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| Summer Camp Enrollment Now Available Online |
| Horsham, PA – February 24, 2022 – College Settlement has completed renovations of the Elliott Pool at the Horsham camp, in anticipation of the arrival of summer campers during their 100th anniversary. Enrollment is now open for the 2022 summer camp programs for children ages 7 to 14 in overnight and day camp programs, which begin Monday, June 20th and continue through Friday, August 12th. Founded in 1922 to serve the children of Philadelphia and their families by providing a healthy outdoor, country experience in the aftermath of the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic, the mission of College Settlement and the College Settlement Camps is more vital than ever as the Philadelphia region copes with the COVID-19 pandemic. “For the 2022 camp season, College Settlement campers will be able to swim in the newly renovated pool,” said Terry Dougherty, Executive Director of College Settlement. “The tile, coping and entire pool deck areas were replaced, and the inside of the concrete pool was repaired and replaced with plaster diamond bright coating. The concrete pool deck was replaced and was coated with Kool Deck paint which absorbs the heat and allows campers a cool surface on which to walk. Additionally, a pool cover was purchased to allow for easy opening each summer. These improvements will provide a safe, fun experience for our campers and will last for years to come. “We are grateful to Cascade Pools as friends of our camp programs, providing College Settlement with a cost-effective and truly beautiful renovation of the Elliott Pool in time for this summer’s activities,” Dougherty added. The pool was originally installed at the Horsham camp site in 1968. Prior to 1968, College Settlement campers swam in a man-made pond known as Friendship Lake. “It was a wonderful way for campers to cool off but not the best for teaching them how to swim,” Dougherty noted. “As the Horsham area was growing, so were the housing developments which changed the drainage patterns at Camp and the pond was no longer deemed an acceptable place for children to swim.” The 200,000 gallon swimming pool was designed to provide easy access to any child in trouble within five seconds. That design won second place in Swimmer’s World Aquatic Magazine. The pool was dedicated to Edwin Elliot, a past president and benefactor of the camp who passed away in 1967. In 1986, the pool underwent a renovation to replace the tile and coping and provided a new filtration system and paint job. Every year since the opening of the Elliot Pool, College Settlement has had approximately 1,000 campers swim in the pool each summer. Dougherty noted that all campers take progressive swim lessons while at camp, and many learned how to swim in that pool. This year, College Settlement celebrates the non-profit organization’s 100th Anniversary, continuing their mission of shaping the lives of young people by instilling respect for self, others and our natural world. College Settlement is devoted to delivering a unique camp experience to more than 1,000 young people annually in the greater Philadelphia area, without regard to economic circumstances. Additional information about College Settlement camps and programs is available at http://www. https://collegesettlement.org. |
