Last summer we asked parents to do temperature checks of their campers the week before camp. Once at camp, every camper had his or her temperature taken when they woke up in the morning and a second time daily at bedtime.
Each cabin was allowed to operate like a household or family. The campers from a cabin would eat, sleep, and do half the activities of a day together as a household unit.
Each cabin ran a fan in the screened cabins through the night.
We spent as much time outdoors as possible which reduced the risk of spreading COVID.
There was an increase in cleaning and disinfecting camp equipment and facilities.
We increased hand washing among campers and staff with additional hand-washing and hand-sanitizing stations throughout the camp.
We only set up half the dining tables so that we had 50% density in the dining hall. Cabin cohorts ate together. On dry days, half of the camp ate outside while the other half ate in the dining hall. On rainy days half of the camp ate in a second building.
One of the best parts of overnight camp is when the whole camp comes together for meetings and campfires. After it was deemed safe to come together, these larger camp gatherings were able to occur safely within state square footage gathering limits.
Campers, staff, and parents wore masks during camper arrival times and pick-up times.
Trips outside of camp required pre-registration by parents. Campers wore masks in the camp van. We drove with the van windows down.
We tentatively think that it will be possible in 2021 to require every camper to have a test in the time leading up to their arrival at camp.
We will be monitoring Maine's summer camp guidelines for recommendations regarding masks. For children’s programming, we believe in using testing, distance, fresh air, hand-washing, and cabin cohort grouping as often as possible to minimize required mask-wearing. We will do everything we can to help campers have a safe summer camp session without the need to wear masks very often.
We worked hard in 2020 to include safety with the joy and mental health of the campers. We follow all the required guidelines. There are many choices outside the guidelines that camps have to make. If you have concerns about the choices we will make, and how we will conduct the camp program, it may be best to refrain from sending your child to camp this summer. We believe that children who go to camp deserve a chance to play outside and enjoy the company of friends. We have confidence that they can do this safely at our camp. We love having your kids at camp but if the thought of them being at camp creates stress for your family, then it is not a good match for this summer.