Comfortable. That’s how we want all our campers to feel, and everything about our community is designed with that word in mind.

We started by constructing a community just for kids, a place:

• Where they feel safe and included in every activity
• Where they help create the rules
• Where they are willing to try new things because they know someone is there to catch them if they fall
• Where they feel at home, even away from home…

Where campers feel safe and included in every activity…
We love the idea that you don’t have to come to camp with a friend, because at camp you make new friends right away. Even before the first bus ride to camp, there are opportunities for first-time campers to get to know one another and to visit camp. Our counselors are specially trained to help new campers feel like part of the group. And chances are, you’re not the only new camper in your group!

When you arrive, you’ll be placed in a group based on your interests – what you like and dislike. The other 15-17 campers will have many of the same hobbies that you do! After a whole summer of playing and learning together, many of your group-mates will be your friends, and some of them will be your best friends for life.

When you come to camp, you enter a tease-free zone. Counselors are specifically trained to identify situations that go against our policies of tolerance and acceptance. We want Coleman Country to be an oasis of personal safety, and we have zero tolerance for behaviors that disrespect anyone.

You’ll also be excited to come to Coleman Country because camp is like a clean slate. At camp, you have the freedom to be whomever you choose – you can even be completely different than the person you were at school!

Where campers help create the rules…
During your first few days at camp, you, your group-mates, and your counselors will create a list of rules that you all agree to follow during the summer. This Code of Living is a very important part of how we live together and share responsibility in our community.

Where campers are willing to try new things because they know someone is there to catch them if they fall…
We keep mentioning “safety nets” – what on earth do we mean? Well, a safety net at camp can be the training that a particular staff member receives – like the ropes course guy who learns to put on a harness the right way. Or it can be a rule – like we always wear helmets to horseback riding and sneakers with socks to athletics. But it can also be about people – like making sure that our counselors know what bullying looks like or showing campers how to encourage one another during something that’s really hard.

Where campers feel at home, even away from home…
Families choose us because Coleman Country feels like a good fit. Campers are comfortable trying new things because there are no grades, no comparisons, and no assumptions. Success is secondary to exploration, so campers can find out what they like, and they don’t have to just like what they are good at. In fact, we want our campers to try everything! That’s how they learn where they shine, what they like, and what they may need to practice. Every day we work hard to ensure that campers are discovering their talents, living their dreams, and deciding what they want to be. Even though campers go home at night, camp feels like a home away from home during the day!