Decoma Day Camp
Overview
Expert Summary
Detailed Insights
Decoma Day Camp offers a deeply nurturing, highly engaging, and fun summer experience, particularly excelling in caring for young and first-time campers. Its unique value lies in its 'home away from home' atmosphere fostered by a family-owned leadership and a dedicated, well-trained staff—often teachers or education students—who prioritize safety and personalized attention. The camp provides diverse activities, including twice-daily swimming and organized indoor options for rainy days, ensuring children are constantly engaged, developing social skills, and returning home exhausted and happy.
Key Highlights
- ✓Exceptional Care for Young/First-Time Campers: Noted for sensitivity and care with 3 and 5-year-olds on their first camp experiences, with sweet and caring counselors who address individual needs.
- ✓Dedicated & Qualified Staff: Many staff are teachers or college students studying education, showing genuine love for working with children; high school staff are also committed and there for the kids.
- ✓Comprehensive Bus Service: Counselors call kids before camp and personally lead them by hand to the bus, offering a warm and reassuring start to the day.
- ✓Consistent Twice-Daily Swimming Program: Children swim twice daily, leading to increased comfort and skill in the water, even for young children (e.g., 3.5-year-old).
- ✓Diverse Activities for All Weather: Features varied activities for sunny days and organized indoor fun (movies, games, draws, laughs) for rainy days, ensuring continuous engagement and preventing boredom.
- ✓Strong Parent Communication & Responsiveness: Management and staff are prompt and professional in addressing parent questions, requests, and needs, providing exceptional customer service.
- ✓High Camper Loyalty & Long-Term Engagement: Campers attend for many years (e.g., from 2012 to 2021 as a camper, then becoming staff), indicating a highly positive and enduring experience.
- ✓Family-Owned & Operated: Creates a personal touch, with owners like Abbey, Sammy, and Gary actively involved and described as going 'above and beyond' for campers and parents.
Standout Features
- ⭐Personalized & Caring Staff: Staff genuinely cares, is sensitive to individual needs, and builds strong rapport (counselors calling before camp, leading kids by hand, sweet and supportive).
- ⭐Twice-Daily Swim Program: A consistent and popular feature that aids in children's comfort and skill development in water, with noticeable improvements over the summer.
- ⭐Robust Rainy Day Program: Specific indoor activities like movies, games, and drawing ensure fun continues regardless of weather, preventing boredom.
- ⭐Family-Owned & Operated: Creates a personal touch, with owners like Abbey, Sammy, and Gary actively involved and going 'above and beyond' to ensure camper and parent happiness.
- ⭐Bus Transportation with Staff Assistance: Convenient and reassuring, with counselors personally assisting children on and off the bus, providing a secure transition.
- ⭐High Staff Quality: Many staff members are teachers or studying to be teachers, indicating a professional, education-focused, and genuinely child-loving approach.
Perfect For
Ideal For
💡Pro Tips from Reviews
- →Parents seeking a camp with a strong 'family feel' and personalized attention for their children should strongly consider Decoma.
- →Ideal for parents looking for a camp that helps young children adjust to being away from home, with very supportive and sensitive staff.
- →Expect children to be physically engaged and come home 'exhausted' but happy, having had a day full of activities.
- →If swimming skill development and comfort in water are priorities, the twice-daily swim program is a significant benefit.
- →Given the consistently strong positive feedback and high re-enrollment rates (e.g., re-signing kids for next year), parents should consider signing up early for desired sessions.
- →Be assured that children will be engaged and entertained regardless of weather, thanks to robust planning for both sunny and rainy days.
Things to Consider
- ⚠No specific problems were reported by parents in these reviews. One reviewer dismisses 'bad reviews that others are writing' as 'nonsense,' implying external critiques exist but are not substantiated by these positive experiences.
Price & Value
No specific pricing is mentioned in the reviews. However, the consistent feedback of personalized care, comprehensive activities (including twice-daily swimming and diverse weather-proof options), highly qualified staff, and overwhelming parent satisfaction (e.g., 'exceeded expectations,' re-signing kids for next year) strongly indicates excellent value for the cost compared to alternatives.
♿Accessibility & Special Needs
- •No specific accessibility accommodations for children with special needs are mentioned in these reviews.
🍎Food & Drink Policy
- •No information about food or snack policies, whether outside food is allowed, or camp-provided meal options is mentioned in these reviews.
🚗Parking Info
- •Bus service with counselor assistance for children is highlighted as a key feature. There is no information provided regarding parent parking facilities or drop-off/pick-up procedures for those not using the bus service.
👥Crowd Levels
- •No information regarding crowd levels or specific times when the camp might be particularly busy or quiet is mentioned in the reviews. The focus is on continuous engagement and fun for all campers.
🛡️Safety Features
- •Leadership explicitly states having 'safety and fun in mind at all times,' indicating a priority on child well-being.
- •Counselors make pre-camp calls to families and personally lead children by hand to the bus, offering a secure and reassuring transition.
- •Staff are consistently described as 'well-trained' and genuinely caring, contributing to a safe and supervised environment.
⏰When to Avoid
- • Based on these overwhelmingly positive reviews, there are no specific situations or types of families for whom Decoma Day Camp should be avoided. All feedback indicates a high level of satisfaction across various age groups and needs.
Pricing/Package/Events
Events & Schedule
🍎Food Policy
- • Hot Lunch & Cookouts Included
What People Say
What's Great
- Friendly and helpful staff (mentioned in 6 reviews)
- Safe environment for children (mentioned in 2 reviews)
- Fun and entertaining activities (mentioned in 5 reviews)
Recent Reviews
JOEY BURDA
7 months agoBeen to this camp since 2012. I’m now activity staff and it’s AMAZING I was a camper until 2021 and that’s when I worked as a schlepper and I gotta say it’s the best job for me, staff is amazing, campers are fun and funny, and the planning is fantastic. During a sunny day everyone is out doing something fun and when it’s a dark rainy day it still doesn’t stop us from having fun, we watch movies, play games, draws and have a lot of laughs. This is the only job I’ll work for in summers
J A
2 years agoMy family found a home away from home this summer at Decoma. The counselors called our kids before the camp started to say hello! Then on the first day, the bus rolled up to our driveway and two warm and friendly counselors led the kids by hand to the bus. The leadership has the right priorities of safety and fun in mind at all times. The kids swim twice a day and are having the time of their lives this summer! Thanks Decoma!
Audrey Krolicki
5 years agoMy 5 and 3 yr old children had an amazing time at Decoma! For my 5 yr old, this was her first time being away from home all day. The staff and management were SO caring and sensitive to her needs. Her counselor was the sweetest. She had an amazing time and made so many friends! For my 3 yr old it was his very first time being dropped off. He looked forward to camp every time and would come home saying that he had so much fun!! I love that this camp is family owned - they care about every single camper like it’s their only camper. I had all kinds of questions, requests, needs - they addressed everything so promptly and professionally. We loved this camp so much that we already signed my kids up for next year!
Jacqueline Hagopian
2 years agoDecoma has exceeded our families expectations. The staff genuinely cares about the children and are well trained. The children are never bored and come home exhausted. They swim twice a day and have so many activities. The owners go above and beyond to make sure their campers and parents are happy. My husband and I trust Decoma and will continue to send both of our children to Decoma next summer. Thank you Abbey, Sammy, Gary and your entire staff. The kids loved it. - the Hagopian family
Rachel Weile
10 years agoWe sent our 3 1/2 year old daughter to Decoma last summer and she (and my husband and I) LOVED it. Gary hires a well-trained and caring staff that LOVES working with children. Most of his staff are either teachers or college students studying to be teachers. The high school staff clearly are there for the kids, not to make a fast buck, and it shows in their attitude when with my child and others (from what I observed). My daughter would come home from camp singing camp songs, excited to tell me about her day. I loved the fact that she was able to swim each day. She was always comfortable with the water, but after being able to swim each day at Decoma, by the end of the summer, she was even more comfortable with it, which I really liked. From the caring bus driver, bus assistants, to camp counselors, everyone was super sweet and made her first camp experience at Decoma one that she (and us) will never forget. We can't wait to see what's in store for camp 2014!! P.S. - These bad reviews that others are writing are nonsense....I've known Gary a long time, and I strongly believe that he would NEVER do or say some of the horrific things that were stated in the bad reviews.