It’s no secret that campers, counselors, and alumni alike all had an Indian and Forest Acres-sized hole in their hearts this summer. The Coronavirus pandemic has created challenges for every one of us. But, despite those challenges, we’ve watched so many people display tremendous amounts of courage, community, generosity, and support. The IA/FA community never fails to leave us in awe of their passion for camp and willingness to stand by one another in hard times.

Lisa and I are confident that camp will definitely open for our 98^th season this upcoming summer of 2021. This past spring, before we decided to postpone our 97^th season, we created a lengthy playbook of how we would approach COVID-19. We consulted doctors and nurses, and followed the CDC’s safety guidelines, in order to come up with a policy that we believe would protect our campers and staff. We are still 10 months away, but as camp draws nearer, we will revisit our playbook and update it according to changing health and safety regulations.

We are excited to report that the CDC reported the successful opening for numerous camps this past summer, with zero cases “in the bubble” that is camp. All camps had sessions six to eight weeks.  In addition, there are at least six other camps within Maine and New Hampshire than we know successfully followed the “bubble” model and had no reported cases or problems this past summer.

So how did these camps protect their combined 1,022 campers, staff, and administration? According to the CDC, three crucial preventative measures were taken: delayed arrival for potentially infectious campers, cohorting campers and staff for the first two weeks of camp to reduce potential risk of spread, and re-testing all campers and staff 5-6 days after arrival.

We’re also proud to report that two New York camps rented Indian and Forest Acres’ facilities during July and August, and both camps managed to keep COVID-19 out. We saw first-hand how, when everyone works together for the benefit of the children, camp can still occur, even in unprecedented times.

As always, our main priority is the health and happiness of your children. Now more than ever, when social interaction is minimal, kids need camp. As the winter months arrive and we so badly want to return, remind your kids that, like all things, this too shall pass. We’ll be back at Our Summer Place before you know it!  Let’s not keep the strong and rich history of IA/FA the best kept secret to any prospective family. We would be deeply appreciative of any personal recommendations you can provide to us for families you believe will add to our community.