Camp Arrowhead cancels summer camps

For the first time since 1954, there will be no summer camps at Camp Arrowhead in Lewes.

The campground that  along Rehoboth Bay has shut down in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Executive Director Walter LaFontaine said families that have already paid for summer camps are being offered their choice of a refund or roll over their payment toward a camp in 2021. LaFontaine said 1,300 kids had signed up before the announcement that no camps would be held. 

LaFontaine said the camp held out as long as it could to see what Gov. John Carney would require if the camp opened. Similar camps in the Delmarva area, such as Camp Barnes in Frankford, had already announced cancellation, and complying with guidelines would be difficult. 

“We had to have sanitizer products, and we couldn’t get them,” LaFontaine said. 

In addition, he said, several of the 95 staff members are international students, most from the United Kingdom, and it was uncertain they would receive their J-1 visas while the pandemic continues. Plus, the camp would have to adhere to social distancing rules, have enough masks for everyone, and find an alternative to the dining hall.

“We looked at that and thought, ‘At what point does this compromise what we do?’ Not a lot of camps do what we do. We didn’t want to put kids in harm’s way or jeopardize our programs,” LaFontaine said. 

The cancellations in the wake of COVID-19 are going to put a significant strain on the camp’s income.

“We’re going to take a pretty big hit,” LaFontaine said. “Summer is 85 percent of our budget. We have retreats in the spring and the fall, and we had to cancel the spring ones.”

He said the plan is to provide refunds for those who want them and then see what they can offer from there, whether it's providing day camps or something else. LaFontaine said the camp should be fine in the long run, as it receives some income from its parent organization, The Episcopal Church in Delaware, and has saved money and set up trust accounts that he hopes will be enough to get through the pandemic.

“I believe we will survive,” LaFontaine said. 

Camp Arrowhead was founded in 1954, when the diocese of the Episcopal Church in Delaware purchased land and used it to start summer programs for children. LaFontaine said the camp has evolved over the years to be centered around outdoor education, adventures and boating, among other activities.