A Related Ross Foundation program provided 243 West Palm Beach children with free summer camp this year, as part of a pilot program that awarded $367,000 in scholarships to local families.
The Build Together Summer Camp Scholarship Program paid for 1,376 weeks of camp for students from pre-K through sixth grade. The grants went to four local camp providers, where students explored academics, arts and leadership.
The four camps funded by the foundation include the Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County, the Cox Science Center and Aquarium, the Rohi's Readery children's bookstore and the Systema Floyd martial arts center. Participating students came from elementary schools Northboro, Pleasant City, Roosevelt, U.B. Kinsey/Palmview, and Westward.
Related Ross Foundation says summer camp part of its vision for region
Related Ross is Palm Beach County’s leading real-estate developer. It has built several buildings in downtown West Palm Beach and will soon begin work on a second convention center hotel. It also is developing a mini-downtown in Wellington.
Its chairman and CEO, Stephen Ross, also owns the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.
Two big issues keep kids from attending summer camp, its foundation said: transportation and the cost of living. In a survey of participating families, 67% of them said their child would be unable to afford camp without the scholarship, and 96% of them said the experience had a positive impact on their household.
“It was everything. Eli was in an inclusive environment and was accepted by his peers and counselors. He thrived while it allowed my husband and I to work to pay our mortgage and take care of bills and not uproot our life,” said one family.
The program also prepared students socially and academically with its various activities, especially for children who had not experienced camp before.
“A chance for my son to try camp for the first time in life … trying new activities for the first time, gain some confidence. Not to mention meeting new people and having new interactions,” said another family.
“Some folks are spending up to 30-50% of their net income on childcare, and that stretches their monthly budget to the point where they feel like it’s breaking. If we can alleviate some of those huge costs, then we’re providing opportunities for families to experience time together, in a way that is not filled with stress and anxiety,” said Jeremy Morse, executive director of the Related Ross Foundation.
“I look at this program, this summer scholarship program, as an opportunity for us to invest in community centers that give an opportunity for children to come during summer break and connect and grow and learn, so it was really a big piece of connecting to our mission,” he said.
The money for the program, over $400,000, was raised through the inaugural Palm Beach ProAM golf tournament, hosted by Related Ross and Point72 in February 2026.
The program is expected to continue. “We focused exclusively on elementary-aged kids. What we’d like to see is expanding this to middle schools as well, and so we’re excited about seeing what we can do in 2027,” said Morse.
“Our goal is to be able to grow the ProAm with larger sponsorships and engagement from companies and players that we can then raise more funds, and make it even larger to help contribute to the camps next year,” said Maura Daves, vice president of communications at Related Ross.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Related Ross Foundation funds summer camp program for 243 children
