Changing lives since 1909! This boy’s camp in the Catskill Mountains in NYS is a magical place. A place where boys as early as 8 or 9 years of age can escape to for 5 weeks each summer for a “Back to Basics” camp experience. No technology allowed! Each day begins with a chapel service led by the Amazing Father “D” Donahue, followed by breakfast, sports, sports and more sports, then dinner and evening activities. Campers sleep in raised platform tents that are expected to remain tidy and in order. Military discipline with no bullying allowed and ranks. This teaches the boys to respect and understand leadership. There are male and female counselors which gives the boys positive female role models. Boys make friends for life. Bonds that are based on personalities and common interests not the color of your skin or the socioeconomic status of your family. Thanks to the generosity of the Gerry Family and the many families and alumni that attended the camp, this continues to be a gift for boys summer after summer. I for one, feel so blessed I have been able to give this gift to my son. I wish this camp was a right of passage for every boy. It can be a gift you can give YOUR son. AMAZING!!!

My attitude changed for the better because of LDBC. It unlocked the potential that I had inside me.

Camp is a very special place. It allows you to get to know yourself and gain the confidence required to do anything your heart chooses.

I never knew a place that could have such an affect on a person. To make one love life more. To create friendships that had never existed. I’ve never felt more welcome.

I’m not sure most people could appreciate the wonderful effect LDBC has had on my son after he started attending Camp. At LDBC he is living testimony that the concepts taught at LDBC, brotherhood, faith, challenge and structure—fundamental to a boy’s growth—are key to his maturing process. I have noticed many differences in my son since he began attending LDBC. Now he faces challenges in stride where before he got easily frustrated. Now he appreciates achieving honestly earned rewards and experiencing new things, where before he was more focused on acquiring material things. I have observed that he is more responsible, copes better with failure, is better mannered and knows what it means to work towards a goal. When my son entered LDBC he bore the burden of certain level of insecurity, emotional immaturity and his time there has alleviated him of a lot of that. For that I am truly thankful for LDBC.

LDBC taught me independence, teamwork, trust, loyalty, dedication and devotion to duty and most importantly the value of people. What I learned from LDBC was how to endure, persevere I was given the ability to learn to lead and received an education in faith and hope. I had an opportunity to be involved in a diverse setting where I learned that the color or ethnic background are the not measure of a person. We lived as brothers and became part of an extended family learning to treat others fairly and without prejudice.

Going to this camp was the experience of a lifetime and I feel I am a stronger man because of it. There is no other camp that teaches you lessons in life of how to be a true spirited man. There is no other camp that has so few campers but at the same time allows you to become a family of brothers. There is no other camp in which your character is built every second you are here. There is no other camp that relies so heavily on the leadership of older campers. I am truly blessed for having come here and I have gained an appreciation for the finer things in life, including family, having a rich Christian spirit and lifetime friendships. I will take these experiences with me for the rest of my life.

I am part of something grander than me. The family aspect of camp is the best. The two parent home aspect of my life was missing at a crucial point in my development and because of that I had not the slightest clue of what I was supposed to be. The same can be said for many other boys. They come and many of them are forced to “grow up” at home and here at camp they can be kids. That is one of the most amazing things about camp. The fact that you are guided and directed in your maturation and growth. I learned what it means to be a real man, I learned the strength, courage and all the other things that make a man. For that, I am eternally grateful.

My only wish is that every boy could have the privilege of spending their summers at LDBC so they could grow to respect and work with all kinds and types of boys. That is what LDBC did for my son and grandson. LDBC trains boys to become men with excellent characteristics. I take my hat off and give three cheers for all those who make LDBC possible.

I now realize why I come back to this camp every year. It is because of my sincere unchanging love for this camp. I am forever in debt to this place. If it was not for this camp I do not know where I would be today. LDBC is truly the cornerstone of my life.