Lost and Found

The single best predictor of whether your camper sees their favorite hoodie again: whether their name is on it.

What happens to lost items during the summer?

Stuff wanders. Socks go missing, water bottles grow legs, someone's towel ends up in someone else's cubby. It happens at every camp, every summer, and CYJ is no exception.

What happens to Lost and Found at the end of the session?

On the last day, once all the campers have gone home, our staff goes through everything left behind:

• Labeled items get mailed back to you. If your camper's name is on it, it's coming home.

• Unlabeled items get washed, dried, folded, and donated to a Goodwill-type organization. If there's no name on it, there's no way for us to know whose it is or where to send it.

Will you mail back everything with a name on it?

Mostly — with a few exceptions. We're not shipping back socks, underwear, or anything not worth the $5–6 it costs to send. At a certain point, the postage costs more than the item, and that math doesn't make sense for anyone.

So... how do I make sure my camper's stuff comes home?

Label everything. Every hat, every towel, every water bottle, every shoe. It's the difference between "lost forever" and "back in your mailbox in a week."

Honestly, camp is a great place for kids to start learning to keep track of their own things — a life skill that will serve them well long after summer ends. We can't promise every sock makes it home, but we can promise the ones with a name on them have a fighting chance.