20 | FEBRUARY 4 • 2021 

A

fter camping in the 
summer of 2020 was 
canceled, JCC Day 
Camps will be returning this year 
under new COVID restrictions. 
Camp will be divided into 
pods of 8-12 campers with at 
least two staff members in each 
pod, socially distanced from 
other pods for the entire camp 
day. Masks will be worn by 
campers and staff except during 
meals and swimming, and phys-
ical distancing within the pods 
will take place as best as possible. 
Campers and staff members will 

complete health screenings every 
morning. 
JCC Day Camps are following 
American Camp Association 
standards and recommendations 
as well as adhering to Michigan 
Department of Licensing and 
Regulatory Affairs guidelines.
Randy Comensky, senior 
director of JCC Day Camps, 
believes camp won’t look too dif-
ferent than previous years. 
“Campers are going to be 
swimming and going to arts 
and crafts; they’re going to have 
dance and all the different activi-

ties to participate in,
” Comensky 
said. “So other than specific 
COVID parameters, I think our 
camp is going to look very simi-
lar to how it has in the past.
” 
One big change JCC Day 
Camps will see in 2021 is none 
of the usual field trips or off-site 
specialty camps.
JCC will instead be improvis-
ing, with specialty camps, in a 
sense, coming to the JCC.
“We’ve hired staff internally, so 
we have a cooking instructor, an 
art instructor, a creativity [com-
puter science] instructor and a 
sports instructor,
” Comensky 
said. “Those instructors are 
going to be with kids every 
day, specifically working within 
pods.
” 
“We looked at what was suc-
cessful in the past and what our 
campers really enjoyed and try 
to modify our program in such 
a way that we could build those 

programs into our 
existing facility,
” 
Comensky said. 
Nearly all the 
camps, except for 
some special needs 
programs, are going 
to be held outdoors, 
with covered out-
door areas available. 
After a summer away, 
Comensky is excited to get back 
into the thick of things, even if it 
looks a little different. 
“I’ve been in camping for 
almost 30 years and last year was 
the first summer I had off,
” he 
said. 
“It was hard. I think for our 
families, staff and for everybody 
camp to some degree is a release, 
and for them to get back to camp 
and have fun and be able to see 
their friends, even if it’s still in a 
COVID state, I think it’s exciting 
for everybody.
” 

Fun and normalcy are the goals, 
despite COVID restrictions.

DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER

JCC Day Camps
Plan for Summer 

CAMP GUIDE

Randy 

Comensky

ADVENTURE • FRIENDSHIP • INDEPENDENCE

MEMORIES • CONFIDENCE 

A camp experience can bring so many rewards. If you want those
great moments for your children, but you aren’t quite sure how you
can stretch your budget, call or click to see if an INTEREST-FREE
loan from HEBREW FREE LOAN can help you say YES to your
children’s summer plans.

NOT SURE THE CAMP 
OF YOUR CHOICE IS AN 
AFFORDABLE OPTION?
CAN HELP PUT
HEBREW FREE LOAN

S

WITHIN YOUR REACH

www.hfldetroit.org • 248.723.8184

6735 Telegraph Road, Suite 300 • Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48301

