News & Press

AMSkier Celebrates 2017 Scholarship Recipients from Wallenpaupack, Wayne Highlands High Schools

Gail Masker and Robert Hafner — Gail Masker and Robert J. Hafner

Hawley, Pa.—June 25, 2017—AMSkier Insurance, a third-generation family insurance company with a national customer base, today announces the winners of their college scholarship program, awarded this Spring. AMSkier awards the Gail Masker Scholarship to Wallenpaupack High School graduates, honoring Gail Masker who was an AMSkier cherished staff member for 53 years. This scholarship was founded in 2003. In addition, AMSkier awards the Robert J. Hafner Scholarship to Wayne Highlands High School graduates, memorializing Bob Hafner who was with AMSkier for 37 years as a Senior Vice President and a respected builder of many valued relationships with clients.

“We’re proud to continue the legacy of some of our most loyal staff through these scholarships, and we wish all graduates of 2017 success and happiness in the future,” says Henry Skier, president of AMSkier. “There’s a culture of nurturing, caring, loving individuals in our business, with a willingness to be helpful to each other. We’re proud to honor our dedicated, caring staff by making scholarships available for local high school seniors from Wallenpaupack and Wayne Highlands.”

The 2017 recipient of the Gail Masker Scholarship is Nathaniel Steffan. He is attending Albright College in the fall. The 2017 recipient of the Robert J. Hafner Scholarship went to Rachel Musetti, who plans to study law at Emery University.

“Gail was a wonderful resource of knowledge, whose experience and dedication is worthy of honor and respect by our family, whom she cared for in so many important ways, and by her colleagues,” says Skier. “Her curiosity and drive helped AMSkier expand over the years.”

“Robert J. Hafner was an insurance professional and a dedicated and loyal member of our Agency and of the Skier family. While residing in Honesdale for many years, Bob and his family were actively and enthusiastically engaged in their community through good work on boards and committees and in their beloved Roman Catholic Church. Bob provided leadership on ball fields, basketball courts, and on golf courses,” says Skier.

About AMSkier

AMSkier Insurance was founded by Abe Skier in 1920, in Hawley, Pa., and today is in its third generation of family leadership with Henry, Jeffrey and Aimee Skier. AMSkier is the largest direct insurer of children’s camps in the Country, and also offers personal and business insurance.

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SCOOP: WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR EMPLOYEE’S PERSONAL PROPERTY AT CAMP?

SCOOP: WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR EMPLOYEE’S PERSONAL PROPERTY AT CAMP?

Alan Cooper, Esquire, AMSkier General Counsel, Claims Director
Originally Published on SKI-Way, Dec 7, 2012

The place where personal property and camp meet can be challenging for directors and staff to navigate. From musical instruments to cooking equipment to electronics, directors and their senior employees bring many valuable personal items to camp with them. After all, directors and many senior staff often have their own private living quarters which they want to make as homey as possible. But who is responsible when a personal item is damaged?

The answer is deceptively simple: the person who owns the damaged item is responsible. In the event of a claim for loss of personal property that is not owned by the camp, insurance covers that item only if the person making the claim has their own home insurance. Usually, 10 percent of the insured limit for the home is extended to cover personal property when away from home, including time at camp.

However, there is a better solution. A Tenant’s Insurance policy provides coverage for personal property when you are away from home. These policies take very little time and money to set up, and AMSkier provides them.

Further, we also recommend that you add a line to your senior staff employment agreements that addresses the issue of personal property. For example:

“I understand that insurance for my personal property while at Camp
are my responsibility and that either I have insurance under my Home policy,
or I will purchase insurance to cover me during my time at Camp.”

If you have any questions, our staff is always available to chat. We can provide information on Tenant’s Insurance for you to share with your staff, and we can also help you word a clause about personal property in your employee agreement. Don’t hesitate to call.

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DEPRESSION AND SUICIDE | READ NOW, PLEASE – LATER MAY BE TOO LATE

By AMSkier Partners, Norman Friedman, M. Ed & Cathi Fischer, LCSW

As the largest insurer of children’s summer camps in the United States, we consider the health, safety and welfare of children our primary concern. The data that our Camp-ALERT-Network gathers is often relevant for anyone responsible for the care of other people’s children. What we’ve learned about depression and suicide among young people led us to share this information with you.

In 2015, we immediately began suggesting clinical mental health presence at our programs. Our AMSkier Partner Cathi Fischer, LCSW, offers essential information for friends and colleagues working with other people’s children.

Nothing is better than seeing smiling youngsters and staff enjoying themselves and having a great time. It is difficult to acknowledge that sadness, tears and in some cases, thoughts of suicide may be hiding behind those smiles. Yet suicide is the second leading cause of death in people 10 to 24 years of age, and it is on the rise. Predictably, we have been seeing suicidal behavior more and more in our programs as well.

Below we will be giving you information on possible signs of depression and someone who might be considering suicide. Bear in mind that many of these behaviors can also indicate an isolated incident or another issue. What we should be concerned about in our programs is what to do when we see some of these issues. They must be reported to clinical staff if available or a supervisor immediately. It is never the role of staff to engage youngsters in discussions of a clinical nature; only a licensed professional can make a judgment regarding a person’s diagnosis and suicidal risk.

Depression is generally defined as feelings of sadness that persist to a point of impeding your ability to function in school, work or social settings. There are many symptoms of depression, which sometimes look different for children, adolescents and adults. Please be aware of any folks who may be exhibiting some combination of these behaviors:

1. Frequent sadness, tearfulness, crying
2. Decreased interest in activities, or inability to enjoy previously favorite activities
3. Hopelessness/helplessness
4. Low energy
5. Social isolation, poor communication
6. Low self-esteem and guilt
7. Extreme sensitivity to real or perceived rejection or failure
8. Increased irritability, anger or hostility
9. Difficulty with friends
10. Physical complaints
11. Poor concentration
12. A major change in eating and/or sleeping patterns
13. Talk of or efforts to run away from home/camp/school
14. Inability to function at work or play (for a child)
15. Thoughts or expressions of suicide or self-destructive behavior

In addition, many children living with depression are victims of bullying and other forms of discrimination because of their height, weight, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, learning disabilities, or physical disabilities. Recently, Netflix has been running a show called “13 Reasons Why,” which has just been picked up for another season. It is based on a book about a teenager who committed suicide and left 13 notes for people to tell them how they contributed to her suicide. Kids of all ages are watching this show. Though this story is not true, it has been raising issues for our youth.

Kids are hearing about different things on the internet and TV that can be confusing and scary. Whether it is fact or fiction we should be aware of what our students are seeing in all forms of media and then be available to listen and talk to them about it.

If, in the course of these conversations, a staff member has concerns about a camper’s safety they should know who to turn to for more assistance.

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MEASLES AND WHOOPING COUGH VACCINATIONS – TOP ISSUES FROM THE BEN APPELBAUM MEDICAL ISSUES FORUM AT 2015 ACA NATIONAL CONFERENCE “

AMSkier Broad & Bright articles are SKI-Way articles that have been opened to the public. Full access to SKI-Way articles, podcasts and other media is exclusively available to AMSkier camp clients. Interested in becoming a client? Learn more about us and get in touch!

MEASLES AND WHOOPING COUGH VACCINATIONS – TOP ISSUES FROM THE BEN APPELBAUM MEDICAL ISSUES FORUM AT 2015 ACA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

Gary Kimball, M.S., Camp ALERT Network, Executive Director

February 12, 2015

Immunizations, marijuana, concussions and communicable disease highlighted discussions at the Ben Appelbaum Medical Issues Forum at the 2015 ACA National Conference in New Orleans. Back for its 14th year, the popular forum features three of the world’s top camp health experts: Edward “Skip” Walton, M.D., Christopher Thurber, Ph.D, and Linda Erceg, R.N.

We’ll review the key issues raised in a series of Broad & Bright newsletters. The first reviews immunizations for diseases like measles and whooping cough and the impact on camps in 2015.

Edward “Skip” Walton, M.D., opened the forum, reading a powerful letter written by Roald Dahl about the 1962 death of his daughter, Olivia, from measles. In the letter, Dahl explains how his daughter was unable to get immunized and urges parents to examine the facts and immunize their children against this once-eradicated disease.

Skip discussed the implications of low immunization rates on schools and camps, explaining that measles and whooping cough (Pertussis) – the most contagious diseases – need an estimated 93 percent of the population to be resistant to prevent an outbreak if an infected person comes into the community. This is called the “herd effect.”

He cited a current USA Today analysis that reported nearly one in seven public and private schools have measles vaccination rates below 90 percent. He also discussed an outbreak of whooping cough in his home state of Michigan, where unvaccinated students were forced to stay home from school for 20 days – a step he said public health officials may take if a similar outbreak occurred at camps.

WHAT CAMPS SHOULD DO

Linda Erceg, R.N., offered these tips for camps in dealing with the immunization issue:

• Review last summer’s health records to determine what percent of your camp population was immunized. “This information may be important for parents of kids who, for medical reasons, cannot be immunized. They (and you) may well be interested in the camp’s herd immunity,” she said.

• Get a handle on your camp’s policy regarding immunizations. “Your state Health Department sets baseline expectations for immunizations but your camp can also set its own immunization policy,” she said. “So talk with your leadership team and make a decision; what is your stance on immunizations?”

LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

What are camps required to do legally? Our Alan Cooper, Esq., offers this clarification:

While schools and day care centers operate under their own set of rules, as private organizations camps are generally free to set their own policies concerning immunizations. One exception may lie where a child who cannot be immunized for legitimate medical reasons may be protected under the Americans With Disabilities Act. Private organizations have no duty to honor requests for religious exemptions.

If a camp decides to allow non-immunized campers or staff, we suggest that the parent (or adult staff member) execute a waiver along the following lines:

RELEASE AND INDEMNITY

I, ………………………….. , parent and/or natural guardian of ……………………………… (“child”), acknowledge that for personal and/or religious reasons, child has not received the following immunizations.

I understand that there may be other children who have also received no such immunizations, and I assume any associated risk on my child’s behalf. I agree to waive any cause of action on my behalf or on behalf of child that may arise from child’s contraction of any disease for which he/she is not immunized, and further I agree to save and hold harmless Camp (NAME), its directors, owners, agents, or employees, from any claim or cause of action made against it by any third party as a result of child’s lack of immunizations, including but not limited to any judgment, claim, award, settlement, damages, and/or payments, including attorneys fees and other costs of litigation, and that I am so agreeing in order to induce Camp (NAME) to enroll child for the upcoming camp season.

I understand that in the event of an outbreak of a disease that my child is not immunized for, at the Camp’s discretion I may be dismissed from camp for all or part of the remaining season, and that in such case no refund of tuition will be given.

By: …………………………..

Dated: ……………………..

In the next Broad & Bright, we will cover communicable diseases and Linda Erceg’s recommendations for preparing for communicable disease at camp.

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TWN: SUICIDE & HOMICIDE ISSUES – ESSENTIAL RESPONSES!

Norman E. Friedman, M. Ed., Executive Director, AMSkier Partners

August 5, 2015

Once again, as every summer before, our Camp ALERT Network has received calls asking for assistance when campers or staff members have either actually made attempts or threatened suicide or violent acts. With over nine million of America’s youngsters and hundreds of thousands of staff caring for them at camps nationwide, it’s no surprise that this is what happens during the off-season is destined to happen at camp. What makes our AMSkier Family of Camp Directors different is that denial is not part of their “tool box” when caring for other people’s children.

While every individual event is different, we have listed below an outline of information we feel is important to know and have immediately available when faced with either of these two issues.

SUGGESTED PROTOCOLS:
Suicide threat or ideation
1.   Always believe the camper making the statement. Once made, the statement cannot be retracted. No exceptions!
2.   Resist the impulse to make this problem go away.
3.   Immediately isolate the camper from the group. There should be two awake staff with the child until brought to resolution.
4.   Any reference to suicide requires a psychiatric evaluation ASAP by a psychiatrist. No other clinician is qualified to make the evaluation. Evaluations may be administered at the local emergency room. If very close to the child’s home, the option to have the parents take the child to their own psychiatrist is acceptable.
5.   If going to the local hospital do NOT call the parent first. Once at the hospital, it is then appropriate to inform the parent of your action, not to ask for permission. Most often their reaction is to tell you their child did not mean what they said. Parent(s) need to report to the hospital and take responsibility for their child.
6.   The child can only return to a program if cleared by a psychiatrist in writing. We would like to be part of that process too.
7.   If the camper is to return, a written contract needs to be signed by the parent, child, and director clearly stating that a repetition of this incident will result in final termination for the child.
8.   Any camper who has heard the threat must have an opportunity to process it with a qualified professional who is trained to deal with it.
9.   Campers, as well as parents and guardians, need to know in advance exactly how you will deal with any comment that references suicide.
10. AMSkier camps, please call us anytime day or night. We can identify with your pain and have staff immediately available to walk you through the process.

Homicide or threats of violence
Unfortunately, we have learned that children and youth, as well as adults who make statements that reference homicide and violence have, in fact, carried them out. Campers, staff, and parents need to know in advance of the season that you cannot tolerate threats of violence or homicide. Zero tolerance means zero tolerance.
1.   Always believe the camper or adult making the statement. Once made, the statement cannot be retracted. No exceptions!
2.   Resist the impulse to make this problem go away.
3.   Immediately isolate the camper from the group with two awake staff if still at the program.
4.   Police intervention may be appropriate if made by an adult.
5.   Children in residential as well as day camps who make the threats may need to be sent home. We can assist in the decision process.
6.   Some programs have successfully included “conflict resolution” trained staff to deal with some of these incidents.
7.   Parents or guardians of both the aggressor as well as the victim(s) need to be notified.
8.   Police notification is always necessary for threats of homicide and rape.
9.   Campers need to understand in advance exactly what your reaction will be if threats of harm are made to anyone.
AMSkier’s Camp Clients have access to AMSkier’s Camp ALERT Network (CAN). CAN staff are recognized camping experts who can walk camps through reacting to situations like those mentioned above. They are experts in law, public relations, and mental health. All we want to do is offer a collective 150 years of camping experience to our very special AMSkier Camp Directors. If your camp is not yet insured with us, please consider beginning a relationship with us and contact our camp insurance team today.

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