CARNATION – After a 2020 summer without CYO camps because of COVID-19, CYO is welcoming campers back this year with day camps at Camp Don Bosco.
It’s an important step after “a year of not a lot of socializing or interaction for kids,” said Shaune Randles, director of CYO camps for the Archdiocese of Seattle.
As a parent, he’s been looking at what activities are available for kids and hasn’t found a lot. He said the CYO day camps — running Monday through Friday June 28 through August 27— will offer kids from kindergarten through ninth grade a way to grow in faith as well as just getting out and having fun.
Registration opened March 24, and space is about 60 percent full, Randles said. The cost is $350 for day camp and $430 for horse day camp, but discounts and scholarships are available.
The camps are being offered for eight weeks (two weeks fewer than usual), with each session able to accommodate up to 250 kids, following COVID protocols. To facilitate safe drop-off and pick-up for campers, daily sessions will be 30 minutes shorter than in the past, Randles said. Campers and staff will follow masking guidelines, and enhanced cleaning measures will be in place, including disinfecting saddles and other equipment used in the horse camps.
During lunch, campers will eat outdoors if the weather permits, Randles explained. If it’s raining, the lunch periods will be staggered, so all 250 campers won’t be seated in the dining hall at the same time.
Randles is excited just knowing that kids will be able to go out and play during day camp, even though care must be taken with each plan that develops. Parents need to be flexible in case the pandemic protocols change from week to week, he said.
“There’s a lot of restrictions on what we can offer” because of the pandemic, Randles said, explaining that some typical games, like tag, are being replaced with other options. And overnight camps will have to wait until COVID protocols allow, he said.
Sponsor a CYO horse
Horses are a big part of the CYO camps, but the pandemic has meant a reduction in income to support the care and feeding of the camp’s 24 horses, Randles said.
“A lot of camps used to lease their horses,” he explained, but when that option ended, the archdiocese decided to buy the horses, to keep the horse camps going.
With food, veterinary care, housing and equipment, the bills add up to $50,000 to $60,000 a year, he said. So CYO has introduced the “Sponsor a Horse” program to help cover those costs. Sponsors can go online, select a horse from the photos and biographies listed and donate to their care, Randles explained.
The site also has options for sponsoring a riding arena or paddock, and supporters can purchase equipment and horse-care items through an Amazon wish list that has been created.