BY LINDA SMITH HANCHARICK
WEST MILFORD — West Milford is losing a longtime RESIDENT.
Hands In 4 Youth, formerly called Camp Vacamas, is shutting its doors here in West Milford after 62 years providing summer camp for both local and urban-area children on its property on Macopin Road.
In a letter to Mayor Bettina Bieri on Aug. 31, Felix A. Urrutia, Jr., executive director of Hands in 4 Youth, explained that "fiscal challenges" caused the group to examine the viability of the West Milford property.
"For the last three years we have been closely examining the viability of our West Milford property in the midst of continuing fiscal challenges," said Urrutia in the letter. "We have experienced several headwinds including actions taken by the state of new Jersey that have had the unintentional consequences of reducing the value of our property and necessitating the need to spend large sums on the maintenance of our beautiful lake."
Hands In 4 Youth owns nearly 200 acres on Macopin Road and has run a residential camp for kids there since 1954. The property includes a 38-acre lake and 70 structures.
Urrutia's letter stated that maintaining the property has become too costly and takes away from the group's ability to help more children.
"Unfortunately, sustaining a near 200-acre residential camp property in West Milford, that we have owned and operated since 1954, is too costly and is taking away from our ability to reach more children," he said.
"While the services offered over the years at that location were laudable, from a municipal perspective, it would be most beneficial if a for-profit camping association would purchase the property," said Bieri. "Such an organization would pay property taxes while offering abundant camping, whether in tents, cabins or RVs on (around) 200 acres of pristine property including trails and a lake with swimming facilities for use by residents and non-residents."
Keeping kids active and focused
The organization has provided sleep-away summer camp to children of all backgrounds for decades, in three different sessions each summer. Kids came to the camp and spent a couple of weeks swimming in the lake, playing outdoor games, hiking, singing, enjoying the time with no electronics at all. And they used the time to keep up on academics through their literacy center and the volunteer certified teachers who came in to instruct throughout the summer.Many of the campers received some form of scholarship, making donations vital to the group.
Hands In 4 Youth also partnered with nearby Bloomingdale for its summer day camp. Part of the property is in Bloomingdale. Last year, in a story with The Messenger, Urrutia said he hoped to partner with the township on some of their recreation programs.
This program in West Milford is not the only arm of Hands In 4 Youth. It also runs an after-school and summer day camp programing the Bronx and East Harlem. Its summer sleep-away camp program will be run at Harriman State Park in Harriman, New York, in the future.
What the future holds
Urrutia stated that the group will continue to be responsible stewards of the property until they find a suitable buyer.In addition to the 200 acres, 70 structures and 38-acre lake, the property also has a 100-year-old dam.