Parent Handbook
Download a Parent Handbook (.pdf format)
Registration & Fee Payments
Checks are made payable to New York YMCA Camp. Personal checks cannot be accepted less than four weeks prior to your child’s arrival.
Please note that we have had numerous personal checks returned to us unpaid. Personal checks are not accepted if a check has been returned to us unpaid in the past. You are also able to charge on Visa, Mastercard or American Express by completing a credit card form. Payments may be made in any amount. Due to the high cost of postage, payment receipts will only be mailed out upon request.
Medical Form (.pdf format)
All participants are required to have a completed camp medical form. Your child is required by the Health Department to have a physical exam within the 24-month period prior to his/her last day at camp, and the exam results must be completed by a physician. The remainder of the form may be completed by you. Please complete the medical form and return it to the camp office at least 2 weeks prior to the camper’s arrival. Please keep a copy for your records, your child will not be allowed in camp without it.
Parent’s Authorization
On the bottom of page 1 of the medical form parents must sign the parent authorization. This permits us to secure appropriate medical treatment for your child should this be needed, and we are unable to contact you immediately.
Immunizations
New York State Health Laws require that we have the dates (month and year) of each dose of the immunizations for every camper under the age of 19. Thank you for ensuring that this section (page 2) is complete.
Illness or Absence
Please inform the office at (845) 858-2200 by 8:00 a.m. if your child is going to be absent. (7:30 a.m. if using the pre-camp extended hour option). The office will not be open to accept phone calls, so please leave the necessary information on the answering machine.
Changing Sessions
If unforeseen circumstances arise and it is necessary for your child to change sessions you must notify the main office as soon as possible. Changes will be made if space is available.
Cancellations
Parents who provide notification of a cancellation by June 1st will receive a refund of all but $100.00 (retained for processing fees). The deposit paid will be retained for cancellations made after this time.
Arrival Drop-off
Please plan to drop your child off at camp between 8:30 a.m. and 8:45 a.m. (or 7:30 a.m. for pre-camp extended hours option) each morning. Do not leave your child at the camp unless there is a YMCA staff member there to receive and supervise your child(ren). Please make sure to sign-in at the Welcome Center of the Mary French Rockefeller Building. If you get delayed for any reason please call the main office to notify us, so that we can plan for your arrival. If parents have a disability and are unable to walk their camper in and out of the Mary French Rockefeller Building, please contact the camp director and special arrangements can be made.
Dismissal Pick up
Campers need to be picked up by 4:30 p.m. (or 5:30 for post-camp extended hours option) by you or a person authorized by you on the enclosed camper information form. If someone is being designated to pick up your child, please make sure you identify the name(s) of that person on the enclosed form. They will need to have photo identification.
Please notify the camp office in writing if the camper is to be picked up early or by someone different than usual. Also please be sure to notify that person that they will be asked to present photo identification to a YMCA staff member for confirmation of their identity. We are unable to allow any child to leave camp with anyone not authorized to pick up the child unless specified by the parents.
Allowing other parents to transport your child
Many parents elect to carpool, which is fine. However, for safety reasons we need written authorization from a parent approving that their child leaves camp with another family. Please complete the appropriate section on the camp information form. Thank you for your understanding.
Lunch and Snack
Lunch and 2 snacks will be provided each day for all campers. Please notify the camp director of any known food allergies on the medical form and camper information sheet.
What to Bring
Each child should pack carefully for their camp day. Listed below is a suggested packing list:
A small blanket for rest time
Waterproof Rain Pants / Jacket
Sneakers (including old Sneakers)
Bathing Suit & Beach Towel
Sun Screen (High SPF preferred)
After-sun Cream
Insect Repellent (Non-spray)
Baseball / Sun Hat
Water Bottle
Day Pack (back pack)
Camera & Film
Medication (if needed) Please give to Director upon arrival
What not to Bring
Please do not bring the following items to camp:
Jewelry
Gum
Pocket Knives
Electronic Games
Cell Phones
CD players, iPods, etc.
If any of these items are brought to camp against our advice and are lost, our camp will not be responsible for reimbursement.
Marking Items
All personal items and clothing should be clearly labeled with your child’s full name. This is the only way we can return lost items to their rightful owner. Please contact our office if you’d like information on companies that provide name tapes and marking pens.
Lost & Found
We try to ensure that each camper goes home with all of their own possessions and only theirs! If upon your child's return home you find you are missing something or have something which does not belong to you, please call with a description of the item(s) so we can try and locate or forward extra items you may have. We cannot be responsible for items that get lost or broken at camp.
Medical Services
Our camp will provide health care for campers and staff under the direction of the Camp Health Director where a nurse or Emergency Medical Technician is on duty.
Medical Details
Information Updates
If any information, prescription or medical conditions change after you submit the medical form, please provide us with written notification upon your child’s arrival to camp.
Medication
All medication must be given to the Camp Health Director for administering. Please make sure that all medication is sent in its original container and properly marked with the camper’s name. Prescription medication must be written for the child for whom it is intended.
Inhalers/Epipens
If your child needs to have either of these medications with them at all times please, if possible, send two, so that one can be held by the Camp Director.
Refunds
All monies except $100.00 are refundable if we receive cancellation notice by June 1st. However, if your child leaves the camp program due to illness or injury, a refund will be given for the remaining full days that they were scheduled to remain at camp. The fee will be pro-rated.
In certain situations a camper may not be able to continue the camp program for disciplinary reasons, in which case no refund will be issued for the remainder of that session. Our goal is for the parents and camp to set clear expectations for campers regarding behavior. Should a child choose not to behave in a responsible, honest, caring and respectful manner, or in any other manner deemed unacceptable for the camp environment, that child may be sent home.
Baby-sitting Policy
The YMCA staff and volunteers are not allowed to baby sit or transport children at anytime outside of the YMCA program. Immediate disciplinary action will be taken by the YMCA toward staff and volunteers if a violation occurs.
Our camps are permitted to operate by the Orange County Department of Health and are inspected a minimum of two times each year. A permit is issued yearly, and copies of these permits are available at each camp office, as well as at the Orange County Health Department Office. Their address is 124 Main Street, Goshen, NY 10924, and their phone number is (845) 291-2331. Our camp is accredited by the American Camping Association.
