The following is a reprint of an article published in the August 21, 2024 issue of the Jewish Community Voice, titled, "Rick Charny Camps Endowment helps children facing adversity attend the JCC Camps at Medford":
Another successful summer at JCC Camps at Medford has concluded, where over 1,600 children created memories that will last for the rest of their lives. What many may not know is that camp serves as a refuge for some campers and their families as they cope with difficult circumstances at home.
For example, Sara Sideman, JCC Camps at Medford director, said that over the past few years, camp has hosted “campers whose parents had cancer. In some of the cases, the parents were actively going through treatment, and in one case, the camper had lost a parent to cancer.”
With this challenge in mind, several dedicated community members have rallied together in a unique and lasting way to provide much-needed relief to campers and their families facing hardship.
Following the 2015 death of his good friend and fellow community leader, Richard “Rick” B. Charny (of blessed memory), KC Isdaner, a Katz JCC past president and current president of Jewish Community Properties, wanted to help Rick’s wife, Judy, memorialize Rick for all that he had done for the local community, particularly for camp.
To ensure that Rick’s legacy of serving as a Katz JCC Board member and chair of camp continues for future generations, Isdaner and Charny worked with the Jewish Community Foundation, Inc. to launch the Richard B. Charny JCC Camps Endowment Fund for the purpose of providing annual scholarship assistance to campers attending JCC Camps at Medford, specifically for children facing adversity.
Since launching in 2016, Rick’s fund has had a lasting, positive, and direct impact on approximately 20 campers, and counting. “We know from speaking to the families that their kids hold onto the idea of camp each summer to provide a little normalcy,” Sideman said. “By providing the financial support to help ensure the campers can attend, we are alleviating a huge stressor for the families who are already navigating so much.”
Judy Charny said that during his lifetime, “It was really important to Rick that kids who have been a part of camp and love it should be able to continue to do so, even if their parents are sick.” Moreover, attending JCC Camps at Medford “builds attachment to the Jewish community” and that camp is “a very important part of development for young Jewish kids. To help other families enjoy this experience is really a blessing.”
According to Isdaner, “It just seemed natural to create the endowment fund to honor Rick’s legacy and support others who are facing adversity to lend a financial hand to make children’s and families’ lives better.”
To date, over 100 contributions have been made to Rick’s fund, and additional contributions will continue to be invested to ensure that more scholarship assistance will be available to benefit deserving campers in the future. As Sideman said, “We are so fortunate to have the generosity of incredible donors in our community. The power of an endowment is that the impact is felt for a lifetime. There are so many projects at camp that could be supported by an endowment–mental health, inclusion, performing arts, and so much more.”
Visit jcfsnj.org/charny-fund to learn more about the fund or make a tax-deductible donation, or contact the JCF at (856) 673- 2528 or infojcf@jfedsnj.org to learn about creating an endowment fund.
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