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by Jose Colon-Cruz, Program Director at Lake Stockwell “What do you love most about Lake Stockwell?” Last week, our staff took the time to answer this question. Most people had a tough time answering it because there is a lot to love about Lake Stockwell. Some of our newer staff said they love the people they work with, the campers, and how welcoming the camp is. Our returners had a more difficult time answering as they reflected on years of being at camp. Gina, a 3rd year staff member said, “The sense of community here. Between staff and the campers, [...]

By Rick Worrell, Lake Stockwell Day Camp In the mid 1990’s, our YMCA and its three camps (Lake Stockwell, Ockanickon and Matollionequay) rolled out the core values of Caring, Honesty, Respect, Responsibility. As we and society have changed over the past years, so have the values that we identify here at camp. Today we also attend to Inclusion and Courage. These six values help us keep our programs focused on helping campers to be the best people they can be. These words are part of our language and culture here at camp. By encouraging campers to attend to these values, [...]

by Lynn Passarella, Director of Lake Stockwell Day Camp Not everyone knows this, but camp is great place for teens, too! Our Explorers program has been a real hit this summer! This week, we have over 90 of our older campers - ages 12 to 15 - participating in this program. It's one of our biggest enrollment weeks in the history of Lake Stockwell - and we're so glad to see the program growing! Our Explorers program is designed to meet the needs of teens. Their schedule is based on choice as they, by this age, have likely already decided [...]

by Jessica Dicken, Lake Stockwell Day Camp Our archery director, Kira, has been working extremely hard this week to make sure that our campers are having the best experience possible during Session 3! One of the ways that she has been doing this is by creating a Pokémon atmosphere at her archery range. Our campers have been having a ball trying to hit the Pokéball target, while continuing to build on their archery skills. Decorating her archery range to coordinate with our theme is just one of the ways Kira goes above and beyond to make sure that our campers [...]

Our camp store, the Trading-Post, is stocked with some amazing new camp-specific gear! A couple of highlights are our YMCA Camp of the Pines T-shirt and water bottle! Also featured is our Lake Stockwell puzzle map and our popular camp fanny packs!  The camp store also has apparel for every occasion. (Well, just about every occasion!) There are tank tops, long sleeve shirts, hoodies, athletic shorts, etc.   Campers can purchase all of these items and more at the Trading Post during the week! (And coming soon ... camp fans will be able to order some of our most popular [...]

by Rick Worrell, Lake Stockwell Day Camp As we close out Session 2 at Lake Stockwell Day Camp, I consider the importance of the role that camp plays in our lives. I have two children who have attended camp since they were five. Both attended Stockwell, Ockanickon, and Matollionequay. My son, 17, is now a counselor at Ockanickon, the boys overnight camp. My daughter, 11, goes to both Stockwell and Matollionequay, the girls overnight camp. Like many of your children, they couldn’t wait to get to camp each day. Whether it was friends, counselors, or activities, they were always excited [...]

by Lynn Passarella, Director of Lake Stockwell Here at our camp, we have a wonderful dedicated team of lifeguards who look after our waterfront. The camp is split into  two different beaches for the different age groups; the older tribes going to Cherokee Beach where the head lifeguard is Hanz. The younger tribes use Bette's Beach, where the head lifeguard is Lauren.   At the beach, the campers like to play tag in the water and, of course, that classic game Marco Polo. Sometimes, they make sandcastles. We also have a wide range of fun toys, including pool noodles and [...]