Dmitry Mal: "Perfect place for kids to get rid, at least for some time, of overwhelming electromagnetic smog of big city (no cell coverage of any kind in this perfect valley). The place of luxurious nature and crispy clear air!"

Yana Panchishina: "This is an amazing camp! The children and the adults there are so nice. My son loves going there every summer. He makes new friends and catches up with old ones, eats great home-cooked meals, and enjoys the fresh air and a multitude of activities!"

Puglisi Wm: "Do I recommend Camp Leader? Absolutely, no questions asked. Camp Leader is nestled in the beautiful Catskill Mountains and surrounded by mountains and a stone throw away from the Scenic East Branch River. Within the grounds, you will find adequate lodging, a beautiful swimming pool, theater, outdoor stage, plenty of activities, and most importantly - a caring and loving staff. One thing worth noting: their food is top shelf, don't expect fast food or junk here, Camp Leader prides themselves on daily fresh-cooked meals that are healthy. Some people may say the buildings are not up to par or modernized, which is one thing I really seem to like, the buildings are old, which brings you back to a more simple time and place in life. The amount of work that the entire staff goes through is astonishing, and everyone works directly with each other and in the end, you have a well-oiled machine... Quite frankly, I can't see how anyone could write anything negative about this wonderful place, and if so, take it with a grain of salt to the source it is coming from. Camp Leader, without a doubt, is an excellent place, excellent facility, and caring people... I need to say no more..."

Galit Sidelev: "My child has been attending camp Leader three years in a row, and has already registered for summer 2020. The food is good, location is perfect, and the amount and variety of trips and other kid's entertainment are amazing. They even started an adult get-away program for some fall weekends. Definitely recommending!"

Nina Ros: "Good personnel, amazing activities for kids, very tasty food and nature around. All this you can only have in camp Leader!!!"

Julie Mirsky: "My son went to the camp Leader for the first time. He really enjoyed it: loved sports, activities and field trips. We already registered him for next summer. He is looking forward to it!"

Marina Porshneva: "My son had a great time at the camp. Already registered for the next summer. Good place and good staff".

Julie Gryzlova: "Nature, food, activities, old and new friends, great team of counselors. The time spent here will be unforgettable".

Dasha B: " The food in camp is amazing,! The mountains are beautiful!! I hope I come again next year. Staff members are so nice and funny they help all the time. There’s a big pool and you can go kayaking for a trip. The rooms are clean and there is a snack shop!! I loooove camp Leader".

Polina Romanov: "It's sooooooo fun there. They have disco parties every night; they have soo many activities to do during the summer. They have talent shows, beauty pageants, and so many things to do during the summer. Come here. Your children will have so many things to do."

Juliya Borovsky: "I picked up my daughter 1 week earlier, but she said she will go next year again!!! The food is healthy Russian! The teachers do not speak English! It is amazing - my daughter started to speak Russian in 2 days!!!! I was surprised!!!"

Lyudmila Galkina: "Absolutely Great Camp! Beautiful location and great service! My daughter comes here every year. A lot of Fun there and Good Discipline. We are very happy!!! Will come back next year again!!!!"

Bellium Bee: "I went to this camp last summer and plan on going again this summer. The people are wonderful, the staff was friendly, but I would DEFINITELY recommend learning the basics of Russian before coming. The food is very good; the staff switches the food out for a different item every day. Plus, I’m glad there is no Wi-Fi! It’s camp, what do you expect? I made a lot of amazing friends and lots of amazing memories. The wildlife and scenery are gorgeous, and we also got lucky with the weather. If you want to come but aren’t sure yet, give it a chance! This is by far the best (and only) camp I’ve gone to."

Blues Brothers: "Marvelous place, true fairy tale! Wonder where all the hobbits go...)) If your kid is happy - U need no other reasons. BTW, it was kinda awkward to read the reviews about lack of cookies and Wi-Fi. It's a summer camp, hello! There shouldn't be any, to my point of view. This addictive stuff is available at home, no need to travel that far..."

Liz Kov: " its super cool i was a camper it was great they have an amazing staff great food fun games volleyball soccer basketball ping pong most of the staff speaks Russian if your child speaks Russian then its a great place for them they don't have to be good at Russian i wasn't that good myself plus its a great place to get off electronics its covered with nature there is WiFi hour "

Julia Gergil: " Great camp. My son loves it!!! Will be back over and over again:)"

Stan Rozenberg: " Thank you Camp Leader for showing my son such a great time. Thank you Ruslan for being patient with me and being there any time a worried father from Las Vegas had a question. I'm positive that camp leader has become an important experience and memory that my son will carry with him and cherish for the rest of his life. Thank you".

Julie Polskaya: "This was my first time going to a camp ever and it was pretty amazing, I'm going to come next year for sure"

Actual children testimonials (season 2015):

Ivan, 9 years old, from New Jersey: “I like that there are a lot of sports entertainment! It’s such a fun for me to play football; and also table tennis. I didn’t get as far as I wanted to in this game, but I’m trying hard. Well, there are quite a lot of interesting and diverse activities in the camp: pool, canoeing, team and board games, and video and photo contests. This is my first time here, but I do know for sure that I want to come here now every year".

Lyudmila, 11 year old, from Texas: "It is sometimes difficult for me to adapt into a new team, but attending the camp I made friends and had fun. It was very much unexpected, but truly interesting to get filmed and try myself as a reporter. And then it was so cool to look at what came out of it! I love to ride horses, swimming in the pool and just learn to communicate with new people”.

Daric, 14 years old, from Washington: "This camp is a quiet and peaceful place, but you can have fun here too. What I liked was canoeing; it’s great that you can play basketball; what’s really unusual and fun is that you can take part in filming of a movie. I am here for the first time; perhaps I will come back "

Dasha, 10 years old, from Florida: "It is very nice and quiet here. Most of all I loved to ride horses. Yet there are a lot of different activities and entertainment: very interesting Russian language classes, swimming in the pool. Even when we have a break and we can just go on the swings - it is also great because there are very beautiful nature surroundings”.

Anna, 9 years old, from Georgia (USA): "I enjoy spending time here; I have had time to make friends with all the kids. Together we swim and play in the pool, go canoeing - it's very interesting, a little scary, but that only makes it even more interesting. It was also my very first time to get filmed on camera, it was very unusual, but we all liked to see ourselves on the big screen. This is my first time in this camp; I would love to come back here – but only for a couple of weeks, to not have time to miss my home".

Vladimir, 11 years old, from Moscow: “I like it here at Camp Leader. It’s easy for me to find common language with kids who do not speak Russian, because I speak English. What I like most about the camp? Food! (Laughing) I’m planning to go canoeing tomorrow; since everyone is talking about how beautiful is nature along the track.”

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Actual parents testimonials (season 2015):

Aleksandra – mom of 7 year old Akhmed, New York:
Cool Place! Lots of entertainment, hikes, games and sports. Special thanks to the camp staff. This is the friendliest team I ever met. In particular, a great honor and praise for Basil. He truly is a very kind-hearted person.
Elmira – mom of 12 year old Alina, New York:
I would like to thank all the staff of the Camp “Leader”. For the joy that you give to the children and care you exercise. Kids want to come back to you again, and this is the best indicator of the quality of the camp! And special thanks to the counsellors, watching our kids all the time, and gave them kindness and caring! See You next season!
Elena - mom of 9 year old Angelika, Massachusetts:
Our daughter had some great fun this summer in the Leader Camp!!! It was our first try and we sent her for the minimal stay of two weeks. When we came over to pick her up she declared that she wants to come next summer again but for at least 4 weeks! :-)))
For me, as a mother, it was important that kids were properly fed: good variety of dishes (that I usually make at home) and balanced as well. Also, there were classes of Russian that are of primary importance for our family, raising a bilingual kid in the US. And great selection of trips too!
The Leader Camp is definitely a keeper!

Artem P., 14 years old, Philadelphia, PA.

It’s a wonderful place where kids have fun and take new friends. The reason why I picked this camp is because it includes a lot of fun activities such as basketball, soccer, swimming, etc.And also the staff is really cool and nice. Another reason why I like this camp is because we do cool things like swat training. Throughout this summer my Russian got a lot better because I don’t talk Russian language in Philadelphia. Hopefully in the future I will become counselor and have a lot of fun here over and over again every year.”

Daniel A., 11 years old, Brooklyn, NY.

I love this camp, it’s so much fun. I came to this camp last year. My mom was reading the newspaper. She found whole page filled with camp ‘’Leader’’ information. She also found out it was a sleepover camp. That made it even better. When I came to the camp I was amazed by how many activities they had!Basketball,soccer,swimming,canoing,horse back riding,archery,art and craft and so much more. This camp has so special; it’s like a gift form. I made so many new friends and they have so many talents. I love this territory, it’s so beautiful. We also learned many new things like Russian for example. When I came here I learned a little bit more than I knew. There nothing to dislike about this camp. We have movies or disco at night. My love this camp unbearably…”

Katya A., 13 years old, Long Island, NY.

I like this camp because everyone is so nice and it’s so easy to make friends with people. I have grown very special friendships with a lot people here.Also, the food here is very tasty and good. The staff here is also very kind. Camp ‘’Leader’’ very active. I also like doing canoeing. The reason I came to camp ‘’Leader’’ is because my friend’s mom spoke to my mom and recommended to come to such a great camp. This summer my Russian has increased. I learned many new phrases and words. I will definitely be using more Russian at home. In the beginning of my experience here, my Russian was very incomplete and my grammar was very poor. But now towards the end of my summer I feel more confident using Russian. These are some of reasons why camp ‘’Leader’’ is good camp for many kids.”

Daniel O., 14 years old, Brooklyn, NY

"I enjoyed my stay at camp ‘’Leader’’.I gained a lot of experiences, met some interesting people and extended my knowledge of the Russian. I enjoyed my stay and these memories will always remain even when my childhood will vanish. I learned about this camp from my parents. I did not know how to read or write Russian, and my parents decided to send me to camp ‘’Leader’’, so I can learn Russian more. I learned a lot from two weeks in camp. I got a lot of Russian words and theirs meanings. I learned almost the whole entire alphabet, something I would never learn at home…I like camp ‘’Leader’’ and I recommend it to everyone.”

David D., 13 years old, Staten Island, NY

"I like this camp mostly because we get freedom. I like waking up doing exercises and then enjoying the day with activities such as horsebackriding, canoeing or just simply spending the day with the friends that I have made here. I also think that the discipline is very fair here. I love this camp because the counselors are very kind and giving the food here is very delicious and fulfilling. This camp is very active and we do sports all day long such as soccer, basketball, volleyball, pionerball and swimming. We also do on trips every week. Even when you are tired you could ask a counselor and play board games such as chess, cards, checkers or Chinese checkers…During the summer my Russian has increased in fluency. This is why I love camp “Leader”.”

Rochelle T., 12 years old, Brooklyn, NY.

“I like this camp because we get shaving creaming. We have cool trips every week. I also love this camp because we don’t have a lot of discipline. At camp ‘’Leader’’ I made a lot of new friends. I also love camp ‘’Leader’’ because I got a lot more in Russian. I love food. I n ‘’Leader’’ there so much people with a great talent. I will come here the next and the next this home camp ‘’Leader’’.”

David G., 12 years old, Paramus, NJ

“This is my third year in camp ‘’Leader’’ and so far I am satisfied of what I see in it. There are many fun things to do here, like swimming, archery, shoting, hiking, watching movies and mush more! If I would be able to choose or recommend any sleep away camp I would take this camp to be first in my thoughts. Here you will learn many things, first of all, teach you the right way to exercise or you could even learn new sports and also in the morning after breakfast they tell us to make our beds which I learned the right way to do. I like this camp and I would really want to come back either in the winter or most likely the summer.”

Denis S., 13 years old, Mahwah, NJ

“In the camp I enjoyed all the activities and people here. In this camp I like to swim, shoot and meet new people. The counselors here are great and I learned a little bit more Russian. Next year I will probably go to this great camp so I can have fun with my new friends. I will remember all the counselors: Volodya, Valera, Roma and many more. I will encourage any people to come to this camp. The food here is great and cannot be beat. I made new Russia and American friends in this camp…”

Nina S., 8 years old, Pennsylvania.

“I love this camp. They have a good food, have a great pool and great soccer field and volleyball court…You should go to this camp, if you want to have fun!”

Kirill K., 9 years old, Palisades Park, NJ

“This camp is here because kids should have fun. Kids can learn new things. The counselors are awesome. I like this camp because I can swim shoot and play basketball. I want to see all my friends from last year. I love this camp because we let to go shaving creaming. I also learned more Russian. I am happy that Volodya bought this place. We can watch movies in this camp. We have pizza parties and birthday parties.”

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Actual parents testimonials:

Oksana - mother of 14 years old boy, from Brooklyn, NY

“My son, Ilya , had attendant camp leader for 3 weeks. I noted that his Russian language improved, his communication with other Russian people has developed and more people understand him know. He has participated in sports such as basketball, soccer, volleyball, running, swimming, and ping-pond. Every week they have tournaments for sports. The camp also has plays where every child attends. The plays are set up for parents that are coming to visit their kids. My son was fed 4 times a day, breakfast, lunch, snack and, dinner. The food there is prepared by the own cooks and is very healthy .when my son returned he was fit and better the ever. Thank you camp leader for making my son more fit and healthier.”

Marina, mother of two boys - 8 and 13 years old, from Queens, NY

“I would recommend this camp to any parent. For my two boys it was their first time and they loved it. The camp's personnel are very professional with great organization skills. Great place to send your kids.”

Tatyana, mother of two kids – Tina, 14 and Anthony, 12 years old, from Brooklyn, NY

“1. Socially my son has become more interactive to other children. He gets along with kids his own age more. My daughter has become very responsible after attending camp leader. 2. My children tell me that at camp they were very well fed and enjoyed the sports that were offered. 3. After attending camp leader my children knew the Russian alphabet. My daughter has improved her reading skills in the Russian language. 4. My children have never been so interested in arts and crafts but i can see an improvement in their interest. “

Alla, mother of 10 years old boy, from Brooklyn, NY

'It is with pleasure that I may help introduce camp leader located in east branch, NY, 13756. as a parent who had my son, aged six-seven, attend camp last summer, and having had the privilege to work as an arts and crafts teacher, and liaison between parents and children in the preceding summers of 2006-2007, I know how much care and effort Vladimir and Ruslan put into this camp. My child improved his behavior, social skills, communication, and discipline. Camp leader has excellent sports programs: swimming, soccer, volleyball, basketball, ping-pong, track and field. Furthermore, natural science and hiking mountain trips, which are safety supervised, develop the educational interest. My son started to regularly do exercises when he came back from the camp. He was well and healthy fed by traditional Russia style. Moreover, his Russian language skills were improved dramatically and he regularly read Russian books. Always with children as his first priority, camp leader each year added activities, including art and craft, acting for concerts and plays, horseback riding. The experience of these children, from ages 5 through 15 were uniformly positive. Care and professionalism, and dedication to his campers, makes Vladimir Bratishov an exceptional teacher. For Russian children, especially, for those parents those yet unfamiliar with the services of the general community, this camp offers a necessary bridge for children, who often have educational disabilities and esl (/English as a second language) problems, who would not be otherwise served. I am happy to have worked there, and to have sent my child there for an enriching, rewarding summer.”