Current Efforts

In Memory of Patty Almeida

Here at Hi-Rock, we are saddened to learn of the passing of Patty Almeida. Our thoughts are with her family during this challenging time. Patty was a wonderful member of the Central Connecticut Coast YMCA staff and a beloved participant in our annual Women’s Wellness Weekend with all of her friends.

One of her many friends, Bev Bjorklund, has shared her thoughts and conveyance of Patty’s family wishes to honor her life by considering a donation to YMCA Camp Hi-Rock’s campership fund to help send kids to camp.

“Last week we lost a bright star. Our dear friend Patty Mastrianno Almeida passed unexpectedly and far too soon. I must believe her work here was done but somehow it doesn’t feel that way. Her joy, her unconditional love and her spectacular laugh will be missed by so many. My sincerest condolences to her family and her many friends. In her memory, please consider a donation to her beloved YMCA Camp Hi-Rock to help send kids to camp.”

If you wish to give, please click here.

Annual Campaign

The Annual Campaign subsidizes our youth camp programs and supports our Campership Program which makes it possible for campers to attend camp who would not otherwise be able to do so due to financial challenges faced by their families. In 2023 we raised over $312,000 with gifts from more than 400 individuals, organizations and foundations! We are grateful to be part of such a generous camp community where alumni, parents, staff, community organizations and other friends of camp come together to make it possible for all campers to grow, learn and play together. Our 2024 Annual Campaign seeks to raise $260,000. It is not too early to make a gift or a pledge to the 2024 campaign. Click here to find out more about how to do so.

Click here to make a donation to the 2024 Annual Campaign!

Capital Campaign for Camp Hi-Rock

The Campaign for Camp Hi-Rock is a capital campaign which seeks to raise $3 million to address critical capital needs at camp. Our breathtaking natural setting is one of our most valuable resources. It is the primary vehicle for the transformational experiences that take place at Hi-Rock. The Campaign for Hi-Rock will build the infrastructure necessary to complement our extraordinary setting and will facilitate the vital work being accomplished by the members of the Hi-Rock community at camp.

The capital projects being undertaken by this campaign include the following:

Rebuild Parker Seeley Lodge (done!)
Rebuild dining hall hill retaining walls (done!)
Renovate dining hall (current effort)
Rebuild facility director cabin (in progress!)
Rebuild oldest boys’ camper cabins (in progress!)
Resurface ball fields
Rebuild shower houses
Renovate staff housing including the Wheel House
Strengthen our foundation by reducing our debt burden

As we have been making our way along the capital campaign trail, we have been encouraged and inspired by the love for Camp Hi-Rock we’ve seen among the friends we have visited and the volunteers who have joined us in telling the Hi-Rock story. We’ve had a great time sharing the opportunity to revitalize camp with alumni, camper parents, community organizations and foundations, and other friends of camp. Hi-Rockers of all ages, from the littlest Chipmunks in day camp on up, are enjoying the newly re-opened Parker Seeley Lodge!

If you are interested in learning more about the “Campaign for Camp Hi-Rock”, please contact Jessica Speer-Holmes at (413) 528-1227 or email us at executive@camphirock.org.

Click here to make a donation to the Capital Campaign!

Current Efforts of the Capital Campaign

Renovate Dining Hall

As far as facilities go, the dining hall is the heart of a camp – the hub where the camp community comes together at least three times a day. In the dining hall, campers sit with their cabin group at each meal and get to know each other more and more as each day goes by. They join together to sing and cheer and dance and revel in their togetherness. Campers and counselors take turns at the microphone sharing a joke, offering a thought for the day or making an announcement for the whole camp to hear. It is a place where unforgettable pranks are revealed and uplifting moments in the spotlight are frequent. It is also a place where we find shelter from storms and push the tables to the side to make room for an impromptu talent show or a rained-out closing campfire. The Magnus Whalstrom Dining Hall has stood the test of time thanks to the generosity and foresight of Mr. Whalstrom who built a building that would stay strong for generations. Now it is time to renovate and improve the dining hall to ensure it will serve future generations in all of the ways a dining hall should.

A new stage will give campers a place to shine and gain self-confidence by finding the courage to stand up in front of a crowd.
A new layout will allow all campers to see each other and the stage when they come together in the only building that can house the whole camp.
Improved acoustics will ensure campers can hear one another in a dining hall full of the sweet sounds of summer camp.
Extending the dining room will allow us to serve all campers in one sitting, a more efficient and cost-effective approach, one that appeals to a more diverse range of off-season groups and one that brings the whole camp community together to break bread, rather than dividing camp into separate sittings or outdoor versus indoor diners.
A fully renovated dining hall and kitchen will enable the focal point of camp to present a strong, positive image, inspiring confidence and comfort on the part of campers and parents when they are choosing a camp and once they have joined Hi-Rock.

Rebuild and Renovate Staff Housing

Highly committed, talented and passionate staff are vital to our ongoing capacity to run a thriving camp. In order to recruit and retain the kind of exceptional individuals for which Hi-Rock is known, we must provide adequate housing. It is crucial for staff to live on-camp because our programming happens twenty-four hours per day, year-round. True to
their nature, Hi-Rock staff have put the maintenance needs of buildings that house campers before the maintenance needs of staff housing for decades. The Campaign for Hi-Rock seeks to address numerous deferred maintenance issues in staff housing to enable Hi-Rock to continue to employ extraordinary staff who serve as stewards of the camp. Strong staff and continuity of leadership is critical to the sustainability of a successful camp. Our most urgent priority in this area is to rebuild the facility director’s cabin which has been closed due to significant building deficiencies.

Complete rebuilding our facility director’s house. The building where we house our facility director was determined to be beyond repair and was demolished. We are working to rebuild it before the 2023 summer season.

Rebuild The Redhawk Village Cabins

The cabin is the part of a summer camp experience where campers bond as a group and become devoted to each other in a matter of days. Bunk mates establish friendships that often last a lifetime. Counselors inspire their campers well beyond the summer. Cabins also bring out the best moments of a family camping trip. When an entire family piles into the bunk beds of a one-room cabin with sleeping bags and flashlights, memorable moments are inevitable. The oldest boys’ cabins have been in service for many decades and have suffered considerable deterioration over time. The Campaign for Hi-Rock will work towards replacement of these fundamental buildings which serve as the center of many campers’ Hi-Rock experiences. The newly renovated cabins will support improved enrollment and retention of campers, and long-term sustainability of Hi-Rock, by addressing visible disrepair that has caused concern and discomfort. The new cabin design will sleep ten campers and two counselors, replacing four-person cabins. The new structure will support stronger relationship and team building, prevent the creation of cliques made more likely when splitting campers into smaller groups and will enable counselors to supervise their campers and maintain compliance with the rule of three more efficiently, without disrupting and moving campers between cabins to accommodate a trip to the shower or the infirmary.