Earthplace and Camp Mahackeno Team Up for Summer Camp

Earthplace The Nature Discovery Center is partnering with the Westport Weston Family Y to offer a summer day camp for kids in Fairfield County at Earthplace's 62-acre wildlife sanctuary in Westport.

The mission of Westport’s Earthplace is to “educate the community about nature and the environment and about ways of taking action to preserve, protect, and enjoy nature and the environment,” says Becky Newman, camp director for Earthplace.

Earthplace plans to do just that as it partners with the Westport Weston Family Y to host a joint summer day camp while Camp Mahackeno is closed due to construction of the Y's new facility. The camp will be held at Earthplace, where the 62-acre wildlife sanctuary will be used as an outdoor classroom, which features an interactive natural history museum, more than 2 miles of trails, a live animal hall, a Birds of Prey facility, and a preschool.

The combined Earthplace-Mahackeno camp will offer many opportunities for children to explore new aspects of nature through hands-on activities, group games, field trips, hikes, and crafts. The camp is for children in first through 11th grades, and campers will be able to participate in free swim at the Y's downtown facility and take part in weekly field trips. Camp will run in one-week sessions, 9am-4pm each day.

“We’re so excited about this partnership,” says Meaghan George, camp and youth director for Westport Weston Family Y. “Our Mahackeno campers will be in a wonderfully natural setting that’s close to our longtime home and that will also provide them great new opportunities to learn about nature, science, and the environment while having fun.”