Parent FAQs

As a family-owned and operated sleep-away camp for over 55 years, we take pride in ensuring a safe, nurturing and fun environment for boys and girls who’ve completed grades 1st through 9th.

At Kennybrook we take an “all for one” approach. One represents our belief in the power of summer camp to change the life of each child. Being “all for one” is focusing on the individual needs, interests, and passions of each camper. It’s what happens when every camper has an experience that is as unique as they are. One is the difference made by the relationship between a counselor and a camper. It’s the warmth of the one-on-one relationships our campers have with the Landmans – our owners and directors. “All for one” recognizes the impact of the lifelong friendships each camper creates. It represents our commitment to providing a summer camp experience that builds confidence and independence for each camper. Being all for one is how we ensure your child will have an awesome summer.

Camp counselor applicants are carefully screened with rigorous background checks. The Kennybrook team of approximately 100 staff members includes Directors, Senior Staff, Counselors, Administrative, Health and Support Staff. All senior staff are college graduates, and counselors have completed at least one year of college. All staff participate in an intense five-day orientation and training program. Approximately 50% of our staff come from the United States, while others are from England, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand and other countries. Many of our staff members are former campers who grew up in the Kennybrook program. Each bunk has at least two counselors and each age group is overseen by an adult Group Leader, typically an educator.

At Kennybrook, your child will be truly known. A wide range of traditional camp activities and select athletics will allow your son or daughter the opportunity to gain self-confidence and achieve independence while creating lifelong friendships, all under the supervision of our selectively hired staff members.

We go beyond what is expected to encourage new experiences, increase skills and nurture individual interests, all in a warm and secure environment. Parents continue to tell us that their children return home with great friends, a sense of pride in accomplishment, improved social skills and more self confidence.

We have three registered nurses and a Health Center Administrator who live on campus in our Health Center and are available 24/7, plus a pediatrician who visits camp regularly. The benefit of having a local pediatrician is that he/she has rights to the local medical center and a network of specialists to turn to at a moment’s notice.

In the event of an emergency, we are located only four miles from Catskill Regional Medical Center, and less than 10 minutes from Garnet Health Urgent Care. Whenever a child spends a night in our Health Center, parents will get a call from the nurse and will speak to their child. Lastly, we are equipped to handle a variety of food allergy needs, including EpiPen injection and administration, and are a 100% peanut-free camp.

We encourage participation, skill development and sportsmanship. Athletic campers learn to hone key skills and new techniques to accelerate during more challenging tournaments and competitive leagues. All athletics are taught by high school and college coaches who help each camper improve individual competencies. With that said, campers are not required to try out, but if they want to be competitive, they have numerous opportunities to learn new strategies to excel. We have an extensive intra-camp league system that includes our soccer, basketball and baseball Leagues. We also participate in the Mountain Conference Leagues with other camps in Sullivan County.

At Camp Kennybrook, we are proud to have a diverse, welcoming community that draws members from all over the world. Since we are located in Monticello, NY in the Catskill Mountains, many of our campers come from the tri-state area: New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. However, we also have many campers from  Pennsylvania, Maryland, Florida, Texas, and California, as well as Puerto Rico, Mexico, Spain, France, and Israel. Kennybrook campers average five summers with us, and each year we enjoy a return rate of over 85%.

Electives encourage campers to focus on particular areas of interest and have more intense instruction. Athletic and creative electives are chosen weekly and all campers have two electives each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Daily activities are not coed because we know that girls and boys learn better without coed social pressures. Our residential camper cabins and modern bunks are also gender specific. Each cabin has a dedicated counselor and minimum of two staff, as well as separate bathrooms and showers. Boys and girls also have separate campuses…boys on one side of the camp, and girls on the other. Campers do however, all eat at one time and see each other throughout the day. Evening activities are occasionally coed, teens socialize each evening and time is set aside for brothers and sisters to get together.

There are no uniforms since we are informal at Camp Kennybrook. However, campers are required to wear Kennybrook shirts during specific activities, such as off-camp trips and tournaments. All campers are expected to dress in appropriate clothing that works for busy, active days. Counselors are good role models in terms of their dress and grooming.

Campers tell us that the food is good and parents appreciate the fact that Camp Kennybrook is a 100% nut-free camp. We can also accommodate gluten-free and vegetarian diets as well, and alternative meals are always available. We serve family-style in our modern, airy dining room. The varied menu is prepared by certified dietitians who work for Marist College during the winter. Campers love our hot cereal breakfast options, as well as our salad and soup bars at lunch and dinner.

Since our philosophy is that children need to “unplug” from daily stresses, we do not allow cell phones on campus. We do however arrange for campers to call and speak to their parents once a week, and our directors are always available to speak with parents and are sensitive to the adjustment process. All parents of new campers will be personally contacted by one of our directors within the first 72 hours of their arrival.

Additionally, campers are required to write home at least three times per week, and we upload 250+ photos per day on Bunk1. We are also extremely active on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok throughout the summer so you can keep up with all the fun we are having each day!

Camp Kennybrook is a 100% screen-free environment. We believe that when children disconnect from screens, they are able to fully immerse themselves in the camp experience and develop a sense of camaraderie without any distractions. Camp is one of the few places where kids can truly unplug, have fun and enjoy the outdoors. We believe that having a screen-free campus allows for a much needed break from the world of technology, while promoting greater socialization and deeper connections between our camp community. As a result, we do not allow campers to bring any form of cell phone, tablet, gaming device, etc.

Listening to music is always encouraged at Kennybrook, but we only allow music devices that do not have screens or access to the internet such as The Campfire Player or The Mighty Vibe.

Simply contact us and a member of the Camp Kennybrook team will be in touch to discuss your needs and answer any questions.