Thanks to the Herculean efforts of the city’s Recreation Department, summer camps are up and running, in a virtual setting this time. Said Recreation Program Supervisor Anne Oudemans, “We did it,” calling this year’s effort Summer Connect to differentiate it from the normal fare.
She said that pairs of pre-recorded presentations with online interactive sessions are available on a diverse range of subjects – such as arts, cooking, dance and fitness – offering “quantity, quality and flexibility” to participants. Chris Cherry, Andrew Phelan and newly hired Taylor Hardy are this year’s camp staff. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, all-day childcare, a normal part of the summer program, had to be omitted.
Recorded presentations are added daily and remain available for anyone to access. Students familiar with the Google classroom format can also enjoy live Zoom interactions as well, cutting back on large amounts of solitary screen time.
Recreation staff have had to be trained in this new, virtual approach, an effort that was put together quickly and implemented throughout May and June in order to meet the June 20 re-opening deadline. What was usually a very interactive experience for staff had to be transitioned to a more independent one.
Camp Pine Tree is one of this year’s camp choices, run by Phelan. The camp has four activity areas. Culinary Creations offers “kid friendly recipes,” said Phelan, and instructions on preparing a variety of food. Just Craftin’ Around teaches arts and crafts with household items. Let’s Get Physical offers “a variety of movement activities, including yoga, sport-specific drills, running tips, workouts and much more.” Virtual Variety is a panoply of opportunities, from crafts, physical activities and science explorations to scavenger hunts. New videos on all this are offered every day along with three daily Zoom sessions.
Seventeen campers registered for the first session. Said Phelan, “While we would love to have more campers, this total allowed us to maximize the participation and interactions with our campers.”
For Phelan, the greatest challenge this year has been increasing registrations. While cognizant of each year’s changing circumstances and the impossibility of meeting every family’s needs, he said that he was grateful for the campers who did sign up and that his staff is “committed to providing this service to our camp families.”
Phelan’s biggest surprise was over the quick adaptation and comfort level of campers in the new virtual environment.” He added that, “Our campers have even shared technology tips with staff on multiple occasions.”
“We have created a safe environment for this summer that ensures our campers are able to form or strengthen their bonds with their fellow campers and our camp staff,” said Phelan.
He was keen to extol the indispensable efforts of his staff: A.J. Sesay, Brittney Shue, Darius Ross, Gaye Houchens, Taylor Koebler, Frank Nduka, Kavon Johnson, Khaleel Todd, Quinn Valentich, Kennedy Kirksey and Mikah Jones.
Oudemans is hopeful that next year’s summer camps will be back to a regular format. Yet she is proud of and grateful to her dedicated staff for their ability to “make this year’s offerings happen,” adding that feedback from families on this novel concept “has been so positive.”