CLEWISTON — The newly renamed Sky Family YMCA Inc. will be operating the city’s summer camp for children ages 5-12 again this year after an agreement was approved by the City Commission on April 15.

The company formerly known as Sky Valley YMCA was contracted to conduct the summer camp programs from June 3 through Aug. 9 at the Clewiston Youth Center, 110 W Osceola Ave.

Monday through Friday, the program will be available from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with supervision by one adult for every 18 enrollees, with a site coordinator acting as a liaison with the city staff. Activities will include:
• A lunch and afternoon snack provided each day through the summer food program.
• Recreational activities designed to improve children’s physical fitness.
• Character development activities incorporating the YMCA’s four (4) core values of caring, respect, honesty, and responsibility.

• Structured leisure time including socializing, reading, and playing board and card games.
• Field trips.
• Coordinated programs with the local library.
• Designated swimming times, with the use of the city’s pool at the Youth Center.

According to acting interim City Manager Shari Howell, C.S. Mott Swimming Pool for camp participant scheduled swim times. The summer camp scheduled swim times for the participants will be Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from the hours of noon to 2 p.m.

“The Sky Family YMCA Inc. is the same entity that Hendry County utilizes and has contracted with … to provide a summer camp program in Harlem as well as the western side of LaBelle. This program will mirror that, and will be a 10-week program. The only change is that in previous years they would split the camps into 7-to-3 and then offer extended sessions for an additional fee,” Ms. Howell said.

She stated that she’d attended a meeting they conducted and said that because of staff planning, they decided not to do that here, but rather just to offer 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for $70 a week, and then parents can pick up their children anytime until 6.

“They use our pool, and in the contract it says that we would charge a fee per lifeguard, and for cleaning, if additional services are needed,” she said. “They have an off-site field trip every week, and we do what I call outreach, with the city police, public safety, fire and EMS. They typically will have a day when they come,” Ms. Howell stated.

Scholarships are offered, with financial assistance based on income, but the city is not involved with that, she said.

The commissioners voted 5-0 to approve the camp plan for summer 2019.