The town of Tupper Lake’s day camp is one of many recreational opportunities offered to families in the area. This year, it began on July 5 and will continue until Aug. 12. Running from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, the camp is open to kids ages 5 to 12.

“We have a pretty core crew, but we have kids that come and go. We’ll have anywhere between 35 to 60 kids in a day,” said Danielle LaMere, day camp director and former camp counselor.

She added that children who are in 4-H and those whose families are visiting for the summer may attend the day camp sporadically.

Each week will offer an array of activities. Mondays are the most varied of the days, according to LaMere, because kids will either be brought to the movies or take lessons from local emergency services.

Children gather at the Tupper Lake bandshell, listening to Jumpin’ Jaime sing about triceratops on Friday. (Enterprise photo — Katelin Guerin)

Tuesdays and Thursdays are spent taking swimming lessons at the beach. Kids also attend library programs on Thursdays. On Fridays, the camp attends the Little Loggers Performance Series at the Tupper Lake band shell.

“Having worked with children, I feel strongly about music, about drama, about art. Any of the arts,” said Donna Sloan, a member of the Tupper Lake Arts Center board of directors. “I think as many opportunities that we can offer them, the better. And, as a former school teacher, I just love to see the kids having fun. Every one of the programs has an element of education to it, so the kids hopefully pick up something and it gives the parents a break, too.”

As a retired schoolteacher and a lifelong Tupper Lake resident, Sloan spearheads the children’s programming aspect of the organization. The band shell performances have been an annual series for around four years now, she said.

The day camp is one of many summer programs run under Tupper Lake’s recreation department, directed by Laura LaBarge. This year, though, is her first year taking on the role of directing the camp.

“School was supposed to be my life plan, but then this came up and I jumped into (it) full force and I love everything about it,” she said. “It’s so chaotic. You’re never bored. There’s something new every day.”

Kids at the Tupper Lake bandshell chase snow and bubbles projecting from two machines that Jumpin’ Jaime brought to his show at the bandshell on Friday. (Enterprise photo — Katelin Guerin)

LaBarge worked as the main office secretary at L.P. Quinn Elementary School for four years with the intention of staying in the education field. The pandemic altered the way her job functioned, allowing her to interact with the kids even more.

“I was in the classroom a lot, too, because I would be subbing in classrooms,” she said. “I would be one-on-one with kids who needed an aid sometimes, so my job was a little bit of everything there.”

Tupper Lake day camp costs $30 a day per child, with the exception of package deals for families of multiple kids. However, this year, the recreation department was able to provide scholarships for children who generally wouldn’t be able to attend.

The Franklin County social services program, Community Connections, JCEO, WoodmenLife, Arise of Northern New York, and the Tupper Lake Central School District are some of the organizations that contributed funds to make the scholarships possible.

“All of those have provided for I think 10 of our kids to come,” LaBarge said.

Both LaBarge and LaMere expressed gratitude in the day camp’s ability to allow the kids time to unplug from their electronics and simply interact with others.

“I already see that gap between today’s generation, my generation, and then these younger kids coming in. What I love about these programs is that we don’t encourage technology to be brought to camp,” LaBarge said. “You can’t have tablets or phones at camp. They have to be in your backpack. Same thing in the winter when we have our programs, like ski club. You can’t have your phone out with you on the trails. You have to be focused on what you’re doing.”

“It gives the kids something to look forward to and something to kind of keep them occupied during the summer that’s getting them outside,” LaMere added. “We spend 90% of our day outside.”

The Tupper Lake day camp has been an ongoing service for the community for years. LaMere recalled at least nine years of precedence from directors that came before her. Both directors said that children who attended day camp in the past often return as counselors.

“We’ve got a really awesome group of counselors this year. They all are very excited to be hands-on with the kids,” LaMere said. “I mean, they’re up dancing during the shows. They’re in the water with them, swimming with them on beach days. So we’ve got a really great group this year.”

Other recreational activities in Tupper Lake: Tupper Lake offers six levels of baseball or softball, soccer and swimming. Baseball/softball and soccer teams are divided by age. Swimming lessons are held from 6 to 7 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday.

Recreation fees are around $25, though baseball/softball is slightly higher due to the inclusion of uniforms.

Contact Laura LaBarge at 518-359-8370 for more information.

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Other day camps

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Similar camps and programs happening in the Tri-lakes include:

¯Town of Franklin: Operated by head counselor Kathy Drake, the Kate Mountain Recreation Park day camp in Vermontville began on July 5 and will continue until Aug. 12. Activities such as arts and crafts, performing plays, singing, baseball and kickball are completed on a Monday through Friday schedule, starting at 9 a.m. and ending at 2 p.m. While children are asked to bring their own lunches, the camp itself is free of charge.

Families of the town of Franklin are prioritized when registering their children. The day camp will accept up to 60 applicants. Children range from ages 5 to 14. Contact town clerk, Lauren LeFebrvre, at townclerk@townoffranklin.com or 518-891-2189 for more information.

¯Town of North Elba: Rebranded this year from Lake Placid’s Youth Commision to “Camp Placid,” the town of North Elba’s day camp is in full swing. It runs Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to around 4 p.m. and will do so until Aug. 12.

Most of the camp’s activities are field related, such as kickball, soccer, Frisbee, hiking and swimming. Swimming is held on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

To attend the camp, itself, comes at no cost for families that live in North Elba or have children attending Lake Placid schools.

For more information, contact camp director, Gillian McLean at lpyouth@northelba.com or Deputy Town Clerk/Clerk to the Supervisor/ Park District Chelsie Geesler, at 518-523-9516 or cgeesler@northelba.org. People interested can also find more information on Camp Placid’s new website www.campplacid.com.

¯St. Agnes School: Every year, St. Agnes offers a summer camp program in Lake Placid split into a variety of three week sessions. This year, the summer camp began on June 27 and will continue until Aug. 26. The camp, itself, is run by Katie Turner and is open to children from kindergarten to grade 12.

The schedule follows a typical week, from Monday through Friday, beginning at 8 a.m. and ending at 5 p.m. Activities include swimming, arts and crafts, tie-dye and taking various field trips. Each three-week session costs around $500. Contact the school at 518-523-3771 for more information.

¯St. Bernard’s School: St. Bernard’s of Saranac Lake has a variety of programs going on this summer. The primary program offers tutoring sessions, conducted two times a week, by invitation only. These sessions will be held from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesday and Thursday and cover topics of math and reading.

However, later in the summer, other events will be open to the public. One of which is “Wild Craft,” on July 13 and Aug. 10. This is an arts and craft-centered event that will be held outdoors.

There will also be a book club, where participants will read a book together, then celebrate and reflect on its end by Aug. 17.

¯Keene Youth Commission: The Keene Youth Commission is holding a day camp from July 6 to Aug. 19 at Keene Central School. The program will run from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, contact Camp Director Nicole Hyman at 516-770-6895 or nicolehman5@gmail.com.