KMC Summer Day Camp

YODER, MILLER, SNYDER, SWARTZENDRUBER

Posted By: Mistina Christner (email)
Date: 7/25/2018 at 12:59:24

Source: Kalona News unsure of date

KMC Summer Day Camp aims to provide quality, affordable care in Christian setting
By Holly Blosser Yoder

School will be out in a couple of months.
That brief sentence can raise cheers of anticipation on the part of children and sighs of despair on the part of working parents faced with the question of how to provide daily child care for their kids during summer months.
The answer may be just a few blocks away. Kalona Mennonite Church (KMC) is launching a summer child care program for children who have completed kindergarten through grade six.
The idea for KMC Summer Day Camp was the result of matching the church's goals with community needs. Since completion of a remodeling project several years ago, the church has been interested in better using its facility, which is largely dormant during the week. Added to this was an ongoing KMC interest in community outreach. Offering a child care service fit with both of these goals.
Several months ago, a committee of three women formed and did the necessary legwork to establish KMC Summer Day Camp, set to open June 23.
Mary Miller and Stephanie Snyder will share the director position, both working part time. Miller is an educator and Snyder operates the before-and-after-school program at Kalona Elementary for the Mid-Prairie School District.
These two, together with Jan Swartzendruber, form the committee which is seeing the project through, with the support of the church.
In addition to the co-directors, two part time aids will be hired to assist with the children.
The Parent's Handbook summarizes the goal of the program this way: "Our goal is to provide quality, affordable care in a Christian setting that parents can rely upon during the summer school vacation."
The camp will feature weekly theme-based activities in a Christian setting. A sampling of likely themes includes recycling, ethnic heritage, and favorite books.
Even though summer recess is still a couple of months away, the enrollment process for KMC Summer Day Camp is already underway, with forms available at the three Mid-Prairie elementary centers and at KMC. Forms will be accepted until April 1.
Twenty children will be accepted into the program, which is the number for which the program is licensed. For parents of those children, responsible both to work and family, KMC Summer Day Camp may offer not only child care, but also a little summertime peace of mind.