Atlanta Jewish Foundation Impact Story
July 20, 2026
There are few places where Jewish identity is formed quite like Jewish summer camp.
It’s where children discover the joy of Shabbat, build lifelong friendships, develop confidence, deepen their connection to Israel, and find a community that feels like home. Long after the campfires fade and the buses return home, those experiences continue to shape who they become.
Anna Serviansky, Executive Director of Camp Ramah Darom, shares how parents often call after camp, amazed by what their children bring home.
“They’ll say, ‘My child started asking to sing Birkat Hamazon after each meal, and I don’t know it.’ Or, ‘My child heard an Israeli song at Sunday school, and they already knew it – they were teaching their friends.’
She believes those few weeks away become something much greater.
“Camp becomes the Jewish foundation and Jewish identity for a lot of people who might not experience it otherwise… that immense sense of belonging and joy is something that I really don’t think you can get anywhere else.”
Ruthy Hertz, co-director of Camp Gan Israel of North Fulton, remembers a grandmother who noticed her grandson kissing the mezuzah every time he walked through a doorway.
When she asked him why, he answered, “Grandma, that’s what happens when you go to Jewish camp.”
Stories like that remind camp professionals why this work matters.
Making Camp Possible
Every camp director shares the same goal: no child should miss out because of cost.
That goal becomes more challenging every year as camps face rising expenses, expanded programming needs, and increasing security costs.
“Camp is expensive, and the costs certainly don’t seem like they’re going down anytime soon,” says Adam Griff of Camp Coleman. “A huge number of campers rely on financial aid, and having scholarships as part of the package is really important.”
Endowments are what make those scholarships possible – and sustainable.
“If we had a stronger endowment, we would be in a much healthier position to tell people with more confidence, ‘Yes, we have the scholarship dollars available.’ They’re not just scholarship dollars this year. We know they’re going to be there next year, and the year after that.”
Endowments are funds that provide perpetual support for a charitable organization or cause. The principle is invested, and every year a portion of the interest goes toward the selected charity – allowing donors to sustain the causes they love long-term.
Danny Herz, Executive Director of Camp Barney Medintz, explains the impact:
“The work we do is so important, but it becomes magnified when we can have the sustainability that comes from a good endowment. I know several families who have benefited from the dollars that come from these endowments, who are allowed now, despite the financial pressure, to have this experience that you simply don’t get anywhere else.”
For Herz, endowments are critical even beyond the campgrounds: “For us to sustain our community and the Jewish people over the course of time, we need the endowment to work.”
Life-Changing Scholarships
This summer alone, Atlanta Jewish Foundation and Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta donors helped 778 children attend Jewish camp through $1,264,823 in scholarships and One Happy Camper grants.
- 304 children received One Happy Camper grants totaling $333,750
- 474 children received camp scholarships totaling $931,073
Behind every scholarship is a child whose Jewish journey can begin.
For Camp Judaea Director Lori Zeligman, receiving a camp scholarship was life-changing. “I needed scholarship to attend camp. My Jewish identity came from camp. I met a lot of my friends at camp. I met my husband at camp. And my kids love camp. It’s the best gift that I can give them.”
Keeping the Magic Alive
Every legacy gift creates opportunities that extend far beyond a single summer. It helps ensure that future generations of Jewish children can discover the friendships, confidence, traditions, and sense of belonging that only camp can provide.
The Jewish Atlanta community has demonstrated an inspiring commitment to this mission.
Mark Silberman, who started the Jewish Camp Initiative alongside Joel Arogeti in 2013, offered a remarkable statistic at the last Grow a Legacy event: “In 14 summers, we have found the money and resources to send every kid to camp who might need a scholarship or help along the way. We have never turned a kid down.”
“The commitment that the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta shows to Jewish camping is second to none in the country.” Herz shared. “Thank you for what you’re doing to allow camp to thrive – not only to survive, but to thrive.”
Mackenzie Sherman, Director of Community Relations at Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta (MJCCA) and life-long camper, counselor, and professional, also offered words of gratitude to legacy donors:
“When someone entrusts us with a legacy gift, beyond our gratitude, we consider ourselves guardians of that legacy. What really makes the camp experience magical is the values that drive those programs. And what I would want somebody to know if they’re making a legacy gift, is that through their commitment to a camp program, they are the source of the continuity of the Jewish people.”
Every scholarship awarded.
Every friendship formed.
Every child who comes home singing Jewish songs, proudly kissing a mezuzah, or discovering what it means to belong.
That is the legacy these donors are creating – not for one summer, but for generations of Jewish children still to come.
To learn more about legacy endowments, visit https://atlantajewishfoundation.org/legacy-endowments/ or contact Ghila Sanders at gsanders@jewishatlanta.org.
