July 9, 2021: News about Camp Leadership Transition

Arrival & Departure Process

Arrival Day

Drop off time: Sunday between 1-4pm

• FIRST STOP: Staff will direct cars from the camp entrance to the parking lot (first lot on the left). Campers will first be screened in their cars by medical staff. Parents and campers are to be wearing a mask and stay in the vehicle while the campers are screened. Please have your negative COVID test ready or a copy of your vaccination card, if you haven’t sent it already.
   
• SECOND STOP: After the camper goes through medical screening, they will be directed to visit the second nurse IF they have allergies and/or medicine they need to drop off.  Please have your medicine ready to give to the nurse.
   
• THIRD STOP: If they don’t have allergies or medicine to drop off, they will be directed to the front of the Mess Hall to check in and meet their counselor! The counselor will take their campers to the cabin.
   
• BAGS: Staff will assist with taking the camper’s bags out of the vehicle and putting the luggage in the camp truck.
   
• DRIVER DEPARTS:  Drivers may exit their vehicle to say goodbye to their campers, but may not leave the area of their vehicle. (Drivers may use the Chapel restrooms.) Staff will direct vehicles to exit by following the road to the right of the chapel and down the hill towards the main camp entrance.
   
• WELCOME HOME! Waves, toe taps, elbow bumps, and lots of excitement are great ways to greet each other. Hugs are welcome between counselors and campers of the same cohort.

Check-out Day

Pick Up time: Friday between 9-11am

• Drivers stay in vehicles.
• Staff bring campers’ bags to vehicles.

Drivers will meet campers at the front of the Mess Hall. When drivers arrive, a staff member will approach their vehicle with a check out list. Thank you for wearing a mask. Counselors will make sure the camper’s luggage is loaded into the vehicle. Again, Chapel restrooms will be available.
 

Guidance on Carpooling

The more campers are able to arrive to camp with members of their immediate households, the more we can reduce the risk of bringing a communicable disease to Camp. If a member of one household is sick and rides with members of other households, then those other campers will be exposed during the drive, which will eventually force us to isolate more herds during camp.  However, we also realize this is not realistic for many families due to your commitment of driving hours to come to camp – and we greatly appreciate this commitment shown by so many!

We simply ask that you arrive by transportation with people in your “circle”. We ask if you are mixing households, that you do so with people who are part of your usual circle and take extra precautions (such as wearing masks, sanitizing, and not sharing food and drink with each other) to minimize risk.

We just ask that you do as much as possible to minimize risk. If you are going to carpool, please please please take extra precautions and ensure everyone is feeling well and quarantining those 7 days before arrival to camp!

Summer Camp 2021

Session 1: July 18-23
Session 2: July 25-30
Tuition: $550/session

• Camper registration is open to campers entering the 8th grade or 13 years old and up.
• Registration opens on Monday, May 17 at 8PM Pacific
• Space is very limited - please log into your account early to verify your information before registration opens

Log Into Your Account / Register

May 16, 2021

Dear friends,

Christ is Risen! 

We are overjoyed to be opening registration for Camp St. Nicholas tomorrow.  Please read the following information before registering.

1. Registration will open at 8pm PT on Monday, May 17th for campers going into 8th grade or 13 years old and up.  If a camper is graduating high school this year, they are able to register.  We want to offer spots to campers who missed their last year of camp in 2020.
    
2. Currently, we are able to open at half capacity.  This is subject to change based on how COVID-19 guidelines evolve, so if your camper does not get a spot at first, please put their name on our waiting list.
    
3. In preparation, log into your account ASAP to update your camper's information.  This will make it easier for you to register when it opens.
    
4. You will see that all registration materials are to be sent to Elle Lengyel-Leahu, our new Administrative Director.  Luke Pettygrove has decided that it is time to pass this role on to someone else.  We are so grateful to Luke for the love and dedication he put into serving our camping program.
    
5. There will be no CITs this summer.  We want to keep all available spots for as many campers as possible.
    
6. Staff and counselors will be appointed.  There will be no staff applications because of time constraints and a modified training process.  We are focusing on inviting past staff and counselors for this unique summer, and will fill positions with first time staff as needed.  

Please note that we will modify our program based on COVID-19 restrictions. Information is subject to change as the Antiochian Archdiocese continues to follow guidelines from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and work with the American Camping Association (ACA) and medical professionals.

We are deeply grateful for your patience and flexibility during this process.  In order to be able to come together as a community, we each need to do our part. It is our goal and promise that we will do everything that we can to create our authentic program for us all to come home to. We look forward to a joyful, rejuvenating, and fulfilling summer camp experience! 

With love in Christ,

Katrina Bitar
Camp Director

May 8, 2021

Hello everyone!

Christ is Risen!

Thank you so much for your patience.  After thoughtful consideration, St. Nicholas Cathedral has decided that they will be able to open the camp facility this July!  Thank God, we will be having our Summer Camp Program for two sessions:   

Week 1: July 18- 23, 2021 (Sunday - Friday)
Week 2: July 25- 30, 2021 (Sunday - Friday)

Since we are restricted to open at half capacity due to Archdiocese, State, and ACA guidelines, we can only open registration to campers who are 13 years old and up. (Campers going into 8th grade in 2021 that will turn 13 during the summer are also eligible.)  Registration will also be open to campers whose last summer would have been in 2020.  Both weeks will be open to these ages. 

Please note:  Any restrictions placed by city, county, or state authorities that prohibit overnight camping will override any intention the facility has to open.

PARENTS AND CAMPERS:  Registration will open at 8pm PT on Monday,  May 17th.  All necessary guidelines and procedures will be posted on our website by then, for your review.

STAFF:  I will be in touch this week with details regarding paperwork, training, and arrival times.  Please be prepared to confirm when/if you are available. We ask that you arrive by noon on July 16th.  *We will discuss exceptions to this for people that are not able to attend first session. 

We will be preparing and emailing fliers and bulletin inserts for parishes.  

Looking forward to bringing our community back together.

With love in Christ,

Katrina Bitar
Camp Director

April 12, 2021

Hello everyone!

Sending love and prayers to you.

I wanted to share an update on where we are with summer camp.  

- For Parents:  Thank you all for filling out the survey.  95% of you would like to send your children to camp this summer, so we are working hard to make that happen.

- Facility:  The cathedral has told us that they will make a final decision about opening the facility by May 3rd (possibly sooner).  They are working hard and hope to be able to open.  We wait with you for this decision, as we are a rental group of the facility. If you are able to wait til then to confirm your summer plans, we will pray and plan for the program for the duration of our Lenten journey, and have definite news by Bright Monday the latest.  

- For Staff:  Thank you for your patience!  On a typical year, we would notify staff of acceptance during Bright week.  It looks like we will be following the same schedule this year.  If you filled out the staff survey, we would love to have you with us.  If we are able to have summer camp, we will be in touch regarding next steps by May 3rd the latest.  

- UPDATE ON CDC GUIDELINES:  The CDC has said that a negative COVID test and quarantine prior to camp are not necessary for fully vaccinated individuals.  You just need to show proof of vaccination.

We appreciate your love and support.  Please keep the program, staff, and campers in your prayers.  

Love in Christ,

Katrina

Summer 2021 Update

Dear beloved parents,

Blessed Lent!  Praying you all are doing well.

We are currently in the process of evaluating whether or not we will be able to have overnight camp on site this summer.  You are an important part of this process.  Thank you so much for reading this email.  

The Archdiocese has put forth very detailed and thoughtful guidelines that will allow us to open our camp, but there are various other factors that need to fall into place before we are able to move forward.  The decision to open is being left to each camping program.  These are the key concerns and considerations:  

• The camp facility is currently closed.  They will let us know by the beginning of April when they will be able to open up for rental groups. 
• The state of California will be releasing guidelines for overnight camps by April 1st.  Reviewing those guidelines will be an important step in deciding whether or not we are able to move forward.
• As you can imagine, we will not be able to open at full capacity.  We also are unsure whether or not we have the funding and the staff to open for one or two weeks.  These are 2 of many reasons why we will only be able to open camp for children ages 13 and up.  We would also like to invite those who missed their last summer of camp in 2020 to register as campers.  Our teenagers only have so many years left of camp and we feel that we should prioritize the spots we have for them. Thank you for your understanding.  
• If you have campers ages 13 and up, please fill out this survey before Friday, April 2nd.  It will be helpful to know how many are willing and able to join us before we move forward with opening registration. 
• We are unsure of how much scholarship money will be available. We will find out soon.

We, of course, are considering every necessary step and precaution to ensure that opening camp is as low of a risk to everyone as possible.  We have consulted the American Camping Association (ACA) in California, along with multiple medical experts.  Some of the considerations we are working on include:  testing upon arrival, outdoor services and meals, a new infirmary location, and the list goes on.  We also feel strongly that opening camp is needful for the mental, emotional, and spiritual health of our campers and staff.  It is this reality that is driving this evaluation process.  

Thank you for your patience and understanding, as most aspects of the decision are out of our control.  We want this to happen for all of us.  This means that, if camp opens, each of us has to do our part to create a safe, peaceful, and beautiful camping experience.  There will be sacrifices that need to be made in order for camp to be possible.  We ask that everyone who is excited and able to be back at camp this summer is also mindful and mature about accepting these sacrifices.  I also deeply understand that some of you may not feel comfortable or be able to attend.  Each of you has to make the best decision for your family.  Be assured that we will do everything on our end to be thorough and creative in our planning.  

OUR STEPS MOVING FORWARD: 

• Review the information we receive from the state of California and the camp facility.
• Review the survey responses from parents of campers who are 13+.
• Announce our plans for this summer by the first week of April.

We love you and ask for your prayers.  This is a heavy and difficult process...one that we are willing and open to navigating. Thank you for navigating this process with us.  We will keep you updated and informed.  Looking forward to receiving your surveys!

With love in Christ,

Katrina Bitar
Camp Director