Wednesday, June 10, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
11
Summer camp looks different for 2020 due to COVID-19
By Jodi Schneider
Correspondent
Many camps are canceled
across the region, some are
moving to a virtual-only for-
mat, and others are opening
with limited capacity and
guidelines for the prevention
of COVID-19 spread.
Outdoor arts and crafts,
washing hands and social
distancing 4 Sisters Park &
Recreation District (SPRD)
summer camps must adjust
for coronavirus.
Executive Director
Jennifer Holland told The
Nugget, <We are looking
forward to offering both our
very own day camps as well
as specialty camps that we
contract out with other agen-
cies to bring fun and excit-
ing opportunities to Sisters
youth.=
SPRD9s day camps,
Camp Juniper and Camp
Ponderosa, had to be rede-
signed to State summer pro-
gram guidance in relation to
COVID-19. Changes for this
summer included reduction
in hours, dividing campers
into stable groups of no more
than 10, increasing disinfec-
tion of equipment, eliminat-
ing shared supplies, etc.
<We are reworking our
drop off and pick up of camp-
ers,= Holland said. <This will
now take place outside of the
Coffield Center. Each camper
will be screened daily includ-
ing a temperature check prior
to entering the building.
Additionally, campers will
need to wash their hands
thoroughly before coming
into the building. For now,
the Coffield Center will be
designated for day-camp kids
and SPRD staff only. Parents
will not be allowed to enter
the building and the center
will remained closed to other
walk-in patrons.=
Camps are slated to begin
the week of June 22, assum-
ing no major changes in
circumstances.
COVID-19 has pushed
SPRD staff to think outside
the box and find creative
solutions to the ever-chang-
ing requirements.
Holland said, <We felt, if
given the go-ahead from the
State to run summer camps
this year, it was our duty to
provide this service for our
families. We are so excited
to have kids in the building
again. Even though camp
will be different than in the
past, I know we will have a
fun and exciting program for
kids this summer.=
Staff is reworking the
planned curriculum to meet
new requirements. In addi-
tion to trying to spend more
time outside, the day camps
will also be working with
Sisters Elementary School to
see what fun learning activi-
ties they can embed into the
program this year to support
summer learning.
<We want to support our
schools as much as possible
and make sure kiddos are
prepared for this new year,=
Holland said.
There is scientific data
to support that camp experi-
ences right now are impor-
tant to help create a sense
of normalcy for kids during
COVID-19.
Carissa Gascon, day-camp
site coordinator said, <We are
extremely excited to be able
to help families during these
uncertain times. We know
that everyone has been faced
with different challenges.
PHOTO PROVIDED
Last year’s SPRD summer camps are a distant, pre-COVID-19 memory. The structure of camps has to be adapted
for this summer.
Some families are needing
care to allow for parents to
get some work time, others
are looking for safe oppor-
tunities for their children to
socialize. SPRD has always
focused on the community9s
needs when making our pro-
gramming decisions.=
The day camps will be
focusing their activities on
nature. Each week will be
a different theme such as
plants, insects, birds, and
animals. They will also be
learning about other aspects
of nature such as life cycle,
water cycle, importance of
diversity in our forest, ani-
mal, and plant adaptations.
All camps, day or spe-
cialty, will divide kids into
stable groups of 10.
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Holland said, <We are
asking our parents to make
sure their kiddos understand
new expectations that will
be in place including social
distancing, increased hand
washing, not sharing of sup-
plies, etc. prior to the first
day of camp. Staff will teach
and reteach this to camp-
ers as it can always still be a
struggle to remember six feet
distance.=
She added, <Per state
guidelines, campers will not
be required to wear masks,
but it will be highly encour-
aged. As for day camps, we
will be setting up the rooms
with a designated area for
individual campers. This will
be where they eat lunch, do
their crafts, etc. Each camper
will be assigned a basket that
they will use for the week to
store their personal items in.
Each camper will also have a
supply bag that they keep in
their basket. In this bag will
be all the items they need for
the week. This will aid us in
making sure there is not shar-
ing of supplies. We will use
additional signage through-
out the building and on the
floor, so campers remem-
ber what six feet looks like.
When outside, we will use
items like cones, hula-hoops
or pool noodles to ensure
proper spacing.
<Safety will remain the
number one priority for sum-
mer camps and all programs
as we move into this new
territory.=
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