Camp Y-Owasco Opens Registration March 10 for Summer Season

Gracie Murphy — Camp Y-Owasco / Auburn YMCA
Paul Szmal 4:49
Exterior view of the Auburn YMCA building with a white sign displaying 'the Y' logo in the foreground.
The Auburn YMCA building, a prominent local institution, is pictured here.
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Camp Y-Owasco, the century-old summer camp affiliated with the Auburn YMCA, opens registration on March 10 for its 2025 season, which runs from June 30 through the week of August 18.

Gracie Murphy, camp and family director, joined FLX Morning to share details about the program, which serves children from the Auburn, Moravia, Skaneateles, and Syracuse areas. The camp offers both day camp and resident camp options for kids ages 6 and older, with resident camp available to children 8 and up.

Day camp runs Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and is offered throughout the summer for ages 6 to 14. Resident camp sessions are held multiple times throughout the season. The camp’s activities span a wide range, taking advantage of its lakefront location on Owasco Lake. Programming includes sailing, kayaking, canoeing, and swimming, as well as sports, arts and crafts, nature skills like fire-building and outdoor cooking, dance and drama, and a cooking and baking program. Each resident camp week wraps up with a talent show, while day campers participate in an end-of-week awards ceremony.

Murphy noted that most campers come from the Central New York region, though the resident camp draws some families from farther away, including the Syracuse area.

Camp Y-Owasco is also actively hiring summer staff. Murphy said she is looking to fill approximately 25 counselor positions in addition to her seven-person leadership team. Anyone interested in working at camp is encouraged to contact the Auburn YMCA to pick up an application.

Registration opens March 10 and can be completed in person at the Auburn YMCA or online. Visit the Auburn YMCA website at auburnymca.org and look for the Camp Y-Owasco tab at the top of the page for more information on programs, costs, and staff applications.

Read Full Transcript

Paul Szmal: Welcome back to FLX Morning. It is 816 on Finger Lakes News Radio. And I'm happy to be joined now by Gracie Murphy, who is the Camp and Family Director for Camp Y Owasco, affiliated with the Auburn YMCA. Gracie, good morning. How are you this morning?

Gracie Murphy: Good morning. I'm good. How are you?

Paul Szmal: Doing well. Doing well. Can you tell us a little bit about the history of Camp Y Owasco?

Gracie Murphy: Yeah, so Camp Y Owasco has been around for over 100 years. We are a day camp and a resident camp. We run all summer long. And we really offer programs for all kids ages 8 through 16. So we have a large group of children we serve every summer.

Paul Szmal: And how many kids are from the area and how many are from outside the area that come in?

Gracie Murphy: I'd say the majority of our kids are from around the area. We have a lot of Auburn, Moravia, Skinny Atlas, a good amount from Syracuse when it comes to our resident camps. So I'd say the majority of our kids are from within the central New York area.

Paul Szmal: Okay, and you said there are day programs and resident camp programs. What are some of the day programs that are offered at Camp Y Owasco?

Gracie Murphy: Yeah, so we offer day camp pretty much every week of the summer. It's for ages 8 through 14. And it's just a very traditional day camp. It's like 9am to 4 o'clock in the afternoon every day. Yeah, and we offer that all summer long.

Paul Szmal: And then the resident camp, how many times is that offered during the course of the summer?

Gracie Murphy: Oh, and I totally just misspoke and realized day camp is for 6 and older. Resident camp is for 8 years old and older. And we offer 3 resident camps throughout the summer.

Paul Szmal: Okay, what are some of the activities that take place at Camp Y Owasco?

Gracie Murphy: Yeah, so we offer a large range of things. We're very fortunate to have a huge waterfront. So we have sailing, kayaking, canoeing, swimming. We also offer sports, arts and crafts. We have an obstacle course, really project adventure type programming, your typical nature. So learning how to build a fire and outdoor cooking skills, things like that. Dance and drama. We offer cooking and baking. We have quite a large range of things, which is wonderful.

Paul Szmal: I would not expect there to be dance and drama at a summer camp. That's pretty cool.

Gracie Murphy: I know it's wonderful and we have a talent show every resident week in an award ceremony during day camp. So the kids are able to work all week making a dance or a skit and then they perform it at the end of the week. It's a lot of fun.

Paul Szmal: Yeah, sounds like fun. We're talking with Gracie Murphy from Camp Y Owasco, affiliated with the Auburn YMCA here on FLX Morning. How many people does it take to staff this Camp Y Owasco facility?

Gracie Murphy: It takes quite a few. I have my leadership team, which is about seven people. And then ideally, I would love to have about 25 counselors.

Paul Szmal: Okay. Now you say ideally, I take it maybe you're looking for some help in that department?

Gracie Murphy: I am totally. I'm hiring right now. So if anyone is interested, please, you can reach out to the Y and get an application.

Paul Szmal: Fantastic. Fantastic. Gracie, when does the camp season start?

Gracie Murphy: Yeah, so June 30th is our first week of camp. And we start off the summer with a week of day camp.

Paul Szmal: Ah, okay. Okay. And how late does it run into the season?

Gracie Murphy: Our last week is the week of August 18th.

Paul Szmal: Okay. Now, how do people go about registering their children to be a part of the camp? And what are some of the costs involved, if there are any?

Gracie Murphy: So registration will open March 10th. And then you can either come into the Y and fill out your registration packets, or you can do it online.

Paul Szmal: Okay. And what's the web address to be able to do it online?

Gracie Murphy: It's just the Auburn YMCA. And if you go to our website, there's a tab right at the top of your screen that will say Camp Ayahuasca.

Paul Szmal: Ah, fantastic. So again, the season is going to open up soon. And again, you want to go to the Auburn Y website if you're interested in becoming a camp counselor, as they are hiring as we speak.