Family Camp 2023

Family Camp is a magical week for parents and children to spend together with old friends and new in the beautiful, rolling green hills of Vermont's Northeast Kingdom at Karmê Chöling.

Watch the YouTube video entitled 'Buddha Camp'. By: Katie Frank

Family Camp is a week-long program that combines meditation practice, outdoor time, and the warmth of family and community. For parents, the morning is a time for meditation practice, with meditation instruction given on our first morning together. There are morning talks and discussions, led by our Family Camp Teacher-in-Residence, with a focus on mindful parenting. New practitioners have the opportunity to meet with a meditation instructor. There will also be spaces dedicated for practitioners to do their personal practice in a group setting during the morning session.

Children are in a morning program from 9:15-12:15, grouped by age: Tigers (3-5), Lions (6-7), Garudas (8-10), Dragons (11-12), and Explorers of the Phenomenal World (13-18). Activities are varied and often include meditation, craft projects, time outdoors, stories, songs, hikes in the woods, and group games. The Rites of Passage program, at the heart of Family Camp, will be offered again this year for children between the ages of 8 and 10. This week-long program includes bow and arrow making, bow and arrow practice, calligraphy, poetry writing, and connecting with the land. The program culminates in a beautiful ceremony, attended by the entire camp, marking the passage from early childhood into the greater independence of late childhood. All morning programs are taught by our dedicated adult staff and supported by our teen counselors, many of whom have themselves grown up within Family Camp.

Afternoons are dedicated to family time, with both structured and spontaneous activities at Karmê Chöling and in the surrounding area. There are many mountain lakes nearby to enjoy. Evenings include a relaxed dinner together, laughter and play on the front lawn, and supervised campfires with songs and stories. You'll find that days are both spacious and quite full.

Family Camp begins on Saturday, July 29th and ends on Sunday, August 6th at Noon. Please plan to stay until Noon on the 6th.

2023 Program Pricing:

Adult: $600 per adult.

Children: $320 per child for the first two children of the family.

Additional Children: $160 for each additional child (beyond the first two).

Children 2 years old and younger are free.

Rites of Passage: $90 fee for each child participating in this Program.

All meals and a one-family-sized tent are included in the cost of the program. This year we are inviting families to bring and use your own tent if you wish to receive a $30 discount on family tuition!

Scholarships/Discounts:

Scholarships are available for those in need. To be eligible for a scholarship, you must first register your family and make a deposit ($200) online. Once you have done that, contact Ella Reznakova to request a scholarship: scholarships@karmecholing.org. The deadline to request a scholarship is May 30th.

No other discounts apply.

Deposits and payments are refundable up to two weeks prior to the program start date, minus a $25 cancellation fee. After the two week deadline, Karmê Chöling will deduct a $25 cancellation fee and retain the rest of your deposit as credit towards another program. This credit will expire after two years. Any payments over the deposit will be refunded.

Housing:

A one-family-sized Karmê Chöling tent is included in the cost of the program. If you prefer, you can bring your own tent for a $30 discount on family tuition! Our priority for assigning housing in the Karmê Chöling tents located nearest the main house is for families with young children and/or mobility challenges.

We have a limited number of rooms in the main house. Regular accommodations rates apply for housing in the main house and at our offsite location, Ashoka Bhavan. Our priority for assigning accommodations in the main house is for families with young children and/or mobility challenges.

Please note: accommodations are assigned in the order of when the program deposit is made.

Registration Lottery:

As in past years, we will use the lottery system to give everyone an equal opportunity for a slot to register for the Camp. Please read below to learn how to enter the lottery for a registration spot.

How the Lottery Works:
There are three lottery categories:

1) Families with 8-10 yr old children who want to participate in the 2023
Rite of Passage program
2) Returning (Alumni) Families
3) Families NEW to the Family Camp community

These three categories allow us to honor and make space for a healthy balance of returning families, new families, and Rite of Passage families.

We will prioritize inviting families with children entering the Rite of Passage program, which is at the very heart of Shambhala culture for children. It is at this age (8-10) that children formally begin the profound path of warriorship by taking the vow: “Today I am born a warrior. I acknowledge the dignity of all by bowing.” (You can learn more about the ROP program here.)

The lottery closes April 12th. On April 13th, families will be randomly chosen from each basket until we have reached our full Camp capacity. All other names will be added to a wait-list, and will be contacted as space becomes available.

How Do You Sign Up for the Lottery?
Sign up for the lottery using the MOST appropriate link below (CHOOSE ONLY ONE), for example, if you are a returning alumni family and also have a child that would be participating in ROP, please sign up under the Rite Of Passage link only.

1) Family with a child age 8-10 who would like to participate in the Rite of Passage program sign up here: Families with Rite of Passage Children

2) Alumni families sign up here: Alumni Families

3) Families NEW to Family Camp sign up here: New Families

A Very Important Note:

We recognize that our Camp has historically not reflected the full diversity of society. We are working to be proactive in taking steps to change this so that all groups feel invited. Therefore, within each category, there are positions set aside for applicants who self identify as diverse, meaning underrepresented within the Shambhala Community. These special positions within each category will also be assigned via lottery. To enter this “lottery within a lottery”, click the “diversity” check box that appears within each category.

Names will be drawn from the lottery sign up starting on April 13th.

We will announce lottery results by April 15th. Everyone will be notified by email. All names not given a registration spot will be added to the wait-list. Wait-listed families will be notified starting April 16th as spots open up. Please do not hesitate to contact me at kclfamilycamp@gmail.com if you have any questions about this process.

Preauthorization:

This program requires pre-authorization in order to register. An authorization code will be included in your acceptance letter.