Some of our normal expenses in running the camp will stun campers!  A mandated groundwater testing bill (about $10,000), hanging over our heads, is required because we maintain a septic system.  Add in more “fees” from the State Water Resources Board.  The septic, the garbage services, the Forest Service fee to lease the land (once $1 per year, now upwards of $6,000), propane, insurance costing about $7,000 a year, bookkeeper and CPA and fees, and food, salaries and taxes round out the biggest expenses.
 
Owing to this difficult economy, large charitable donations are difficult to come by.  We have been aided by a few moderate and many, many small donations, and we cherish these supporters.However, as you can see from the above figures, we need much more.  The market is full of charities with their hands out to big donors, and we are no exception, but are currently out of ideas, unless we could find ten donors at $5,000 each, a tall order indeed!  Where could we find these people?
 

We’ve had almost no advertising/marketing monies, and filling Family Camp has been difficult.  Add to this the serious issue of changes in school calendars, essentially putting many area children back into school in July, during the heart of Family Camp, so that we cannot fill cabins into July and August anymore. We no longer know where we should reach out in order to populate the few weeks of camp.

The City of Stockton has given us little support, certainly nothing financial.  There was never any transparency on their part about what all the huge, hidden fees and costs were—we were blindsided! The City could shuffle monies from other budget areas when needed, and clearly did,while we never had any such capability, so we can deal only with what we bring in and what is donated. We found (too late) that the camper fees the City charged when it ran the camp were far too small to sustain the camp.  Naturally, we have had to raise them each year, not without criticism.
 
We were promised fundraising and grant-writing efforts by some volunteers to help us, and found many broken promises, building our hopes and dashing them by inaction.  We few on thisBoard have exhausted our energy to mastermind suggested fundraisers such as, golf tournaments, garage sales, chili cook-offs, crab feeds, and so on.  At annual meetings of the Association, we have tried to recruit volunteers to spearhead some of these things, but people do not come forward.  It’s easy to say, “I want to help,” but rolling up sleeves and plunging in is a far different matter.  We have a long list from campers about what to try, but few who will help us do the work.  Surprisingly, most of our campers do not even join the Association annually to show their support.  So the Board plugs on, desperate to save this camp for all those who seem to want it so much.
 
It is our firm conviction that, should we return this camp to the City, it will be left to abandonment and disrepair very soon, and then the Forest Service will charge The City to bulldoze all the cabins, buildings and the historic lodge and take back the land.  It is for this reason that your Board members are losing so much sleep. We all need to decide how much this camp means to us and what we want to do about it, remembering once again that many of us are not likely to appreciate our little gem until it’s gone.
 
Please let us take a moment to thank, from the bottom of our collective hearts, those people whohave stepped up to help, especially in camp opening and closing weekends, from snow-shoveling to repairs, to volunteering in leadership roles at camp. And every single smaller donor is special to us.  It should not go unmentioned that many Board members, in addition to the incredible number of hours donated to the Association, have put much of their own money into saving the camp, and it looks now like they may never be reimbursed.
 
In closing, we ask that you jump in as quickly as possible with your ideas as to what we should do, but more importantly, help us to carry them out—the effort has never been collaborative enough.  Too soon, it will be out of our hands. At the very least, attend the annual Silver Lake Dinner on March 24 and keep abreast of this whole issue. We are on the precipice and have to do something very quickly.
 
 
Sincerely, on behalf of the Board of Directors,
 
 
Robert Bonfilio, President
 
NOTE: Donations toward camp received after this date will be held until and unless camp opening goes forward; should camp close, they will be returned.

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Send your donation to United Way (401 E. Main Street, Stockton, CA 95201) with the specification that you would like to have the funds forwarded to the Silver Lake Campers Association.  In this way, the money will definitely benefit the needs of this half century plus year old camp in the High Sierras which has been a well loved treasure by many in the Stockton area, as well as individuals from outside of the community, many of whom have returned year after year, as have subsequent generations, to enjoy the beauty of the surroundings.  When the City of Stockton made the decision to close the camp in 2009, it was through the efforts of the volunteer members of the Association that the camp has been able to continue to meet the needs of the community.  Your generosity, at this time of need, will be greatly appreciated by future generations to come!