Camp Scotmar (c.1965 - c.1979) was an overnight camp for Jewish children founded in southern California in 1962 or 1963 (see below) by Bert and Myra Stern. The name is a contraction of the names of their son Scott and daughter Marla. Many of the early participants and campers and staff came from in and around the San Fernando Valley, with much of the activity centered around Temple __________________ where Mr. Stern had been youth director from _________ to ___________. Early leaders included Gary Coleite, Lenny Wolff, Myrna Samuels, Geri Gold, and _______________.

The camp had several locations in California and Colorado. These ncluded Hidden Springs (Angeles National Forest), Monte Vista Lodge in Upland California, Camp Hidden Trails (Agoura, California), and Camp Scotmar in the Sky in Mancos, Colorado. Only the Mancos camp was owned by Scotmar. It was purchased in 1972, and sold in ____. Campers came primarily from southern California, although significant contingents came from Las Vegas and, later, from Mexico City.

Rather than having elaborate physical facilities, Camp Scotmar at each location was primarily known for the love and imagination of its staff, people who by sheer force of personality and creativity, built an environment in which young people could have fun, sing, hike, and grow. Singing, storytelling, horseback riding, and swimming were key activities.

Hidden Springs (Angeles National Forest)

According to camper Farryl Weitzman (later counselor and Unit Head) the first location of Camp Scotmar in 1963 was at Hidden Springs in the Angeles National Forest began in 1963. The facility used had previously served as a science/nature camp for the Bellflower school district.

Monte Vista Lodge (Upland, California)

The second location of Camp Scotmar -- beginning in 19__ -- was Upland's Monte Vista Lodge.
In the 1940s and 1950s, the lodge -- owned and developed by Martin Koss -- was a well know vacation spot primarily for Jews in southern California. It was a conscious attempt to create a Catskills style resort including cabins, entertainment, and food.

Eventually, in ____, Bert Stern and Martin Koss created a joint enterprise under which Monte Vista began to operate as a Jewish camp during the summer and continued to host primarily elderly Jews during winter vacations. Staff members from the summer often earned extra income by working as waiters and bus boys during the winter.

While by 2006, the area around the former Monte Vista Lodge had been heavily developed, in its early years the Lodge was beautifully nestled in the foothills below Mt. Baldy with very few surrounding residents. Adequate space existed for a baseball field and horse stable. The view of the mountains on clear days was breathtaking.

Camp Scotmar in the Sky (Mancos, Colorado)

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Noted Activities

An annual color war - between a blue and a white team -- was an eagerly anticipated event at each of the locations. The climax of color war was a musical play produced by each team that satirized various camp personalities, including the director. One typical play had the director donning a scuba outfit and entering the sewage system through a toilet placed center stage. A still unresolved controversy continues over whether the results of the annual color war were fixed by the director to keep the teams close.

Meals were raucous affairs, and both began and ended with the appropriate Jewish blessings. Singing after meals was loud, frequent, and joyous. Shabbat was also memorable for its beautiful music, campers and staff dressed in white, services, and delicious chicken dinners.

Structure and Organizaiton

Bert Stern was the Camp Director. There were Unit Heads, Counselors, Junior Counselors (JCs) and Counselors-in-Training (CITs). A special employee category called "Shlep" were essentially dining room employees who also were affiliated with a unit of campers. These shleps were generally 15 years old and many later became junior counselors, counselors, and unit heads.

Humor at Camp Scotmar

No complete history of Camp Scotmar could ignore the extent to which practical jokes, song parodies, and good-natured teasing were a central part of the camp experience. Each of the camp's official songs, for example, was shadowed by irreverent versions of the same songs with different lyrics.

Many such examples exist, and a notable one was the extent to which the medication Dimetapp came to be known as an all-purpose elixir that could cure anything from headaches to PMS to homesickness. In retrospect, the alcohol content of the medication might have been largely responsible for its medical efficacy. A particularly beloved camp personality, Nurse Pat Cohen, who later married lifeguard Neil Cohen, became legendary for stalking the camp armed with Dimetapp for sick campers and staff.

Marriages, Families, and Relationships Originating at Camp Scotmar

The camp remains widely known for the number of former staff and campers who consider their camp experience to have been central to their growth and development as human beings, parents, leaders, and Jews. Numerous long-lasting social relationships began at Camp Scotmar, leading to marriages and relationships, lifelong friendships, and a second, third, and fourth generation of resulting children.

One legendary family line that came together at Camp Scotmar was the Gold/Wolff/Shannon group. The family began in ________ with the union of ________ and ___________. By 2006, the family was composed of ______________________.

Others included ________________.

Reunion: Summer 2006

Alumni now live throughout the world and will gather in the summer of 2006 for the first time in the __ years since the camp ceased operation. Many people will be seeing old friends for the first time in over three decades.

Bert and Myra eventually divorced. As of 2006, Myra was living in Santa Monica, California, and Bert elsewhere in the Los Angeles area. Their contribution to the founding and development of this extraordianry enterprise is deeply appreciated by several generations of campers and staff.


Future additions and contributions to this entry will add detail to the various stages of the history of Camp Scotmar and describe notable personalities who were part of this extraordinary extended family and community.

External links

organizing site for August 2006 reunion

Camp Scotmar discussion group on Yahoo