| Camp Guy Robinson celebrates 40th anniversary |
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| Wednesday, 15 July 2009 | ||
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by Kelly Johnson Staff writer It’s a summer of activities that’s been 40 years in the making. Camp Guy Robinson has provided area youngsters with fun and educational outdoor activities for the past 40 summers.
The YMCA-run camp started in 1969, welcoming campers at its original location, near where the current Coon Rapids Civic Center sits on Robinson Drive. In the early 1970s, Adelaide Robinson, the widow of Guy Robinson, one of the founders of the city of Coon Rapids, donated property to the Northeast YMCA in his memory. That property was sold to establish an endowment in Guy Robinson’s name, so there would continue to be a YMCA camp for youth in the area. According to Lisa Robinson, community program director for the Emma B. Howe and Andover YMCAs, after the property was sold, the camp moved to the Boy Scout Camp, located on the Rum River in Ramsey, where it was held through the summer of 1999. Camp Guy Robinson has been at its current home inside Lake George Regional Park in Oak Grove since 2000, when the YMCA partnered with Anoka County Parks. With its long history, Camp Guy Robinson is welcoming grandchildren of some of the early campers. Many of today’s camp counselors also attended Camp Guy Robinson when they were children. “As a mom, I know how rich and rewarding this camp is,” said Margie Risk, camp director, who has sent her children to the camp since they were four and five. The camp offers a variety of week-long day camps throughout the summer, exposing campers to a wide variety of activities. Traditional camps such as arts and crafts, canoe, kayak, theater and science camps are offered this summer. New camps added to the offering include dragons, princesses and fairies, geocaching, and planes, trains and automobiles. Each summer, some 900 youth, ages four to 14, attend the camp. Parents can drop their children off at Camp Guy Robinson or bus transportation is provided from the Emma B. Howe YMCA in Coon Rapids and the Andover YMCA Community Center. Before and after camp care is also provided for an additional charge. For those families that need it, financial assistance is available to fund camp costs. For more information about Camp Guy Robinson, visit www.ymcatwincities.org and search under day camps. Click here to watch a video of Camp Guy Robinson. Kelly Johnson is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it |
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Four-year-old Max quietly waits for fish to bite his line, which features a corn kernel on its hook. It only took a few minutes before Max reeled in his first catch of the morning. (Photo by Kelly Johnson) | < Prev | Next > |
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