Mentorship during the school year, three afternoons of after-school every week, and the best two weeks of summer in City Park. Here's how each one works.
Our flagship summer day camp for kids ages 7–13, plus a Trailblazers leadership track for teens 14–16. Mornings start with canoe paddles on Bayou St. John and end with red beans on Fridays. Buses run from the Ninth Ward, Tremé, and Gentilly.
Camp runs 8:30am–3:30pm, Monday through Friday, with free extended care until 5:30pm for working families. Sliding-scale tuition — no camper is ever turned away over cost.
Register for Camp
Canoeing, fishing clinics with Wildlife & Fisheries volunteers, and a closing-day paddle parade on Bayou St. John.
Brass band workshops with Tremé musicians, mural painting, woodshop basics, and a family showcase on the final Friday.
Soccer, basketball, track days, swim lessons at the City Park pool, and a camper-vs-counselor kickball final.
Parents ask, so here's the honest answer — a real Tuesday from last summer's Session Two.
Buses arrive from N. Claiborne and Esplanade. Grits, fruit, and juice under the pavilion — nobody starts the day hungry.
Campers split into crews of ten with two counselors. Canoe rotation on the bayou, nature walk, or swim lessons depending on the week.
Hot lunch, then board games, sketchbooks, or reading in the shade. Counselors check in one-on-one with every camper, every day.
Campers pick their track for the session: brass band, mural arts, junior lifeguarding, or the garden crew that grows okra for Friday's red beans.
The whole camp closes the day together — shout-outs, the Camp Cypress chant, then buses roll at 3:30. Extended care runs games until 5:30.
Camp is two weeks. The other fifty, our mentors and after-school team keep the same kids moving forward.
One kid, one mentor, one full school year minimum. Matches are made carefully — shared interests, same neighborhood when possible — and supported by our staff with monthly check-ins.
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons at the Tremé Recreation Community Center. Homework gets done first — then kids choose between music lessons, art tables, chess club, and open gym.
Session One always goes first. Register your camper now, or reach out about sliding-scale tuition — we'll never let cost be the reason a kid stays home.