The New York City's YMCA Camp is a recreational and educational sleepover camp in Huguenot, New York and belonged to the

YMCA of Greater New York YMCA of Greater New York is a community service organization, the largest YMCA in North America and also New York City's largest private youth-serving organization serving more than five hundred thousand each year. The New York chapter formed in ...

. While the YMCA operates

day camp Day camps also known as summer camps in some areas, are geared for those who are of school ages 3-7. They offer activities in a social setting, usually in the community and the children return home in the evenings. Day camps can be booked by the ...

s in the five boroughs of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the Huguenot Camp was the only sleepover camp of the YMCA of New York City. The camp was created in 1918. In March 2021, it was announced that the camp was to be closed and sold.

Camp Talcott, Camp McAlister, and Camp Greenkill

The camp is located in a mostly wooded area encompassing about 1,000 acres in the western part of Huguenot. It contains three lakes; each lake has its eponymous camp,- ''Camp Talcott'', ''Camp McAlister'', and ''Camp Greenkill''. While Camp Talcott and McAllister are summer camps, the facilities at Greenkill are winterized. Greenkill is also home to the

Mary French Rockefeller Mary French Rockefeller (née Mary Billings French, May 1, 1910 – April 17, 1997) was an American heiress, socialite, philanthropist, and a member of the extensive Rockefeller family. She was married to Laurance Rockefeller, son of John D. Rocke ...

Educational Center and has a large

gym A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational ins ...

nasium. During the summer, the camp is a temporary home for about 1,200 -1,400 young people each season. For the local community, a day camp was created for the summer. In 2010, after the earthquake in Haiti, a group of Haitian children was sent to the camp to recover from the trauma. Campers are 7–16 years old and most come from NYC. A majority of campers receive financial aid. Activities include social interactions of camp life and provide opportunities to participate in swimming, canoeing, archery, arts and crafts, field games, hiking, and more. Campers are supported by staff members. During summer, counselors and additional staff may come from many different countries. After the summer, Camps Talcott and McAlister are closed, while Camp Greenkill remains open for meetings and retreats.

Change in Ownership

After more than a century of operation during which time, by one estimate, more than 100,000 young people experienced camp life, the

announced its decision to sell the property in March 2021, citing overall losses in excess of $100 million due to the

corona virus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. The decision came as a surprise to the Camp's Board of Managers who were not consulted. Former campers, staff members and alumni rallied to save the camp. In August 2021, it was announced that the Wend Collective had bought the camp with the intent to reach out to "the communities that historically attended the camps, the communities in which the camps are located, and the broader youth camp sector" and to continue to serve disadvantaged youth.

References

{{reflist, 30em Orange County, New York YMCA Summer Camps