Summer camps are back in Williamson County. Local camps are ready to welcome campers back.
Days are getting longer, students are getting out of school and summer camps are back in Williamson County. While some camps held sessions with coronavirus related modifications in 2020 and 2021, this year marks a return to the typical summer camp experience for most Williamson County campgoers.
That means, in most cases, there will be no mask mandates, temperature checks or reduced group sizes for campers as they head off to camps for music, outdoor activities and sports.
"Almost all of our camps are sold out, with waiting lists, so it’s clear that families are ready to get back to camp," said Jessica Fain, senior vice president of the YMCA of Middle Tennessee. "Our kids have been through so much in the last two years, and we want to continue to help them bridge gaps that may have widened during the pandemic, not only academically, but socially and emotionally as well."
Pandemic restrictions?
Fain said there are no pandemic-related restrictions on the YMCA's camps, including those at Camp Widjiwagan at Percy Priest Lake in Davidson County and day camps at local YMCA locations. Quarantine policies are still in place in the event of a COVID-19 diagnosis, and organizers will monitor local case trends to see if they need to implement additional safety measures.
"We operated summer camps last year, along with child care for children of essential workers in the summer of 2020, so it’s not so much a ‘return’ to camps for us as it is a return to a more typical camp experience," she said.
Camp matters
Traci Hamby, the senior and therapeutic superintendent for Williamson County's park system, coordinates Camp Will, a therapeutic recreational camp. She said summer camps can provide valuable structure for children and young adults, especially those with developmental and intellectual disabilities, when school is out of session.
"A lot of our campers can do well with having some sort of routine or something to do,” Hamby said. “Parents have to work, too."
The camp will look different this year than it did in years before the pandemic. It will operate in just one location this year compared to two in 2019, and campers are only allowed to register for a limited number of camp weeks.
However, while the county parks department is monitoring coronavirus statistics, there is no mask mandate for campers under current guidelines. Hamby said that's a positive sign for campers and families.
"We have received nothing but excitement from our families, even if it has to look a little bit different than it did before," Hamby said. "We’re ready to get back to normalcy.”
Lingering challenges
Staffing has been an issue for camp organizers, just as it has for nearly every business in the United States during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I don’t know if it’s because people don’t know their summer plans. I don’t know if it’s the pay rate," Hamby said. “We have upped the amount of pay that we are able to pay our counselors and nursing staff to make it a little bit more competitive, but everybody’s hiring.”
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It's a similar situation at the YMCA's camps, though Fain said hiring has picked up in recent weeks.
"With the exception of a few vacancies here and there, we’re in a good place with regard to camp staffing, but it’s taken a lot of effort and increased resources to get us there," Fain said.
Cole Villena covers Williamson County at The Tennessean, part of the USA Today Network — Tennessee. Reach Cole at cvillena@tennessean.com or 615-925-0493. Follow Cole on Twitter at @ColeVillena and on Instagram at @CVinTennessee.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Williamson County summer camps ready to welcome back campers
