South Shore camps a big hit in East Rockaway this summer

Almost 30 years ago, Director Joe Lores opened the South Shore Basketball Camp in East Rockaway because he wanted to get children interested in the sport, which he coached at the high school. Now, he said, he sees some of his former campers enroll their children.

“They know the quality of what we try to do, and they feel comfortable bringing their kids here,” Lores said.

Over the summer, parents had the opportunity to enroll their children in three different South Shore camps for basketball, softball or a general playgroup. Children also had the option to attend both the playgroups camp and one of the sports camps because Lores scheduled them for different times.

This year, the basketball camp attracted 58 campers, which is fewer than the camp has had in past years. Lores said that the decrease in campers might have been because of more competition, but he added that the softball camp tripled in size this year, with 42 campers.

The playgroups camp had the most campers, with 142 enrolled this year. From 9 a.m. through noon each weekday in July, children from kindergarten through sixth grade participated in arts and crafts, sports, free play and also watched movies during quiet time. On Fridays, the kids were also able to play with the hoses to stay cool.

In addition, there were a few special events for the children in the playgroups camp, including a field day and a talent show on the last day of camp, which was July 28. “According to the smiles and all the good wishes from parents, I’d say it was a successful year,” Lores said.