After a summer of uncertainty, the families and supporters of Camp Lavi in Lakewood, Penn., seemed poised to rescue the institution from closure after a bankruptcy scandal left the property on the auction block.

On Tuesday, Camp Lavi sent out an email: “We are overjoyed to share the news this community has been working toward: we have raised all the money, and the bridge loan is secured.” The plan was to run the camp under a new nonprofit, the Camp Lavi Foundation, Inc.

But eJewishPhilanthropy has learned that a for-profit group led by a former Camp Lavi director ultimately succeeded in securing a deal with the party that won the camp at auction, Ohel Children’s Home and Family Services, Inc. The good news: the camp will remain in operation as a Modern Orthodox camp.

Camp Lavi is one of more than two dozen summer camps, several of them Jewish, that went up for auction after their owners, the New York-based Shabsels brothers, declared bankruptcy in June. The early-August auction for the camp was won by Ohel, but a parent-led campaign pushed Ohel to agree to hand its winning bid to the second-place bidder, who agreed to run the camp as is. After the second-place bidder refused to match his original bid, the deal fell through, but instead of giving up, the Camp Lavi community scrambled, announcing plans to launch a new nonprofit, the Camp Lavi Foundation, Inc., which would be run by Sean Steinmetz, the current camp director.

On Tuesday, the group announced it had secured a low-interest loan and raised over $5 million from 2,000 families and supporters. They were prepared to close the deal, matching the $8.75 million dollars that Ohel had purchased the camp for.

“Ohel was informed last night that the funds are in place and we are ready to close,” the Camp Lavi email said. “We are now waiting to hear back from them on next steps, and we will update you the moment we do.”

But two days later, Camp Lavi sent out a different email: “We want you to hear this from us directly. Ohel has finalized an agreement with another group that will run the camp as a for-profit entity.”

The deal was struck on Wednesday night with a for-profit group led by Joey Hoenig, the cofounder of The Five Towns Basketball League and director of athletics at the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway, who had previously owned 49% of Camp Lavi before the Shabsels brothers pushed him out in 2018, leading to one of their many lawsuits between the brothers and camp co-owners. Hoenig had been involved with negotiations between Ohel and the second-place bidder before the deal fell through.

“Ohel held the winning bid, the decision was theirs to make,” Camp Lavi’s email said, thanking the community for pulling together to try and save the camp. “As soon as the court approves the for profit entity and we get confirmation that the deal is closed we will refund all the donations immediately.”

A source involved in the proceedings, who spoke to eJP on condition of anonymity, said that both the foundation and Hoenig’s group offered Ohel similar deals. The sale is set to close in two weeks, but Hoenig is believed to be still pulling money together. If he doesn’t get the money in time, the camp will go back to auction, but could struggle to fill bunks next year, as camp sign up is in September.

“Over the past several weeks, Ohel has had the opportunity to engage in extensive and meaningful conversations with numerous groups of concerned Camp Lavi parents, alumni, staff, and community members regarding the future of Camp Lavi,” Ohel wrote in a statement on Thursday, announcing the sale.

“Unfortunately, given the timing requirements of the bankruptcy process and the need to provide certainty for Camp Lavi’s next season, there came a point when we simply could not wait any longer,” The statement continued. “We recognize their disappointment, but ultimately Ohel had a responsibility to move forward with the group that was prepared and able to execute within the required timeframe. We sincerely appreciate everything they did in an effort to protect a camp they care so deeply about.”

On Thursday, Hoenig announced himself as the new owner and director.

“Together with the entire team, we understand we are not here to reinvent camp,” Hoenig wrote in a statement sent to camp parents. “We are here to continue something that has always been incredibly special.”