Thursday, October 1, 2026
When Valerie Monroe and the other leaders at People Loving People, an Oyster Bay nonprofit which runs a local food pantry and organizes community projects, first discussed creating a free summer camp for children in, they hoped to give a handful of kids a safe and enriching space.
Eight weeks later, the People Loving People Free Arts & Adventures Camp has welcomed dozens of children into a program filled with history, creativity and connection — and it was all made possible by the community itself.
“We had a very, very big turnout for our after-school program called Homework Helpers, and we knew that was something that was important to the community,” said Monroe, a co-founder of the nonprofit People Loving People. “In the past, we would normally sponsor three, four or five children to go to the Boys and Girls Club, but we couldn’t sponsor all the kids we knew needed it. So I thought about it and said, ‘Instead of sponsoring these kids, let’s run a camp program for 25 to 30 kids.’ And that’s how it started.”
The camp, which began July 1 and continues through Aug. 22 at the First Presbyterian Church of Oyster Bay, has brought together children brought together children from kindergarten through fifth grade for themed weeks of music, history, nature and wellness. Each week featured guest presenters from local organizations and businesses, tying the program closely to Oyster Bay’s history and culture.
“This is a really fun camp, and I enjoy it here,” camper Alessia Defeo, 8, said. “We do arts and crafts, we play with clay … and it’s really fun here.”
The Oyster Bay Music Festival kicked things off with live at the church, followed by a visit from Raynham Hall Museum staff, who taught the children about invisible writing and local Revolutionary War history. The WaterFront Center brought touch tanks and sea creatures for hands-on learning, and yoga instructor Shalani introduced mindfulness and movement. Later weeks featured a nurse-led health workshop, a seed-planting lesson from the Planting Fields Arboretum and a visit from the Atlantic Steamer Fire Company with fire trucks.
“I wanted these kids to learn about the community that they live in and about how special Oyster Bay is,” Monroe said. “Each week we have a different thing about Oyster Bay come in for them, to speak to them and give them a little background, and they love it. They absolutely love it.”
For Pastor Jeffrey Prey of the First Presbyterian Church, the decision to host the camp was an easy one. The church had partnered with People Loving People before, providing space for the organization’s food pantry during the pandemic.
“They’ve got a program, and it meets a need in the community,” Prey said. “We’ve got the space, and we’re happy to be able to coordinate efforts. Oyster Bay is a really good community, with an awareness of what needs to be done and a willingness to work together to get it done.”
That sense of togetherness was visible in the support the camp received from local businesses. Lunch partners Gimme Burger, Sweet Tomato and Coach Meeting House provided free meals for campers every week.
“Claudia (Taglitch) and I decided it’s a great way to give back to the community,” said Jesse Schenker, a partner at Lush Life Group, which owns Gimme Burger. “It was a pretty easy decision. Who doesn’t like a good burger? It wasn’t even really a hesitation. We just said, sure, let’s do it.”
Days at the camp are structured but lively. Campers begin with quiet crafts, then enjoy free play with donated toys before gathering for guest activities and outdoor games. Thursdays have become water play days, with sprinklers and Super Soakers. Afternoons close with larger art projects tied to a weekly theme, from tissue-box instruments to clay sea creatures and tie-dyed shirts.
“The camp is totally free,” Monroe said. “We wanted to make sure that every child had a lunch every day, that they could come in and feel included. The community was so supportive that I can’t begin to tell you.”
Many campers were recruited through People Loving People’s food pantry network, which regularly supports local families in need. The camp, Monroe said, helped ease the burden on parents who work through the summer and can’t afford traditional camp tuition.
The program’s success has already sparked plans for the future. People Loving People will relaunch its Homework Helpers after-school program this fall at the church, pairing high school volunteers with elementary students who need extra support. Parents will also be able to attend English as a Second Language classes while their children receive tutoring.
“We had a little boy that was coming every week to the food pantry with his homework, and I saw that he couldn’t even write the letters correctly, and he was in third grade,” Monroe said. “His parents couldn’t help him because they didn’t speak the language. So we decided to host Homework Helpers at the same time we run ESL for the parents, so everybody gets the help they need.”
For Monroe, Prey, Schenker and the dozens of volunteers and contributors, the camp is proof of what the Oyster Bay community can accomplish.
“Each week we post updates of what the kids were up to, and people in the community were so happy with what we did that they started to donate money,” Monroe said. “People said, ‘Please use this toward summer camp next year. Please buy ice cream for the children.’ It was very, very well received.”
The experience has been most rewarding for the young campers, who get the chance to play, learn and understand their community better thanks to their neighbors’ efforts.
“It’s great having fun with friends,” 10-year-old Julianna Defeo, Alessia’s older sister, said, “and just hanging out.”
