Pearlstone History

Land is Purchased

The Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore purchases a 160-acre farm in rural Reisterstown, to become the new site of the JCC’s Camp Milldale. Named in honor of Mildred Dalsheimer, Camp Milldale grew to engage over 1,000 campers and counselors every summer, impacting generations of Jewish Baltimoreans for over 50 years.

Institute for Living Judaism

Jack and Peggy Pearlstone were passionate supporters of informal Jewish education and impactful leaders in Baltimore Jewish life. When Jack passed away, his family and friends created in his honor the Jack Pearlstone Institute for Living Judaism—enabling immersive, informal, Jewish educational family experiences.

Momentum and Vision

After the Institute achieved great success creating programming and igniting engagement with local and regional Jewish partners, The Associated and Richie Pearlstone decided to create a facility dedicated to immersive, informal, Jewish educational experiences. Under Josh Fidler’s leadership as Planning Chair and Founding Board Chair, construction began in 2000.

Pearlstone Grand Opening

The Pearlstone Conference and Retreat Center grand opening! After two, challenging start-up years, the center becomes a success under the professional leadership of Carol Pristoop and Dick Goldman. The Retreat Center opened its doors with all branches of contemporary Judaism in residence on day one!

Major gifts came generously from: Straus Foundation • Louis and Anne Suskin Foundation • Charles Crane Family Foundation • Nathan I. and Suzanne F. Cohen Philanthropic Fund • Joseph and Harvey Meyerhoff Family Charitable Funds • Joseph and Rebecca Meyerhoff Awards Committee • In Memory of Max and Rose Winder and Patrick J. Kelly Jr.

Campus Rentals Take Off

Rentals become a major activity on site, as thousands of people come out to enjoy the property for company picnics with Baltimore Gas and Electric®, Under Armour®, Toyota®, T. Rowe Price® and others—along with many family picnics, birthday parties and more.

The First Holiday Retreat

Pearlstone launches a weeklong Pesach (Passover) retreat at Pearlstone, a sellout immersive holiday celebration over a hundred participants from across the country. Pesach has become a huge annual event at Pearlstone, sparking replication in later years through additional sellout immersive holiday celebrations for Shavuot, Rosh HaShanah, and Sukkot.

Teva Learning Center

North America’s first and foremost Jewish environmental education program, The Teva Learning Center, establishes annual programming at Pearlstone, activating the campus through experiential education and engaging dozens of young Jewish outdoor educators and hundreds of Jewish day school students.

Kayam Farm

Pearlstone launches a Jewish community educational farm with its first Farmer-Educator on staff, Jakir Manela. In its first year, Kayam Farm at Pearlstone harvested 3,300 lbs. of produce and engaged over 2,700 community members in Jewish experiential outdoor education.

The Retreat Center is Booming

Sales grow over 200% from 2005 through 2015, as word spread about Pearlstone’s beautiful facilities, outstanding farm-to-table cuisine and loving, warm staff and customer service.

A New Brand is Born

The Pearlstone board completes a major strategic plan which calls for deep integration between the Pearlstone Retreat Center and Kayam Farm. A new, simplified, holistic brand is born: Pearlstone Center.

And, as the founding professional leaders retire, a new professional leadership team takes the helm: Jakir Manela and Rachel Siegal.

Our Movement Takes Off

After years of Jewish environmental education programs emerging nationwide, a consortium of major Jewish foundations collaboratively support research that informs the Jewish Outdoor Food Farming and Environment Education (JOFEE) Report, studying the explosive growth and outstanding success of the Jewish environmental movement. Pearlstone is featured prominently in the study and gains third-party research data demonstrating our transformative impact on participants in Pearlstone immersive programs.

Environmental Responsibility

Environmental sustainability is a Jewish issue! Building upon the leadership of Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin and the Baltimore Jewish Environmental Network, Pearlstone assumes leadership over a Jewish community-wide environmental sustainability initiative. Pearlstone’s Community Sustainability Initiative goes on to build a coalition of interested community members while organizing North America’s first Jewish community-wide solar farm and helping raise and distribute over $500,000 in green loans to local Jewish organizations.

Scaling Up

Building upon the JOFEE Report’s success, Pearlstone is recognized and elevated as one of the largest and most impactful JOFEE organizations in North America, receiving major funding from the Jim Joseph Foundation in order to support year-round educational programming.

Simultaneously, The Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore significantly increases funding support for Pearlstone’s programming in order to sustain and strengthen our impact on youth and families, young adults and leaders and influencers.

Award Winning Recognition

The Lippman Kanfer Foundation creates its first national Lippman Kanfer Prize for Applied Jewish Wisdom, attracting hundreds of Jewish organizations to apply from across the country. Pearlstone is selected as the winner! The panel of national judges chose to highlight Pearlstone’s farm-based Jewish curricula, teaching food justice through tzedakah-charity and rest and rejuvenation through Shabbat and Shmita.

The Pearlstone Campus is Born

The JCC moves their JCamps platform to Owings Mills, and the Associated delegates campus management responsibility to Pearlstone.

A Master Plan process, led by Rachel Steinberg Warschawski, Debs Weinberg, PJ Pearlstone and Josh Fidler, created a bold new campus vision, planning a doubling of impact to over 40,000 annual participants through a Retreat Addition, Community Farm, Outdoor Amphitheater, Overnight Bunkhouses, High Adventure Ropes Course and much more. Pearlstone and The Associated embark upon an $18 Million Capital Campaign in order to bring that vision to fruition as part of The Associated’s Centennial Campaign. Additional land was purchased to help realize the vision.

Pandemic Resilience

The global pandemic forces Pearlstone to shutter retreat operations, but opens the kitchen for Emergency Food Response and renting out its houses for safe “get-aways”. Farm & Forest School program, an outdoor nature program for children, sees 1000% participation increase.

Campus master planning continues with the completion of a new retreat lodge building, the addition of solar panels, a rain garden, wet meadow, and a major restoration of the streambed.

Adamah Merger

Pearlstone merges with Hazon, creating Adamah, the leading Jewish environmental organization in North America, cultivating vibrant Jewish life in deep connection with the earth. Pearlstone serves as a the headquarters for the expanded organization, with the capacity to engage nearly 50,000 participants across North America.

Celebrating 25 Years!

We open the new Greenwald Amphitheater and Myerberg Stage and launch a renovation of the program spaces in the center of campus.

Sundays on the Farm, a new community educational series, brings hundreds of guests to enjoy the farm, trails, and new amphitheater throughout the year. All the holiday retreats sell out, overnight camp continues to grow, and rental groups increasingly engage our program team to enhance their retreats.