Camp Jabberwocky

Camp Jabberwocky was gearing up to have two big developments in 2020: tuition-free summer camp for the first time in history and the expansion of programming into the year. Those two developments were delayed by the serious dangers COVID-19 placed on our community and the broader Vineyard community. Instead of running in-person programs, we moved our programming online, began a camp-wide phone buddy system, and sent out a total of 500 care packages to our community to keep everyone connected and decrease feelings of isolation and fear. Highlights were a virtual parade and partnering with Rick Bausman and MV Community Services to make weekly Drumming (Not) on the Beach broadcasts from our Main Cabin screen porch every Tuesday for the community to enjoy remotely. We did not want our main cabin building (the facility MVYouth helped complete) to go unused and we saw the great need for healthy and accessible food for our community, so we continued our partnership with Island Grown Initiative and worked with Slough Farm in the summer months to use our commercial kitchen. The programs brought gleaned produce, food donated or purchased from local farms, and a number of chefs and volunteers into the kitchen to create thousands of meals to be distributed through the Food Pantry and local social workers to food-insecure families and individuals on Martha's Vineyard. Between Slough Farm and IGI, we had an organization using our kitchen every month of 2020. Additionally, classes from the Vineyard Montessori School used Jabberwocky facilities through their 2019-2020 school year.