FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Sending your child to camp, especially for the first time, can bring many questions to mind. Below we have tried to answer many of those questions for you. If you have further questions, please contact us.

BOYS:

     →Check-in for all boys sessions is on Sunday from 1:00 to 3:00 pm.

     →Check-out for all 2-week sessions and Mini Camps A-F is on Sunday at 10:30 am following Mass. However, check-out for Mini Camp G, Horse Camp and Ropes Adventure Camp is on Saturday at 1:00 pm.

GIRLS:

     →Check-in for all girls sessions is on Sunday from 1:00 to 3:00 pm.

     →Check-out for all girls sessions is on Saturday at 1:00 pm.

Please contact our office at 248-822-8199 or office@campsanctamaria.org if you have any questions.

On the first day, cabin counselors go through a personal inventory with each camper ensuring that they have everything needed for their stay at camp. We are proactive in this way; we do not wait for the camper to discover that he/she is missing something.  In the event that something is missing, families may send items.  We have daily package delivery and mail service.  We are also able to purchase items right in town.  In addition, we have a ready supply of the most commonly forgotten or lost items like toothbrushes, soap, deodorant etc. that are available if needed.

Laundry service is available for campers who are staying with us for 3 weeks or more. How ever, in the event of an emergency, we launder items promptly for any camper.

Campers may receive letters, care packages, and emails.  If you are sending a letter or package, don’t forget to write your child’s name on it.

When sending letters and packages :

Camper Name
Camp Sancta Maria
5361 West M-32 
Gaylord, MI 49735

(Please be sure to include the West part of the address. Mail/packages may not be received if the West is omitted.)

During the online registration and at check-in you will have the opportunity to register your camper for email delivery ($5 fee).  Emails will be printed and delivered by office staff.  Note that the contents of emails may be seen by office staff.

CSM offers one-week and two-week sessions for boys and one-week sessions for girls.

Please visit our “Dates & Rates” page for details.

One of our goals is to provide the CSM experience to all children regardless of their ability to pay. In order to achieve this we rely on the support of our generous community. For more information on our scholarship fund, please visit our “Donate” page.

Camper care packages are welcome! While your child is at camp, you may send a care package of food, clothes, books, etc. However, we ask you to limit the amount of sweets and baked goods you send so your child does not fill up on junk food.

We provide our campers with three nutritionally balanced meals each day that are needed to provide energy throughout the very busy day at camp. If you want to send baked goods, please send them in airtight containers to ensure smoother shipment and storage. Please do not send perishables such as fruit.

Prohibited items include: cell phones or web-enabled devices: (laptops, iPods, iPads (tablets), MP3 players, expensive electronics) illegal substances such as drugs and alcohol, cigarettes and other tobacco products, adult/inappropriate books and/or magazines, weapons of any kind, walkie-talkies, inappropriate messaged t-shirts, prank items (shocking pens, magic ink), skateboards, bikes, camper-owned vehicles, pets, televisions, laser pens.

When sending letters and packages :

Camper Name
Camp Sancta Maria
5361 West M-32 
Gaylord, MI 49735

(Please be sure to include the West part of the address. Mail/packages may not be received if the West is omitted.)

All of our camps are single gender.  We have seen that single gender camps reduce distraction and allow campers to get the most out of their camp experience.

Many of our counselors were once campers at CSM themselves.  It’s not uncommon for a 20-year old counselor to have been attending CSM for over half of his life.  In these cases, we are familiar with the young men and women who apply and know their families very well.  Often these counselors have worked for us as counselors-in-training, so we know them from that capacity as well.

We also recruit counselors from area universities like Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, and from seminaries such as Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, Michigan.  In 2018, we were excited to welcome 6 seminarians to our staff!  All of our staff undergo a background check before beginning to work at CSM.

Working as a camp counselor is perfect training for a young person who is pursuing a degree in education or any other people-intensive field.  Working as a camp counselor is also good training for parenthood.  They are asked to give and give and give!  A work experience such as this one brings tremendous formation to the person.

Health and safety is our #1 concern. Visit our Safety page for full details.

Otsego Memorial Hospital is located just over 7 miles from CSM, approximately a 15 minute drive.  CSM also works with the 911 emergency system providing them with details of our operations.

In the event of an emergency, parents would be notified as soon as emergency procedures are put into action.

CSM serves three nutritious and fun meals each day.  We take food allergies very seriously, and our kitchen staff are experienced in preparing delicious and healthy meals for camps with food allergies.  However, we ask that you contact the camp office before you arrive at camp to discuss your child’s dietary needs and any food allergies they may have. This will allow our staff to prepare their menus and food shopping lists accordingly.

Cabins vary in size.  They feature an open layout housing for between 10 and 24 campers, sleeping on bunk beds.  Each camper is provided shelving to store their personal items.  All of the camper cabins have electricity, but don’t forget, CSM is technology free.  At least two Senior Counselors age 18 or over stay in each cabin with the campers to ensure supervision.

It’s not unusual and can happen at almost any age.  Our counselors are specially trained and are sensitive to the emotions experienced by campers who miss home.  The most important antidotes we offer to a child who is missing home are: love, caring, sympathy and things to do to keep them busy!  It is important as well to acknowledge to the camper that what he or she is experiencing is real, that it can be painful, that it comes from love, but with time will pass. Further, it is something we all have to go through in order to grow.  Ultimately, we employ a team approach – namely, keep a child that is missing home as engaged in camp life as possible and consult and work with the parents (behind the scenes) to help with the camper’s positive adjustment.  We cannot overemphasize the importance of the team approach between CSM and parents.

We also need to acknowledge the question: What if I miss my child?  Much of what we said directly above applies!  Know that your experience is real, that it can hurt, that it comes from love, but with time it will get better.  We have to acknowledge too that it is something you have to go through in order for you and your child to grow.  Although you won’t have camp activities to distract yourself, we would like you to employ the same strategy: keep busy!  So many moms in particular have gone through this at CSM. We would be happy to have you speak with one or more of them if you like. What they tell us is that it was worth it when they came to CSM and reunited with their child – and when their child would not stop talking (all the way home) about all the fun that they had at camp!

We recommend that parents label everything a camper brings to CSM. We cannot be held responsible for any items lost while your camper is with us. We also recommend that campers refrain from bringing items to camp that are new, extremely valuable, breakable or have strong sentimental worth. All clothes left at camp will be collected, washed and kept until after Labor Day Weekend. After this date, we take all clothing left behind to local charities.  We greatly appreciate your efforts to retrieve clothing. We encourage you to be very careful when packing up to take your camper back home. Laundry bags, fishing poles, baseball mitts, flashlights, cameras, pillows, bathing suits, towels, lacrosse sticks, and boots are common items left behind.  Items left behind are immediately removed to make way for incoming campers. Due to the volume of campers, it is difficult to mail items back to you. Be sure to check the lost & found area by the Rec Cabin, under bunks and the shelving units before you leave the grounds. Please note that because subsequent sessions begin as others end, cabins are cleaned immediately and recovered items are removed very promptly. Please let us know immediately if you are missing something as this makes it much easier to locate the item. We regret that recovered items can only be mailed back to you upon receipt of payment for shipping.
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