Camp Tawonga was established by Louis and Emma Blumenthal in 1925 and was originally established in 1928 as separate camps known as Camp Kelowa for Boys , and Singing Trail for Girls at Huntington Lake just below the alpine level at 7,000 feet , located in the High Sierras , 65 miles Northeast of Fresno , and closed for several years during the Second World War . Camp Tawonga moved to its current site on the middle fork of the Tuolumne River in 1963 . During 2003-2007 , Camp Tawonga ran the Oseh Shalom-Sanea al Salam — the Palestinian-Jewish Family Peacemakers Camp — in cooperation with the Jewish-Palestinian Living Room Dialogue . On July 3 , 2013 , a tree fell at the camp , killing an Arts and Crafts specialist and injuring several others as terrified campers were evacuated to the girls ' side field . In August 2013 , the camp was in the path of the Rim Fire . After the camp was evacuated , a person returned to the camp to rescue a Torah scroll which had previously survived the Holocaust . The camp lost three buildings to the fire ; other damage was described as repairable and is now rebuilt . Late 2015 , Camp Tawonga announced a director transfer . Ken Kramarz , the former Executive Director , moved into Tawonga 's future . Jamie Simon , the former Camp Director , assumed Kramarz 's position . Former Assistant Director , Becca Meyer , took on a new role as Camp Director . On July 31 , 2018 , just two days into the last summer session of the year , all of Camp Tawonga evacuated due to dangerous air quality caused by the local Ferguson Fire and the firefighters ' " back burning " techniques
Ferguson Fire
Ferguson Fire
Camp Tawonga