Middle School Camp Enrollments Open —

Visit Lighthouse Point, Go Ice Skating Or Hiking…At Day Camp

By Kendra Bobowick

Newtown’s low Parks and Recreation camp enrollment is upsetting to Director Barbara Kasbarian, but it is not unusual she has discovered.

“Everyone is saying registration is very low,” she said, after meeting with some of the state’s other recreation department heads recently.

“We’re attributing it to money,” said Ms Kasbarian.

Hoping to rejuvenate interest in summer programming offered by her department, she turns to the Middle School Camp itinerary that includes day trips, biking, visits to the beach, and other outdoor interests.

“It gets [children] out of the house and with their peers to do some fun things,” she said. The Parks and Recreation Spring and Summer brochure states that “fun” is the main ingredient to “an exciting summer experience.”

Recreation Supervisor RoseAnn Reggiano looks forward to the Middle School Camp. “I think it’s the best one,” she said. She also describes the bonding she sees during the sessions. “A lot of kids will go with their friends to camp,” she explained. Often the friends sign up for a certain week to enjoy specific day trips together, she said.

Awaiting campers are a variety of sports, games, and weekly trips to places including Lighthouse Point Beach.

The first two sessions, from July 3–7, not including July 4, and July 10–14, still have many openings, Ms Kasbarian said.

Scheduled for the camp running July 3–7 are trips to White Memorial Foundation for hiking, a visit to the Gold Center of Connecticut for ice skating and laser tag, a day of liberty paintball, and a trip to Lighthouse Point Beach. White Memorial Foundation is in Litchfield and offers a day of hiking through trails. Visit whitememorialcc.org and find details about The White Memorial Conservation Center. The website includes details about its Environmental Education Center and Nature Museum, which sits within the 4,000-acre White Memorial Foundation in the hills of northwestern Connecticut.

The website explains, “The Conservation Center operates a Nature Museum with exhibits focusing on the interpretation of local natural history, conservation, and ecology, as well as a Museum Nature Store. Dormitory and Classroom Facilities on the property extend the opportunities for visitors to interact with the natural world.”

Surrounding the buildings is a wildlife sanctuary occupying roughly “4,000 acres of fields, water, and woodlands, trails, campgrounds, boating facilities, and special areas for large outdoor educational and recreational gatherings.”

The Golf Center of Connecticut in Shelton is another wonderland catering to students interested in golf, ice skating, or laser tag. Visit sportscenterct.com for a full tour of what guests can enjoy in nearby Shelton. The website offers details such as, “The SportsCenter of Connecticut offers an exciting and unique combination of fun, recreation, lessons and competitive exercise. On site is a weather-protected golf practice facility, 18-hole miniature golf course, baseball and softball batting stadium, laser tag arena and a double-decker ice arena.

“The kids think it’s really neat to be able to ice skate in the summer,” Ms Reggiano said.

July 6 is slated for a trip out of state to Pawling, N.Y., where campers will visit Liberty Paintball.

Ms Reggiano anticipates that the paintball trip will be a well attended.

In her experience, “The biggest hit is the paintball,” she said, noting the sport’s popularity with the students. Liberty Paintball is the same location that the high school Paintball Club uses, Ms Reggiano said. Campers should wear dark clothing, camouflage, and long sleeves. Shoes and sneakers are required; no sandals. Players can bring their own equipment, but not their own paintballs.

Another favorite place on Ms Reggiano’s list is Lighthouse Point, which is a newer addition to this year’s trips.

“We don’t have Dickinson anymore,” she said, noting that the New Haven beach is “a really beautiful place.” Lighthouse Point Park offers something for everyone, according to its website. “One can view the 70-foot-tall Five-Mile Point Lighthouse constructed in the 1840s and also the Southwest Ledge Light, a scenic operating lighthouse.”

Other coastal resources in the park include intertidal flats and rocky shorefront. Also of interest is a blue and white pavilion near the lighthouse including the restored historic carousel.

A few surprises await campers, including a visit from Big Daddy Racing out of Bristol. The visit includes a racecourse set up to handle remote control cars. While some campers compete on the racetrack, others will be welcome to enjoy video games. If a trip or event is rained out or delayed for any reason, Ms Reggiano plans to take the group to Laser Planet in Waterbury, she said. The laser tag facility offers an indoor, interactive maze for players.

The week of July 10–14 will see trips to Small World Adventure Bike and Beach at Lake Waramaug in Kent and New Preston, a road trip to Agawam, Mass., for a treat to Great Adventure, and bowling in New Milford, to name just several trips lined up for students.

Ms Kasbarian is primarily concerned with enrollment numbers for the beginning of July, but anticipates that more children will be signed up as the school year ends, she said.

Students interested in enrolling for the entire summer session running from July 3–28, the fee is $900. The July 4 week running from July 3–7 is $ 225. The remaining weeks are $255 each.