International Camp Tshirt Day | #camptshirtday

Tomorrow, Tuesday November 18th, is one of the biggest days of the year in the camp world besides summer itself… and happens to be one of our most favorite! With the crisp fall weather setting in and Thanksgiving around the corner, we are all in need of a little summer loving. International Camp T-Shirt Day is a time to celebrate camp and show some serious camp spirit and pride. We interviewed our Camper of the Week Scott Rosenbluth, CEO of Camp Craze / Craze Interactive, who is also the creator of Camp T-Shirt Day to see what this glorious day is all about and how everyone can participate.

What is Camp T-Shirt Day? How many years has this been around?

We started Camp T-Shirt Day in 2010 as a way for campers, staff, alumni and parents to show off camp spirit mid-Fall. Each year, #CampTShirtDay raises excitement about the next camp season and celebrates camp in general — it really brings the entire camp community together.

What inspired you to create this day?

It was actually a challenge. Back in 2010 we knew social media was on the rise but weren’t sure how involved the camp community was. Many camps had a Facebook and Twitter page but may not have been using them effectively. As an agency that was moving into the management space, particularly on social — we wanted to see what we could do to gage the camp communities of the past, present and future — Camp T-Shirt Day absolutely did. Now, each year the Camp T-Shirt Day event is celebrated all over the country, and the world. We’re so proud!

What are some of the highlights?

Participants get REALLY creative. Some of the best submissions come from the smallest of campers. For us, it’s amazing to watch literally hundreds of thousands of photos pour into our office. Last year, we were trending on Twitter for two hours nationwide…that was pretty unexpected — and a big win for everyone involved. Ultimately – we love what everyone gets out of this. Participants get to show off their camp pride. For camps it is perhaps their best organic marketing day of the year. For CRAZE as the event producers — we just love seeing so many happy campers. Thats what it is all about.

Why do so many people take part?

We spent a lot of time in 2010 talking about the timing of this event. We really liked November because the weather is just starting to get cold, the days are shorter — camp seems SO far away. Reunions for most camps are in January/February so it seems like the perfect time of year to re-energize the camp community. Because of the timing, the weather, the fact that last years camp season and next years camp season seem so far away; people miss their summer home and #CampTShirtDay brings the magical camp spirit back.

So now the only question that remains is… which of your favorite shirts will you be rocking tomorrow?!