Steve & Kate's Camp - Bellevue - South
Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, 4800 139th Ave SE, Bellevue, WA 98006
About
Steve & Kate's Camp - Bellevue - South offers activities such as stop-motion animation, sewing, baking, coding, robotics, sports and recreation, water play, go-karts, a bounce house, and a slip n’ slide. Campers can also spend time on film projects, explore 3D worlds with an interactive virtual reality experience, use interactive art apps and 3D pens, do arts and crafts, play tabletop games, build marble mazes, and build forts.
• Ages: 4–12 years old
• Schedule: Jun 15–Aug 14, 8:00am–6:00pm, closed July 3
Way back in 1980, Steve and Kate Susskind started the camp after seeing kids’ independence slipping away. The camp’s stated mission is to give kids freedom in the summer by letting campers choose which activities they do, whom they do them with, and for how long, and to treat this experience as a kind of training ground for life where they are empowered, independent, resilient, and responsible for their own decisions.
The program includes several specific features: campers choose their own activities, parents can buy any number of days and send their child on any day, and drop-off and pick-up at any time between 8:00am and 6:00pm are included. Meals and snacks are included, and parents receive automatic refunds for unused days at the end of summer. All-inclusive rates cover all camp hours from 8:00am to 6:00pm, snacks and lunch, and any activities that interest the child. Parents can buy any number of day passes, attend camp any time, and receive automatic full refunds for unused purchased Day Passes at the end of the season or a partial refund calculation for a Summer Pass based on daily rate usage.
Campers can explore 3D worlds with an interactive virtual reality experience, search for an elusive rubber chicken named Chuckie as a camp tradition, and take part in Friday Pie-Day, when they can treat friends and camp staff to a pie in the face. Weekly specials may include giant inflatables, musical performances, movement workshops, and popup petting zoos. Go-kart experiences use kid-friendly electric or pedal go-karts with helmets provided, and water play can include water tag, inflatable slip n’ slides, and giant sprinklers where space, weather, and local water restrictions allow. The camp also offers a Gameroom & Lounge with sensory objects and a stocked bookshelf.
For go-karts, helmets are available for campers, and families may also send a labeled helmet from home. For water play and the slip n’ slide, campers are asked to bring a labeled swimsuit, towel, and water shoes or sandals. As summer approaches, registered families receive a link to a virtual camp orientation that includes information about what to bring and what not to bring.
Testimonials about Steve & Kate’s Camp include comments from Andrew Stanton, Director of WALL-E, Finding Nemo, and Finding Dory, who says that children at the camp “blossom and discover a freedom of identity” and that “kids find their thumbprint at Steve & Kate’s.” Apple’s Hot News states, “If kids ruled the world, it might look something like Steve and Kate’s Camp.” Variety magazine notes that, given the camp’s philosophy, it is not surprising that many children of people working at Pixar and Industrial Light & Magic attend. The Washington Post describes the camp as a blend of traditional camp experiences with a modern, tech-focused approach, and the Chicago Tribune states that “working parents’ worries dissipate as they contemplate Steve & Kate’s model.”
Last updated April 30, 2026.
• Ages: 4–12 years old
• Schedule: Jun 15–Aug 14, 8:00am–6:00pm, closed July 3
Way back in 1980, Steve and Kate Susskind started the camp after seeing kids’ independence slipping away. The camp’s stated mission is to give kids freedom in the summer by letting campers choose which activities they do, whom they do them with, and for how long, and to treat this experience as a kind of training ground for life where they are empowered, independent, resilient, and responsible for their own decisions.
The program includes several specific features: campers choose their own activities, parents can buy any number of days and send their child on any day, and drop-off and pick-up at any time between 8:00am and 6:00pm are included. Meals and snacks are included, and parents receive automatic refunds for unused days at the end of summer. All-inclusive rates cover all camp hours from 8:00am to 6:00pm, snacks and lunch, and any activities that interest the child. Parents can buy any number of day passes, attend camp any time, and receive automatic full refunds for unused purchased Day Passes at the end of the season or a partial refund calculation for a Summer Pass based on daily rate usage.
Campers can explore 3D worlds with an interactive virtual reality experience, search for an elusive rubber chicken named Chuckie as a camp tradition, and take part in Friday Pie-Day, when they can treat friends and camp staff to a pie in the face. Weekly specials may include giant inflatables, musical performances, movement workshops, and popup petting zoos. Go-kart experiences use kid-friendly electric or pedal go-karts with helmets provided, and water play can include water tag, inflatable slip n’ slides, and giant sprinklers where space, weather, and local water restrictions allow. The camp also offers a Gameroom & Lounge with sensory objects and a stocked bookshelf.
For go-karts, helmets are available for campers, and families may also send a labeled helmet from home. For water play and the slip n’ slide, campers are asked to bring a labeled swimsuit, towel, and water shoes or sandals. As summer approaches, registered families receive a link to a virtual camp orientation that includes information about what to bring and what not to bring.
Testimonials about Steve & Kate’s Camp include comments from Andrew Stanton, Director of WALL-E, Finding Nemo, and Finding Dory, who says that children at the camp “blossom and discover a freedom of identity” and that “kids find their thumbprint at Steve & Kate’s.” Apple’s Hot News states, “If kids ruled the world, it might look something like Steve and Kate’s Camp.” Variety magazine notes that, given the camp’s philosophy, it is not surprising that many children of people working at Pixar and Industrial Light & Magic attend. The Washington Post describes the camp as a blend of traditional camp experiences with a modern, tech-focused approach, and the Chicago Tribune states that “working parents’ worries dissipate as they contemplate Steve & Kate’s model.”
Last updated April 30, 2026.