Sign-ups begin for Meeting Waters YMCA summer camps

Lewis Day Camp is now called Y Camp and takes place on the Meeting Waters YMCA’s 52-acre Lewis Day Camp facility in Springfield. http://www.commonsnews.org/site/site05/story.php?articleno=5358&page=1

Sign-ups begin for Meeting Waters YMCA summer camps Originally published in The Commons issue #151 (Wednesday, May 9, 2012). BELLOWS FALLS — Meeting Waters YMCA, the region’s largest provider of camp programming, has announced plans for its 48th consecutive summer of providing enriching experiences for kids throughout the Connecticut River Valley. Among the many benefits, the regional Y is stressing how their camps keep kids’ minds and bodies engaged over the summer break to prevent two challenges many kids face—learning loss and weight gain. Research shows that most kids experience both of these setbacks over the summer and that kids from low-income families, which is the majority of those served by the Y’s camps, experience greater deficits than their peers. It is anticipated that, once again this year, over 300 different youth ages 5-15 from over two dozen Vermont and New Hampshire communities will attend a Meeting Waters YMCA camp this summer. The regional Y’s camps will take place over an eight-week period from June 25 through Aug. 17. Eight one-week and four two-week sessions are offered again this summer. Meeting Waters YMCA’s flagship camp is getting a bit of a make-over. The camp formerly known as Lewis Day Camp is now called Y Camp. This traditional day camp is for youth ages 6-13. A veteran staff of “Professional Role Models” will lead core camp activities including YMCA swim lessons, sports, arts and crafts, free swim, cooperative games, hiking, archery, nature education, and canoeing. New this year, campers will plant and maintain a camp garden that, once harvested, will provide healthy snacks. Y Camp takes place on the Meeting Waters YMCA’s 52-acre Lewis Day Camp facility in Springfield. Other Meeting Waters YMCA camps include KinderCamp for children entering kindergarten in the fall, Leaders-in-Training for 14- and 15-year-olds, and Family Camp. Bus transportation is provided to Lewis Day Camp, KinderCamp, and Leaders-in-Training at no additional cost from Bellows Falls, Brattleboro, Chester, Putney, Saxtons River, Springfield, and Westminster, Vt., and Walpole and Charlestown, N.H. “We are one of just a few camps serving southeastern Vermont and southwestern New Hampshire that is licensed as a school-age child care program,” said Meeting Waters YMCA’s Program Director and Y Camp Director Sue Fortier. “That makes parents eligible for child care financial assistance from their state. One of the many great aspects of our camps is that kids from so many different communities and backgrounds come together.” More information about all of the Meeting Waters YMCA’s camps and financial assistance is available at their camp Open House to be held on Sunday, May 20 from 1 to 4 at their Lewis Day Camp facility on Route 5 in Springfield. A downloadable brochure and pre-registration materials are available at www.meetingwatersymca.org, or by calling the Meeting Waters YMCA office (Brattleboro: 802-246-1036; Bellows Falls: 802-463-4769; or Springfield: 802-885-8131) nearest you.