Community Corner
Summer Camp Spotlight: Agoura Hills Rec Club
Kindergarten through fourth-graders keep busy with themed celebrations and field trips.
The camp room at the Agoura Hills Recreation Center is teeming with cobwebs, ghosts and goblins, and a black and orange sign that reads: "Happy Halloween." The calendar may say July 8, but at the Camp Agoura Hills Rec Club, it's Oct. 31.
"Every week we have a different theme," said camp director Alyssa Burns. "This week it's Halloween."
Camp Agoura Hills Rec Club is held Monday through Friday at Sumac Elementary School, and is offered in two sessions in either the morning or the afternoon. Rec Club kindergarten through fourth-grader campers partake in a different celebration each week. Besides Halloween, other themes include Happy Birthday to Everyone and Pirates and Princesses.
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The day is packed full of activities and goes by quickly, Burns said. Mornings begin with free play and artwork, followed by circle songs and games, and then outside play at Sumac Park. The rest of the time is dedicated to the theme of the week. On Thursday, the kids were making masks and Trick-or-Treat bags for their anticipated scavenger hunt.
"One of the great things about this program is that you can sign up and drop off your child the day of camp," Burns said.
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Kids can attend the morning or afternoon program for $25 or stay the whole day for $50. The afternoon session, Rec Club on the Go, involves field trips on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to such places as Lazertag, Chuck E. Cheese, roller skating and Build a Bear, as well as excursions to the Agoura High pool on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Both sessions are monitored by first-aid certified counselors and VIP teen volunteers.
"I do all sorts of things for the rec center, but working the summer camp is my favorite," said Matt Bohner, a recent Agoura High graduate who will be entering Moorpark College in the fall. "These kids are so great that it doesn't even feel like you're working."
Jane Paris, another camp counselor, agrees.
"Working at this camp with these kids is truly the most fun I've ever had at a job," said Paris. "The wow factor with these kids is incredible. Everything is so amazing to them."