Where Children Grow and Bloom
Camp gives children the opportunity to learn and practice vital life skills. We value and teach compassion, acceptance, and inclusion. We believe it is important that we teach children how to live day by day in a nurturing community. We provide campers with simplicity, a place to play, a place to explore, and a place to connect with the joy of being a child. At Eagle’s Nest our campers are encouraged to interact and connect with the outdoors. We provide them the opportunity to be independent of their parents and friends from home so that they can make their own decisions and gain confidence in their abilities. And we give them a chance to step out of their comfort zones and take on challenges with the support of their counselors and camp friends. Our campers are able to act freely among their peers, put down the disguises they may wear at home, discover themselves, and grow as compassionate people.
Eagle’s Nest is an independent, non-profit summer camp with no religious affiliation.
Community Building and Respect
Good relationships don’t just happen by chance. Relationship building must be taught and learned. Camp is a perfect place to live together intentionally and form honest, respectful relationships with peers in cabin groups, at family table groups where we share our daily joys, doing chores where we learn about giving service to a community, in the outdoors where we learn about nature, and on sports teams where we learn to play together as part of a team.
Eagle’s Nest’s philosophy is built on respect and being responsive to cultural differences. We are an independent, non-profit foundation. We believe that it’s important to create a space that is available and safe for all. A diverse community must include support, acceptance, respect and compassion. We also believe that to be equitable we must honor all camper’s values, perspectives and identities to create an inclusive community. We are committed to attracting and serving people of diverse cultures, ethnicities, faiths, identities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Our community ethos fosters belonging, self-awareness, respect, honesty, empathy, inclusion, and equity. We strive to honor the perspectives and traditions of all members of our community.
We Value Inclusive Communities
Eagle’s Nest Foundation is committed to creating a positive and inclusive learning environment to all participants and staff, regardless of their sex assigned at birth. We offer a safe space where we support all our campers and participants. We teach and foster empathy and respect throughout our community. Our goal is to ensure all people feel safe and supported.
We are welcoming of all members of the LGBTQ+ community. Eagle’s Nest Camp and Hante Adventures provide a safe space for LGBTQ+ kids and counselors. We advocate for all of our campers, staff, and participants who are part of the LGBTQ+ community. Our goal is to foster a nurturing community for all. At the center of campus, we proudly fly the Rainbow flag as a symbol of LGBTQ+ pride and a demonstration of our commitment to support all of our campers, participants and staff members.
We support transgender campers and staff. They are housed in the cabin of their gender. We also work with gender fluid and non-binary participants to help them find the most comfortable housing assignment. We address participants by the name and pronoun that corresponds with their gender.
Anti-Racism
As a Foundation, we provide anti-racism education and training at Eagle’s Nest for our full-time and seasonal staff members. We also provide funding for employees to attend anti-racism webinars, conferences, and training.
The ENF Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion(DEI) Committee oversees a number of sub-committees working on specific projects related to DEI work in the organization. These projects include supporting individuals with disabilities, hosting monthly DEI discussion groups, and writing blog posts and Eagle bi-annual newsletter articles to share updates with our readers on DEI Committee projects and proposals.
Cultural Appropriation
At Eagle’s Nest we have been learning about how we can provide a more equitable, just, and inclusive experience for all of our participants, faculty, staff, alumni, and trustees. In this effort, we have been combing through our institutional culture for practices that are derived from Native American traditions in a concerted effort to replace these practices while retaining the educational aspect of this work. We are working toward the removal of elements in our programs that are disrespectful, harmful, or simplistic uses of Indigenous cultures. Though our practices arose in admiration, our use over the years amounted to appropriation and oppression.
In 2016, we began this process by revising how we describe camp advancements, the names of the group leaders, and other portions of our community ceremonies. In 2021, we restructured our camp “tribal” system to become Kindreds and removed symbols, names, and activities irreverent of Native American peoples and cultures. We recognize this work is ongoing and welcome your assistance in identifying other areas in need of change as well as ideas for new or revised practices that honor our core values, support our mission, and nurture a community of belonging and respect.
Support for the LGBTQIA+ Community
All programs within Eagle’s Nest Foundation are open and inclusive. We are welcoming of all members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Through our programs, ENF provides a safe space for LGBTQIA+ individuals, and we advocate for all of our campers, staff, students, faculty, and participants who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Our goal is to foster a nurturing community for all. At the center of campus, we proudly fly the Rainbow flag as a symbol of LGBTQIA+ pride and a demonstration of our commitment to support all of our campers, participants and staff members.
Gender Inclusion
More Information on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at ENF:
Joyful Days and Starry Nights
Unplug from technology and connect to the outdoors and each other.
Our campers are able to live simply, away from technology and busy schedules. By disconnecting from computers, phones, tablets and other technology they are able to read, craft, explore and truly connect with each other. Detachment from constant entertainment or stimulation creates space for creative play, problem solving and growth. At Eagle’s Nest we create a space for children to simply be, away from many of the distractions found outside of camp.