Camp People

Like many other people, I am worried about what exactly “summer camp” will look like this summer.

Summer camp. Something that has been a constant in my life--and in so many people’s lives--for years. Something that has held its own as a beloved tradition for generations. It is difficult for me to even wrap my head around the fact that summer camp could not happen this summer, for a reason so woefully out of anyone’s control. However, we’ve all been bombarded with fear and negativity in the media for long enough.

Whether or not summer camp happens this summer, one thing is certain: Camp will always be there.

It may not look the same. Maybe fewer campers will be back next summer. Maybe some parents will be nervous to send their most precious gift--their children--back to camp after the world has been shaken so terribly. Maybe some camps will need to de- escalate spending, resulting in a slightly different “look.” Maybe you won’t be able to work at camp in Summer 2021. Maybe your best friend won’t, either. But camp will still be there.

The reason being? Camp is not any one location. It is not one 450-acre property in Colebrook, Connecticut, as I may have grown up believing. It is not one organization. It is one people, united by a similar mindset during a time full of unprecedented exposure to various elements in a new age. Be it a virus forcing us indoors for extended periods of time; limited social interaction; countless hours spent scrolling on TikTok; it could be any number of things causing us to stray further and further from that “camp mentality.” But we can get it back.

The purpose of Camp Bubble is to take everything the universe has thrown at us in stride, and show the world that “camp people” are still “camp people.” Known for our positivity, empathy, perhaps our affinity for randomly bursting into a song or cheer, we are camp people. If we can keep our love for camp alive, even virtually, during this time... we can keep camp alive forever.

Hannah Rapaglia Village Coordinator, Camp Jewell YMCA