It has been a long few days, right? On Wednesday, DCPS announced the move of the professional development day from Friday to Monday. Day-off camps on the Hill scrambled to match the change, and many of them managed to do so–temporarily. After the DCPS closing announcement today, camps made valiant efforts to stay open, but tonight the last holdouts finally bowed out.
I was tracking the developments–DCPS Moves Professional Development Day to Monday: Camp Updates–which seemed like a good idea on Wednesday.
Polite Piggy’s knew right away that it could not hold camp on Monday, because it uses Maury Elementary as its location. Busy Bees intended to hold camp but had to cancel when its venue, the Hill Center, yesterday decided to close. Breathing Space also lost its venue and canceled yesterday. DC Way was all in on holding camp until earlier today, when it canceled all activities “based on developments.” Camp Shenanigans also decided to close. DC-ICE was “TBD” as of this afternoon–the ice rinks closed, and I am assuming it is not holding camp, as I haven’t heard anything further.
Labyrinth, with its own dedicated space, was the last holdout, announcing tonight that it would “err on the side of extreme caution” and not hold the game camps it had planned for both Monday and Friday.
The pressure was on, and I do not envy these camps the decision-making processes they endured over the past few days. Parents need child care so they can go to work. While Mayor Muriel Bowser today announced a ban on mass gatherings of 250 people or more, these camps are significantly smaller than that. But the stakes are high.
I’m sure you’re all with me in supporting these great Hill camps when the coronavirus threat is in the past.
More neighborhood news on kids and coronavirus:
- Mayor Announces Ban on Gatherings of More Than 250
- Stock Up on Fun, Support Local Stores
- Wknd Rndp, March 13-15: Let’s Stay In
- DCPS Closed Next Week Through End of March: Updates
- DCPS Moves Professional Development Day to Monday: Camp Updates
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