times.

Facing the Camping Future with Confidence

Increased costs, taxes, and state and federal regulations made the 1970s a tough time for camps. These factors coupled with the recession that was affecting the United States caused many camps to close their doors. Staffing was also a challenge due to the changing attitudes of young adults. Campers' interests were changing as well. As a result, traditional camp programs were updated and new activities became popular.

ACA's accreditation process also underwent change. Camps were now visited ever three years instead of every five.

If we are to face the camping future with confidence, we must enlarge our sights. Rising costs, combined with the economic recession we have been experiencing for the past two years, have made it inevitable that camps must seek new areas of operation.

Some basic facts must be recognized if we are to continue to exist. The most important one is that it now takes a lot more money to operate a summer camp. We are all familiar with the rising costs of food, salaries, equipment, etc. But how many of us realize the extent of some of the other costs involved?

1. Real estate taxes. In the past these have been harder on private camps, but recent signs point to new taxes on non-profit use of real estate, too. Local governments need more and more money and often real estate taxes are their only source of revenue. Our own camps face a real estate valuation increase of over six times that of 1970 - an increase of 550 percent.

2. Employee taxes. Check your tax expense account and see the increase here in your share of the taxes. This is in addition to the actual rise in salaries.

3. Camp program area. Today's campers have different needs and desires and often programs we have used for many years have to updated. In some cases this requires new equipment or hiring additional staff.

4. Negligence claims. Today's parents seem to be much more conscious of filing claims. Just a few years ago, common accidents were passed over by parents as a necessary risk of camping. Today, each occurrence is a potential law suit. Thus insurance premiums are rising. All camps at some time face claims which are unfounded or questionable. Insurance adjusters settle many of these to close off suit and the possibility of a greater jury award. Thus camp rates are raised by means of experience rating. Compare your insurance costs of five years ago and you will see the trend.

5. State and federal reports take more and more of a director's time and each year new reports are established. We now are required to test our lake and send in weekly sewerage reports. State inspections are more frequent and inspectors from different departments increase in number. No one objects to these requirements, but the time involved in meeting them means more money for additional staff. It is not my purpose to discuss the pros and cons of control legislation - I merely want to point out the additional costs which most certainly will be involved with complying with these regulations.

6. Winter office staffing. It is becoming increasingly difficult to operate a summer camp without a full-time winter office. Parents expect it and even resent not being able to reach you after office hours during the winter. Business demands certain office procedures and our office staff has grown from one to eight in just four years.

7. In addition to the pressure of increased costs, the camping industry is faced with the full school year. If it is put into effect, perhaps summer camps will not exist except operating on a full year basis. If this is so, plans for the future must be made now as it will probably take years for a camp to operate on a full year basis.

You may be thinking that all of these activities are too big, and that your camp can't do it. I suggest that you plan, plan, plan - and then take each step as it comes. Set your goals, outline the actions required to reach them, work hard, and you've made it! Camping can no longer be a part-time job. It must be a full-time business with our precious assets used as much as possible.

A Camp Director Is . . .

A camp director sees himself as a combination organizer, administrator, leader, teacher, coach, disciplinarian, and friend. How do the campers see him? Director Richard Borkowski, of the Episcopal Academy, shares with us the results of an informal survey among first-year campers, who said:

The camp director is . . .

* "The counselor that is always smiling. My counselor says it's because he doesn't have a group of kids to watch."

* The finder man. He finds all the lost counselor and takes them to their campers."

* Very smart in arithmetic. He orders the exact number of cookies every day. We never have even one extra cookie left over."

* The man that always asks me what my name is - just before parents' visiting day."

* The reminder man. Every day he reminds us about all the fun we have at camp. Sometimes I think he gets our camp mixed up with some other camp."

* "That's the question the counselors keep asking each other. What does he do?"

This article first appeared in the February 1972 issue of Camping Magazine.