• Safety Tips:
• School Safety: Choosing a Summer Camp
• Personal Safety: Summer Camp Safety Tips
• Statistics: Summer Camps
• One Opinion: Open to Discussion

The American Camping Association is one of most recognized names in the summer camp industry. Founded nearly 100 years ago, the staff of the American Camping Association (ACA) is charged with overseeing the quality and safety of its over 2300 member camps. In order to become ACA certified, camps must meet up to 300 health, safety and program quality criteria. To learn more about the ACA, visit their website at: www.acacamp.org.

Another group dedicated to summer camp safety is the National Camp Association, Inc. (NCA). Founded in 1983, the NCA provides parents with guidance in the selection process. All camps endorsed by the NCA have met the applicable (local, county and/or state) regulations for health and safety. You can learn more about the NCA by visiting their website at: www.summercamp.org.

Of course, nothing beats old fashioned word-of-mouth. Check with friends, neighbors and parents of your child’s classmates to see if there is a particular camp they recommend. Ask what they liked (and disliked) most about their experience.

Finally, make a list of questions you would like answered when you visit the camp. Both websites listed above have helpful guides which can assist you in planning your visit.

Personal Safety:

Whether your child is heading off to sleep-away camp for a few weeks or will be spending the summer at a local day camp, there are several precautions you should take to ensure he remains safe while having fun:

Drink Up - Children typically need to drink four to eight eight-ounce glasses of water each day. As the mercury increases, so does their need for water. Remind your child of the importance of staying hydrated. Make sure the camp offers water as needed (and not only at meal or snack time). If your child goes to day camp, you might consider sending your child to camp with a jug of ice water that he can drink during the course of the day.

Cover Up - We all know how harmful prolonged exposure to the sun’s rays can be. To keep sunburn in check, make sure your child has plenty of sunscreen (preferably the waterproof kind) and that they know how important it is that they actually apply it several times a day. If you suspect your child may resist using the sunscreen (or may just forget), ask a camp counselor to monitor the situation. The same strategy should be used for bug repellent (in fact, some bug repellents contain sunscreen), especially if your child will be spending time in heavily wooded areas.

Eat Up - Bacteria thrives in hot weather. Make sure your day-camper’s lunch stays cold (and fresh) by packing it in an insulated cooler with plenty of ice. Sandwiches made ahead of time should remain refrigerated until they are packed. Instruct your child to throw out any perishable items (sandwiches, yogurt, salads) that are not eaten instead of returning them to the lunch box.

Listen Up - The camp counselors are there to make sure your child has a good time and remains safe. Tell your child to listen very carefully to whatever the counselor has to say and to follow whatever instructions are given. Before leaving on the first day, make sure your child knows their counselor’s name and that the counselor knows your child.

Statistics:

Summer camps have been a mainstay of kids’ summers for many, many years. There are many reasons why camps remain popular: camps provide supervised summer activities for children of dual-career parents, and allow sports enthusiasts to hone their skills, and aspiring thespians to perfect their craft. In fact, according to the American Camping Association (ACA), an estimated 10 million children spend all or part of their summers at one of the 12,000 camps available in the United States.

Given these numbers, it’s not surprising that summer camps have become a big business. Consider the following information from the National Camp Association (www.summercamp.org):

• Summer camps can expect to generate a total of $11 billion in revenue each summer.
• The average cost to operate a camp is $750,000 - $1,000,000 per year (this does not include mortgage payments).
• 70% of camps are privately owned, 25% are owned by non-profit organizations and the remaining 5% are owned by private corporations.

One Opinion, Open to Discussion:

Last summer, my police officer brother responded to a call that reminded us all how important it is to never let our children out of our sight.

Upon arriving at the home to which he was dispatched, he found the body of a small child floating in a swimming pool. A quick look around the premises told him that the homeowners (who were not at home at the time) took every precaution necessary to prevent a tragedy of this type: there was a fence around the yard, a fence around the above-ground pool’s perimeter, and a lock on the stairs that were always raised when the pool wasn’t in use.

So, if all these precautions were taken, how did this happen?

Apparently, this child (who hadn’t yet reached his 4th birthday) had a history of ‘escaping’ from his parents and roaming the neighborhood. He was also a very good climber. In about ten minutes, this little boy took off from his home, traveled up the street, scaled the fence into the yard with the pool, and then, in spite of the raised and locked stairs, managed to hoist himself onto the pool’s deck. He jumped in, and because he couldn’t swim, he drowned.

As we begin the summer of 2003, let us all remind ourselves of the importance of being extra vigilant with our children. There are dangers lurking everywhere (pools, lakes, oceans, bicycles, fireworks, trees) and as this story proves, it only takes a minute for tragedy to strike.

Stay safe and enjoy your summer!

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