Township of South Frontenac Cancels 2021 Swim and Day Camps

Published on: 2021/03/16 - in Releases

RELEASE — The Township of South Frontenac has made the difficult decision to cancel Swim and Day Camp programs for the 2021 season due to the ongoing concerns surrounding COVID-19. This is the second season of traditional Township summer programs to be cancelled because of the pandemic.

The cancellation of the Swim & Day Camp comes after careful consideration from the Township’s Emergency Control Group (ECG) regarding the safety of South Frontenac residents and staff. Similar to last years’ decision to cancel the programs, the ECG felt the programs would impose unnecessary risk for the community. As well, these programs are staffed by students and youth and there is continuous concern regarding the added responsibility that would be required of young staff to ensure participant safety.

“We are in the same situation as last year in terms of staffing considerations. It is not fair to ask our student employees to be responsible for the safety of our children during a global pandemic”, said Mayor Ron Vandewal. “It is also not guaranteed that we could maintain the camps or student positions if the region is required to lockdown again, resulting in a potential loss of their income for the season. We know how critical a reliable summer position is to our students so we cannot ask them to take a chance on Swim & Day Camp employment with all the uncertainties ahead.”

The traditional Swim & Day Camp structure would present logistical issues such as change room protocols when transitioning between in-water and land based activities, rain day protocols, limited participant capacity, etc. Additionally, the public health measures that are forecasted to continue into the summer will inhibit the ability to offer high quality programming for the participants and an enriching employment experience for seasonal staff. These factors, along with the uncertainty of the permissible activities in the coming months contributed to the difficult decision to cancel the programs once again.

The Township is looking forward to welcoming swimmers and campers back to the traditional programs in the future when it is safe to do so. For more information regarding the Townships response to the COVID-19 pandemic please visit www.southfrontenac.net.


Release: Township of South Frontenac
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