Hi, I’m Jack.
I own Camps Kenwood & Evergreen, a summer camp in New Hampshire that’s been running since 1930. I bought it in 2025.
I grew up at camp and never really left. I studied engineering, then co-founded a nonprofit camp called Camp Stomping Ground. Along the way I trained more than 10,000 camp counselors and visited 500+ camps in 47 states.
I think summer camp is the healthiest place on the planet for kids. We spend so much energy studying the places kids hate. School gets a million research papers, and camp gets a brochure.
Dr. Richard Ryan has spent 50 years studying what helps people thrive, and he thinks schools should look more like summer camp. I agree with him.
So let’s stop optimizing every minute of childhood and give kids room to grow, make real friends, and get some range.
Every Tuesday I write Summer Matters for 3,000+ parents who think hard about childhood.
And yes, I once biked across Spain in a shark costume. Ask me about it.

Recent issues of Summer Matters.
- Fitness first at camp
- Let’s call it a summer
- Get Engaged! (And I don't mean married)
- The other 50% of camp counseling
- Vibes >>> Content
- The Hidden Curriculum Camp Science Fair
- How to get kids to camp?
- AI is the greatest thing to happen for camps
- Can you be Dirtbag Rich?
- GREAT staff training (an acronym that kinda works)
- Will this guy ruin camp?
- 400 camp people, one broken projector
- I bought a camp (yes, you read that right)
- What Tri-State says about summer camps
- Staff training is hats, haircuts, and tattoos
- The Summer Camp Hall of Fame
- Burn a hole in their camp memory
- Camp on a Frozen Lake
- The Super Summer Camp Staff Training Video
- How to win at camp conferences
- Camp Kids at Winter Weekend
- Camp place + camp people > camp programming
- Camp + career isn’t an either/or
- Camp is all about friction-maxxing
- Camp is school for social skills
Reply to anything I send. I read every one.
jack
Edited from Wilmot, New Hampshire. Set in Lora and Montserrat.