“So, what makes EKC different from all these other camps?”  I get that question from many parents who are considering summer camp options for their child.  “Where do I even begin?!” I often think to myself.  I try to stick to the “highlights” that make EKC different from other camps.

• “Wait, you have 3 pools, and a lake, and a barn with horses right at your camp?!” We sure do. A high ropes course? Yes. Bathrooms in every cabin and an air conditioned dining hall?  Yep, that too.  EKC’s beautiful 175 acre campground situated on Cheat Lake is a state-of-the-art facility.
• To complement our beautiful facility is high quality, FUN, skill-building oriented programming.  At EKC we offer something for everyone.  Not only do we have swimming, boating, horseback riding, zip lining and tons of arts and sports, but we also have a book club and a camp library, robotics, fitness, theater, cooking and more.
• What you see is what you get. At EKC, we offer all-inclusive pricing.  There are no hidden fees.  All meals, all activities, all out of camp trips, and even transportation to and from camp!
• EKC is firmly committed to the success and happiness of our staff and playing an active role in their long-term growth as leaders in their home communities and young professionals. The staff experience at EKC is one where they get support, professional development, meaningful experiences and transferable skills that will positively impact their futures.  We give them the opportunity to be part of a something meaningful, while also having the opportunity to hone and develop the specific traits that they seek such as communicating and listening well, critical thinking, collaborative problem solving skills, empathy, emotional intelligence and the ability to possess insight into others. And of course, having happy and successful staff means that our campers have the best experience possible.
• The diversity of geographies represented in our camper population, is incredible. EKC has a large domestic and international reach, including campers from Ohio, Maryland, Virginia, New York, Florida, California, Texas, Massachusetts, Indiana, Illinois, Connecticut, Missouri, Colorado, France, Spain and Israel.

I am very proud of all these special qualities that separate EKC from other camps.  But after having been at camp for 20 years, it’s the little, less well known things that make us unique and mean the most to me.  It’s the Country Roads line dance to our official camp song “Country Roads.”  It’s that our unofficial camp song is Taylor Swift’s “Love Story.”  It’s the matzah balls at Shabbat dinner.  It’s the international staff that love camp so much that they not only return for multiple summers, but a few of them have even moved to the Unites States and now call Pittsburgh home.   It’s Teen Village traditions like Teen Challenge and Big Brother/Big Sister.  It’s SIT Inductions, the raft race and a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Israel.

It’s the exclusive EKC yearbooks that I’ve been collecting for 20 years, and the “Staff Roll Call,” our monthly staff newsletter, that I couldn’t wait to get as a staff member (and now send out) every month.  It’s the EKC Lip Dub music video on YouTube.   It’s breaking Maccabi Color War with the red truck and the entire camp going bananas.   It’s the mayoral election, where “elected officials” (staff) and their campaign teams (campers) campaign for “change” such as adding blueberry bagels to the breakfast menu or a new toaster in the dining hall.  It’s being out in the middle of Cheat Lake riding on a boat surrounded by the mountains.  It’s the “EKC family” – an alumni network that reaches around the globe.  It’s staff bowling night, the cabin plaques in the dining hall, staff softball games, the foam machine, and so much more.  I could go on and on.

What’s truly unique about EKC, is how our campers and staff will each create their own set of memories for what they’ll think of when asked, “what makes EKC different from other camps?”  What will your campers say?  Whatever the answer is to them, they won’t be able to say it without a smile on their face – and that’s what makes EKC so unique.  That merely hearing the letters E-K-C elicits positive memories and smiles.

Rachael Speck

Associate Camp Director