Safety & Security

The safety of our campers and your children is our absolute first priority; unfortunately, with today’s tense world situations, we find it necessary to take extraordinary measures to protect our children. While the conversation about summer camp often times focuses more on specific daily offerings, we are proud to highlight the security that we have in place to protect your children and our staff:

• All visitors on grounds, no matter their reasoning, are required to wear a neon visitor’s pass.
• While our staff shirts make great camp-wear, they’re also a piece of our security plan; between our shirts and visitor passes, our staff know instantly if someone is not supposed to be on grounds or has avoided security.
• Our staff are trained intensively on emergency procedures including lock-down drills and various crisis situations
• Criminal background checks are done on all Camp counselors and staff including kitchen, maintenance and all support staff; We require at least three references for any staff member and during the summer, all staff are constantly evaluated by our Head Staff team.
• We are constantly in touch with the NJSP for both proactive emergency planning and periodic security check-ups.
• We are fully accredited by the American Camp Association which has stringent standards for health and safety including emergency procedures.
• At no time, ever, is a camper not under adult supervision.

While these pieces all add to our overall security plan, the biggest asset is our staff. Between the incredible counselors who work with your kids and the over 200 years of cumulative experience of our Head Staff team, your children truly are in the best hands possible.

As always, providing the most incredible experiences for your children is what drives Black Bear Lake. We cannot express how honored we are, each and every summer, to be trusted with the care, safety and well-being of your most precious gifts.

Health & Wellness

Our Health & Wellness Center, which is staffed with 3 Registered Nurses daily, is fully stocked for any emergency – minor or major. Our staff are trained each and every summer on safety procedures as well as continuing education on allergies, the use of EpiPens and blood-borne pathogens. Many of our staff, including our entire Leadership Staff and every lifeguard, are trained and certified by the Red Cross in First Aid & CPR for the Professional Rescuer (certifications that are renewed each and every summer).  Since it’s opening, Black Bear Lake has been an allergy-friendly campus, accommodating the needs of our campers with peanut and tree-nut allergies, as well as gluten and dairy allergies. As a prime focus of our mission is the health and safety of the campers and counselors in our care. Therefore, the decision to be allergy friendly was a simple one. We are a community where we take care of each other and being allergy friendly is one way that we do that.

There is absolutely nothing we take more seriously than the safety of our campers and staff!