SAVING CAMP LAVI
Securing Our Camp for the Next 30 Years · Confidential — Camp Lavi Families Only
DEADLINE: FULLY FUNDED BY 10:00 AM MONDAY, AUG. 10 — IN HAND WHEN WE WALK INTO COURT
A group of Camp Lavi families is working to acquire the camp by purchasing the position of Ohel, the winning bidder — approximately $10 million all-in. We are in active conversations with Ohel; the deal has not yet been finalized. An anchor family is raising $3 million and has secured $3.5 million in committed financing; camp families are raising the remaining $3.5 million, of which $1.5 million has already been committed but we still need to raise the remaining $2 million! This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to save Camp Lavi for our children — to secure it for the next 30 years, to sit in its leadership, and to put your family’s name on its future. It will not come again.
The Foundation WILL Run the Camp
The camp property will be held by a property company funded by the anchor family. The camp itself will be run by a nonprofit organization, Camp Lavi Foundation, Inc. (the “Foundation”), governed by camp parents, holding a 30-year lease. Sean Steinmetz will serve as the Foundation’s Executive Director, continuing to run Camp Lavi day to day. Contributions flow to the Foundation, which at closing purchases the leasehold at independently appraised value. What the Foundation delivers:
• Continuity. The leadership and staff our children know keep running camp — its character, community, and traditions stay exactly as they are.
• Security. A 30-year leasehold, owned by the Foundation and purchased at appraised value — the camp’s tenure is locked in.
• Affordability. Foundation ownership of the lease keeps rent low for the full term, so resources go to campers.
• Opportunity. Doors only a nonprofit camp can open: public funding, capital campaigns, and camper scholarship funds.
• Tax-advantaged giving. Deductible cash gifts, DAF-eligible grants, and naming recognition through the Foundation.
Two Ways to Give
1 · PERSONAL FUNDS — Deductible
• Wire to the escrow account at Stevens & Lee, P.C. by 10:00 AM Monday; instructions provided when you reply. Your deposit is fully refundableif we do not close.
• At closing, you sign a one-page election converting your deposit into an irrevocable gift to the Foundation. You will receive a gift acknowledgment letter after the gift has been made. Note: The Foundation is in the process of applying for tax-exempt status as a section 501(c)(3) organization, which status is expected to be retroactive once granted. If you prefer to make a donation to an existing 501(c)(3) organization, a donation can be made to Congregation Lavi Kollel, which has agreed to act as a fiscal sponsor on behalf of the Foundation.
• Your contribution is deductible for 2026 as a cash gift to a public charity, subject to your personal tax circumstances.
2 · DONOR-ADVISED FUND
• Do not wire personal funds. Submit a grant recommendation from your DAF to Congregation Lavi Kollel — details provided on request. Email us your sponsor’s grant confirmation — it counts your commitment for court.
• Copies of grant recommendations received by Monday become part of the Foundation’s own escrow deposit.
• DAF grants carry no new deduction (you received it when you funded your DAF). If we do not close, funds are returned to your sponsoring organization — back into your DAF.
• THE ONE RULE — A family may give cash and make a separate DAF grant — both count. But no dollar travels both paths: gifts are never reimbursed, and no DAF grant may be linked to any repayment, reimbursement, or benefit to that family. This is federal tax law and a condition of every DAF sponsor. Gifts are entirely separate from tuition and enrollment, and all related-party terms, including the lease and the appraisal, are approved by independent directors with outside counsel.
Recognition
Families giving $100,000+ will be invited to serve as Directors of the Foundation; $200,000+ as Executive Members; $500,000+ as Vice Presidents. Every gift made now receives full credit toward naming opportunities to be established after closing — bunkhouses, buildings, and other landmarks, up to the naming of the camp itself. Board designations are personal to the contributing family — held by the donor or spouse, and non-transferable. Roles are conferred by the Foundation’s board; they are not goods, services, or consideration for any contribution.
Do This Now — Deadline 10:00 AM Monday
• Reply to savecamplavi@gmail.com with your amount and how you’re giving: personal funds or DAF.
• Personal funds: wire by 10:00 AM Monday and email your wire confirmation. DAF: submit your recommendation today and email your sponsor’s confirmation by 10:00 AM.
• Questions: savecamplavi@gmail.com.
For discussion only; the escrow, election, and gift documents control. Not tax or legal advice — please consult your own advisors.