FAQs

Our FAQ’s are here to help you as a guide, but never hesitate to pick up the phone and call us at 413-274-4092 or email us at Directors@campmkn.com.  We are always happy to help answer any questions.

Where do most campers come from?

Mah-Kee-Nac boys come from all over the World, with around 70% of our campers arriving from the Tri-State area in the United States. We have boys from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Boston, Philadelphia, Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, Illinois, South Dakota, Florida, Texas, California, and as far away as France, Mexico, Columbia, Switzerland, and the Dominican Republic.

[acc_item title="How do you place campers in bunks?"]

When placing campers in bunks, we take 3 things into consideration:

  1. Is this child a new camper?  Typically we like to place new campers with other new campers.
  2. What grade has the child just completed?  We bunk our boys by the grade they have just completed.
  3. What session is the camper attending?  As best we can, we bunk our campers according to the session they are attending.  This allows for campers to go through the same transitions as their bunkmates in the summer.

Bunks and Campuses are arranged as follows:

Junior Camp (TJC) consists of boys entering 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th grades.

Lower Senior (LSR) consists of boys entering 6th, 7th and 8th grades.

Upper Senior (USR) consists of boys entering 9th, 10th, and 11th grades.  The 11th graders, our Senecas, are the oldest campers in camp.  They participate in a traditional camp program with the addition of some community service and leadership training benefits.  In this final year, the Senecas earn and are rewarded with many different privileges and awards.

[/acc_item]

What happens if my child gets sick or is injured at camp?

Mah-Kee-Nac’s health care staff consists of four nurses and a physician that cover our health center 24/7. Local physicians also attend to campers who need to see a specialist. These doctors are affiliated with the Berkshire Medical Center, 15 minutes from camp.  Two local Urgent Care Centers are within a 10-minute drive of camp as well.

Our Health Center Coordinator will always notify a parent when a child will need to stay overnight in the health center, needs to see a specialist, or needs to be started on prescription medication. We also contact parents, or the emergency contact person, immediately in the event of an accident or injury.

In addition, our campers are checked twice a session by our nursing staff to ensure hygiene and health are maintained satisfactorily.

During orientation, the staff reviews each of our camper’s medical history and medications. Sick call is held after breakfast and dinner, but campers who are ill are immediately escorted to the health center by their counselor. Children receive routine medications at mealtime and bedtime according to the documentation on the health history.

How is the food at camp? What if my child has a food allergy?

HOMEMADE AND DELICIOUS! Mah-Kee-Nac’s menu provides a large variety of nutritious and well-prepared meal selections, and allergy alternatives are available at every meal. Breakfast always consists of a fruit and yogurt bar, assorted cereals and a hot meal which rotates daily. For Lunch, a full salad bar and a made-to-order sandwich/wrap bar always compliments the main meal prepared daily by our chef. Dinner follows the same suit, offering a full salad bar alongside the main course for the evening. Hamburger, hotdog or pasta selections are offered every other night. Our campers are always given plenty of options during meals and receive 3 additional snacks during the day: morning, afternoon and a night bite. Fresh fruit is always available in the Dining Hall.

We take allergies extremely seriously at Mah-Kee-Nac. MKN is a “NUT AWARE” camp and does not use any tree nut/nut products in the kitchen, or allow any snacks on campus that contain tree nuts/nuts or were produced in a facility that contain tree nuts/nuts. We do not serve shellfish or sesame and have a separate side of the kitchen to accommodate a variety of allergies. We ask that you contact us directly if your son has a special diet so we can provide the best individual attention to your child.

How will my son travel to and home from camp?

Bus transportation is available from North & Central New Jersey, Long Island, New York City, Westchester, Philadelphia and Boston. Chaperoned flights are available from Washington, DC and Florida. Counselors escort campers to and from camp through the Albany and Hartford Airports.

How will I communicate with my son during the summer?

Full summer campers will receive two phone calls during the summer, one during the first session and one during the second session. First session and second session campers will receive one phone call. Parents will schedule all calls prior to the summer through their online Camp In Touch account.

Campers are required to write home at least once a week, although we encourage them to do so more often. We ask for parents to write weekly as well. We also provide an email service for parents through their online Camp In Touch account.  Parent emails are printed and delivered each morning to your son’s bunk’s mailbox and handed out at mail call.

MKN is a package-free camp. This reduces clutter in the bunks and eliminates feelings of competition and exclusion for the boys (and parents!). If your son happens to forget something, you may send a package with the forgotten item. In those instances, we ask that the parents please contact us beforehand.

What if my son would like to stay longer at camp?

When a camper is enrolled for a session but wants to stay longer – we do our very best to accommodate that request.  Many times, they are having just too much fun to go home.  Campers must extend through the remainder of the next session unless there is a school conflict.