New Ground Day Camp
Summer 2008

How is New Ground Day Camp different from a traditional VBS program?
New Ground is an all-day program, intentionally designed to be a hands-on, active, experientiallearning opportunity. Koinonia staff, in partnership with local leadership, provides programming for campers on Monday to Thursday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm and on Friday from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon. New Ground Day Camp is designed with small group experiences (i.e., the camp counselor group of up to ten campers per camp counselor). This small group allows for relational experience and positive group interactions. One very unique aspect of New Ground Day Camps is our partnership with Lutheran Counseling Center through which we assign an Advisor in Residence (a mental health worker with a master’s degree) to each site to assist campers in developing life skills.

How do we know if our site is appropriate for a day camp program?
Most churches and schools make a great setting for a day camp. Activities can be organized to run inside or outside. Sites that have safe outdoor areas, or a nearby park, do more outdoor activities. Often indoor space is adjusted to be more “camp friendly”… such as taking down tables in the classrooms and using the floor. The New Ground Site Handbook, which will be distributed to all sites, has some specific check-lists to assist in making your facility safe. Most sites already meet the requirements and some sites simply need minor adjustments. The guidelines in the handbook come directly from standards set by the American Camp Association.

How many staff (assistants, volunteers etc.) need to be provided by a congregation?
Koinonia will provide up to 4 program staff and Lutheran Counseling Center will provide one Advisor in Residence.  The local congregation will need to provide a Site Coordinator, Pastor, and possibly several other volunteers. The Site Coordinator is the primary contact person and is in charge of site volunteers as well as arranging details pertaining to the site. The Site Coordinator will need to be present throughout the week of camp.  Other helpful local volunteers include a kitchen coordinator, craft helper, and small group assistants for each counselor team (3). Each site will determine how many volunteers are needed and how to use the local volunteers.  Because the Koinonia staff and LCC Advisor in Residence lead all program elements, friendly senior citizens make excellent volunteers.  New Ground Day Camp provides non-threatening opportunities to get new people involved who might otherwise stay in the background.

What will it cost our Congregation to hold New Ground Day Camp?
There are three basic congregational costs:
1) congregational site fee
2) housing and feeding of camp staff, and
3) Step-Out Awareness Event.

Congregational Fee: Koinonia has been very fortunate to receive generous funding support through LDRNY in the development of New Ground Day Camp. It is Koinonia’s commitment to build a day camp program that will live beyond the disaster support, but we have again been promised support for this 7th summer of New Ground Day Camp. Through evaluation Koinonia has determined New Ground Day Camp’s actual per camper cost is approximately $300. Compared to other creative professional educational child care programs with a 1 to 10 ratio of counselor to camper, these costs are market appropriate.  It is also Koinonia’s commitment to make New Ground Day Camp affordable for all congregations.  The summer 2008 New Ground Day Camp Site Fee will be $1,820.00 for one week.  This was calculated on the rate of $65 per camper with a goal of 28 campers and no additional cost for up to 32 campers.  If a site has less than 28 campers, Koinonia will still partner with the congregation but the site fee will remain $1,820.00.  Each site may independently decide what fee to charge each camper to cover their fees. If the financial status of your congregational neighborhood is such that these minimal costs are prohibitive, please speak to us about additional limited scholarships.

Housing and feeding of camp staff:   A congregation will have up to a 4-person program staff team sent to their site from Sunday late afternoon to Friday noon. During this time, it is the site’s responsibility to provide housing and meals. The preferred method is through host families. We suggest housing the staff in pairs (or all together) at member’s homes. The homes could provide breakfast before they leave for the site, and the site would provide lunches in the same manner that lunches are provided for the campers. Lunch should also be provided for the LCC Advisor in Residence. Dinner for the Koinonia staff could be with the host family … or have a different family each evening volunteer to invite the staff to dinner. This is a great way to involve more members of the congregation in a simple but essential element of the Day Camp ministry.  By recruiting volunteers and donations a site can have no additional cost for housing and feeding.