Parks Recreation and Community to Report on How Summer Day Camps Fared During Pandemic

The Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Services, (PRCS), will report Tuesday on the results of five weeks of Summer Day Camp activities, which continued on a limited basis on account of COVID-19 Stay at Home orders. 

The Department will present the report during a virtual meeting of the City’s Recreation and Parks Commission which begins at 6 p.m. The meeting is accessible to the public through https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83880912595.

The report will also include updates on the Department’s COVID-19 response, according to a memo by the Department’s Director,  Brenda Harvey-Williams. 

In a preliminary report, Harvey-Williams said a total of 177 children attended the Summer Day Camp that was limited to Pasadena residents and Pasadena Unified School District students and was held at seven parks in the City: Robinson Park, Victory Park, Villa-Parke Center, Central, McDonald, Washington and La Pintoresca Park. 

The La Pintoresca Teen Education Center offered teen-specific programming Monday through Friday from noon until 5 p.m. with three teens attending. 

The fees for Summer Camp 2020 were reduced to $25 per week for all-day camps and a flat $25 fee for outdoor camps at the parks, the report said. 

Forty participants received scholarships which covered 50 percent of camp fees. 

Programming during Summer Camp included socially-distanced activities such as sports and fitness instruction, arts and crafts, dance, nature exploration, puzzle challenges, S.T.E.M. projects, and health and physical wellness activities. 

All staff followed and enforced COVID-19 protocols based on guidance from the Pasadena Public Health Department, including creating separate cohorts within each camp that never mixed or shared equipment. 

On July 15, the Department said they learned of two individuals at Victory Park Camp who had tested positive for COVID-19. The two cases were not connected. 

After consulting with the Pasadena Public Health Department, two of the four cohorts at Victory were required to quarantine for 14 days. In addition, there was a concern that individuals associated with the two other groups may have had exposure to someone who may have COVID-19. The entire camp was closed for two days. 

After receiving confirmation of negative COVID tests, two groups resumed camp on Tuesday, July 21. All groups resumed camp on July 29, according to the report. 

The Department also held limited aquatics programming, which began July 6 at Robinson Park, Villa-Parke and Pasadena High School pools and ended on August 6 at Villa-Parke and PHS. Programming at Robinson Park will conclude on September 5, Harvey-Williams said in the report.

To date, 350 participants have taken part in small-group and private swim lessons and water aerobics. 

Lifeguards and instructors continue to follow guidance and protocols provided by the Public Health Department. Locker rooms were kept closed for the summer and temporary outdoor showers were installed for participants to use before entering the pool.

The Department aso released six virtual recreation videos during the summer. These include tiny tot yoga, fitness workouts, Olympic style boxing instruction, Zumba and tutorials on DIY lava lamps and arts and crafts. 

In addition to being on the PRCS YouTube page, the videos are also regularly aired on Pasadena Media’s KPAS Channel. Additional videos will be released in the upcoming weeks, the report said. 

PRCS is now working closely with the Pasadena Unified School District to determine how the Department can best support families in the fall. PUSD has said all instruction will be provided via distance learning until at least October 19. 

Harvey-Williams said they are working in coordination with PUSD’s LEARNs after-school program, although they have yet to set a clear path forward on what in-person childcare can be made available and how the program can best serve as a partner. 

The first day of school is Monday, August 17. 

To learn more about other upcoming programming as well as COVID-19 guidance, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/parks-and-rec.