It seems fitting to start this blog with the age-old question, “good news or bad news first?” Today, let’s start with the bad and then we’ll explain why it’s really not so bad at all. Due to the current unknown state regarding COVID-19 and in the interest of the health of all of our campers, volunteers, and staff, we have decided to cancel all Summer Camp experiences for 2020. This means the Kansas Camp that was planned for July 12-17 has been officially cancelled and will not be rescheduled this year.

Please know that this announcement was extremely difficult to make. The health and safety of our campers is our top priority and we simply cannot take any risks of COVID-19 exposure. Our hope is the COVID-19 pandemic will be completely over by July 2020, but the information we are hearing from medical professionals suggests otherwise.

Now for the good news, or should we say GREAT news! In lieu of the physical camp experience this year, we are offering the CAMP IN program during the typical week of camp. The program will include a camp backpack that will be delivered to each camper prior to the week of camp. The backpack will be filled with 5 “Outrageous Courageous” daily activity cards and associated materials including art and nature exploration supplies and a journal.

Additionally, our camp staff will provide online camp experiences during the week of camp with live streams and recorded sessions. A schedule of the online camp activities will be provided in the backpack. The virtual camp experience will follow this year’s theme “Outrageous Courageous” and incorporate many of our camp traditions, too.

While the CAMP IN program cannot replace our traditional summer camp experience, it’s a way for us to come together to find community, hope, and laughter during these uncertain times. We hope you will join us! Watch for more information in the coming weeks on how to join in on the fun of our first CAMP IN.

We know you will have questions and concerns. We will do our best to find answers and alleviate your concerns. Right now, we are working behind the scenes to put together the CAMP IN program. Please contact Shannon Reed at shannon.reed@campqualityusa.org or 316.214.4963 for further information.

We remain passionate about serving our campers during this year which is full of uncertainties and change. And, like you, we are heartbroken that we won’t have our traditional summer camp, but we are excited about the CAMP IN program. We will be in touch soon!