6 Ways Senior Living Is Like Summer Camp for Older Adults

As the summer heats up, you may be preparing for your child or grandchild to head away for another year of lakeside adventures. Their end-of-summer stories may make you feel nostalgic, bringing back lifelong memories from your own unforgettable summers at camp.

Even if your days as a camper are behind you, you don’t have to say goodbye to everything you loved about camp. Continuing care retirement communities like Orchard Cove in Canton, MA, and NewBridge on the Charles in Dedham, MA, have undeniable similarities to camp that can allow you to recapture the same sense of adventure, friendship, and joy that you had as a child!

NewBridge residents Dr. David S. Rosenthal and R. Peter Shapiro became friends as bunkmates at Camp Alton in New Hampshire over 70 years ago and stayed in touch their entire lives before reuniting as neighbors at NewBridge. Their extraordinary friendship made headlines in 2021, and you can listen along as they tell their story and compare living at Hebrew SeniorLife to their old camp days.

Mary Wright, who has been living at Orchard Cove since September 2023, says her new home is “like living at summer camp for life.” Mary began attending day camp as a very young child before shifting to sleepaway camp by the time she was a preteen.  

Not convinced that senior living and camp have that much in common? Here are just six ways they’re similar: 

1. Endless opportunities to socialize  

Making new friends isn’t easy at any age. The U.S. Surgeon General has called loneliness a public health epidemic and says that a lack of social connection can increase your risk for premature death by as much as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.  

At a senior living community, you are surrounded by people who have intentionally chosen to live with others in a communal setting. That alone gives you more opportunities to make new friends and socialize as much (or as little) as you want to. Beyond that, numerous activities, clubs, lectures, and more can help you meet people with similar interests to yours.  

Mary enjoys the opportunity to socialize on demand. Like camp, her life in senior living includes communal dining experiences with other residents at one of the on-site restaurants. But unlike camp dining, she gets to choose from chef-prepared meals and elegant dining options highlighting a variety of fresh and flavorful dishes. She appreciates “the availability of whatever company I feel like, whenever I feel like it, and having meals with people.”

One key way senior living differs from camp is the privacy that having her own apartment offers. Mary can have dinner in her private apartment if she’s feeling less social on any given night, giving her social battery a chance to recharge.

2. Opportunities to make (or just enjoy) art and music 

Most sleepaway camps offer some variation of arts and crafts and music programming. Mary’s favorite camp experience was the summer when she attended a national music camp that required an audition. She played the flute!

One of her fondest camp memories to this day is an end-of-summer outdoor performance of Franz Liszt’s Les Préludes held at that camp. “It was glorious. It made you tingle. The music was so beautiful, and the dancers were wearing colorful, flowy costumes, and the stars were out,” she recalls.

At Orchard Cove, expansive arts offerings mean there’s something for everyone. For Mary, that means she can continue to foster the love of music she’s had since she was a child. “The activities are varied, and they’re great. The music is terrific. There are different types of music. Sometimes it’s in the ballroom, and sometimes it’s upstairs in enhanced living for a more intimate concert. There’s music three or four times a week sometimes,” she says. 

For others, a love of knitting and crocheting has turned into a resident group that makes blankets, teddy bears, and other items for children in need. Others enjoy classes taught in the on-site art studio. 

Anita Brause had the opportunity to explore her longstanding interest in theater for the first time when she performed in an original memoir storytelling performance by Orchard Cove residents. Residents were coached by New York Times bestselling author Steve Almond and award-winning actor Jared Troilo and performed their stories for over 100 audience members. “At one time, I thought I would love to be in theater, but never pursued that. I thought this would be a great opportunity to learn something about getting up on stage,” says Anita.

Creativity isn’t exclusive to Orchard Cove. At NewBridge, over 1,000 pieces of original artwork are displayed throughout the campus, and residents can also unleash their creativity in an expansive on-site art studio and woodshop. Both communities regularly offer art classes and workshops, have active resident choirs, and feature musical performances by renowned artists.

3. Nature’s beauty at your doorstep 

When describing the music camp she attended that one summer, Mary remembers it well: “It was right on Lake Michigan, and we had these log cabins in the woods, bunk beds, and big, open expanses of walking paths,” she says.

While she’s since traded in sleeping in a bunk bed for a spacious two-bedroom apartment, a stunning natural environment is waiting right outside. Her private patio, a must-have for her two cats to soak up sunny days, has a pond view. Orchard Cove’s 38 acres of natural beauty include walking trails and paved paths surrounding a serene pond, allowing residents to enjoy everything New England’s four seasons offer. Residents also have access to community gardens and outdoor seating areas.

The NewBridge campus in Dedham includes a 100-acre nature preserve with two miles of walking trails along the Charles River. Residents can surround themselves with woods and wetlands with maple, oak, and white pine, native grasses, and perennial wildflowers. 

4. Fun ways to keep moving

Fitness and wellness offerings are the backbone of many summer camps. Whether you spent your mornings canoeing in a shimmering lake, trying archery, playing sports, or swimming in the pool, you likely spent some time moving if you went to summer camp.

At the right senior living community, physical activity can still be fun and invigorating. For example, Hebrew SeniorLife’s continuing care retirement communities offer personal training and group fitness classes designed specifically for older adults. Tranquil swimming pools, tennis courts, and miles of outdoor trails invite you to stay active. 

5. New ways to lead and grow 

For Mary, the welcoming and encouraging resident culture at Orchard Cove has led her to start new initiatives in the community. It’s an inclination she dates back to her camp days. At a sleepaway camp in Connecticut, she was elected a leader in her age group during a color war competition, a classic camp tradition where campers compete in spirited challenges and events on teams represented by a specific color. “They gave me a clipboard, and I had to keep track of things, and I went on to have a big career in leadership roles, which I date back to that color war experience,” she says.

Within a year of calling Hebrew SeniorLife home, she had already teamed up with another Orchard Cove resident to organize a postcard campaign that encouraged people to register to vote before the 2024 presidential election. The postcards come with pre-printed messages linking to the state’s registration page, and residents personalized them with messages encouraging recipients to make their voices heard. They sent out hundreds of postcards during the initiative!  

6. Health care if you need it  

If you went to camp, you may remember the sense of adventure and excitement of being away from home for the first time. While you had the freedom to make friends, grow, and explore, you also had the support of your camp counselors and staff if you needed to lean on them.

You’ve probably been on your own for a while now, but one thing stays the same if you choose to move to a senior living community — you have total independence to live the life you want, but support on-site in case you need it.

With offerings and credentials that beat any camp infirmary, NewBridge and Orchard Cove both offer full, on-site primary care practices led by Harvard Medical School-affiliated geriatricians. As continuing care retirement communities, both campuses also provide a range of health care options, including home health and long-term care.

Recapture the essence of summer camp at Hebrew SeniorLife

Just like summer camp, our continuing care retirement communities provide a fulfilling, engaging, and supportive environment where you can be yourself, make new friends, and enjoy a vibrant lifestyle. Are you interested in learning more? Contact us today to find out more.