Hunt for Summer Camps

Summer vacation is about relaxing, and trying to keep your kids occupied with fun-filled activities. Trying to find exciting and educational summer camps can be a challenge. We are here to help with that dilemma! Lorain County has many camps and other activities for children of all ages throughout the summer months!

Given how rich Lorain County is in  art, history, culture and education...you probably won't be surprised to find a number of dedicated summer camps following those themes. 

 TrueNorth's Spotlight Camp

 TrueNorth Cultural Arts is a group that does theater productions and classes, musicals, and fine arts shows. They are affiliated with the Lorain County Metro Parks. This summer they offer several theater camps of different lengths and for different age groups. The shortest camp, for children ages 3 to 5, runs a week long starting June 10th. For children grades 1 through 4 there is a two week camp starting June 17th. The longest, for children in grades 5 through 12 runs five weeks starting July 8th. This is a great way for your children to meet new friends!

The Oberlin Choristers is a community-based choral group located in the New Union Center for the Arts. This summer they are offering several day camps for children in grades kindergarten through eighth. These camps run June 10th through the 14th and August 5th through 9th. Your children will celebrate music from around the world. Sign your child up to surround them in music throughout the day!

The Firelands Association for the Visual Arts (FAVA) is a non-profit organization in Oberlin that strives to enhance the public's education in the visual arts. FAVA does many great things for our community that people of all ages enjoy! They have recently started an art club for home schooled students. This summer they are offering three day camps for children in grades kindergarten through fifth starting June 10th. Each day camp goes from 9:30 am until 3:30 pm. Each week's camp is different from the rest! FAVA is conveniently located in the same building as The Oberlin Choristers, if your child decides to attend a day camp with the Choristers why not send them to a FAVA camp as well?

Oberlin Heritage Center camp play

One organization has historically driven camps is the Oberlin Heritage Center. The Heritage Center puts on several week-long summer camps starting at the end of June. The themes and topics vary from year to year but are always interesting and fun! This year the themes range from a behind the scenes camp at the local Allen Memorial Art Museum in Oberlin to Pioneer Camp! There are so many choices your child may not know which camp to attend, sign up for more than one! Many of the camps age groups are for children ages 8 to 13.

Another great organization is the Lorain County Historical Society. It's a non-profit educational organization. They provide educational programs and activities throughout Lorain County. They offer a week-long day camp at the end of June for children ages 6 through 11. It focuses mainly on Lorain County history. Campers will participate in fun-filled activities while learning history at the same time!

Common Ground's Earth Camp

There is a fantastic outdoor educational camp located in Oberlin! Common Ground's Earth Camp is a week long day camp for children ages 6 to 12 and has 5 different weeks from June 24th through July. Each week has a new theme so that if your child wants to attend more than one session they will learn new things! Earth camp helps children learn about the environment and themselves through the new experiences they will have each day. Common Ground also offers a Teen Leadership Camp for ages 13 to 16 that has five sessions. Teen Leadership Camp helps teens to learn new skills and develop a sense of belonging. Teens will take on the ropes course during the week to learn their limitations. The purpose of this is to give teens a happier healthier life at home, school, and neighborhood.


 If your child is looking for an athletically driven camp we can help with that too! We are home to many recreational groups that often host summer camps from horse-back riding to soccer camp.

Rival Sports will offer a kids fit camp encouraging nutrition and fitness this summer! Also look for sports camps to be announced soon. Check Rival Sport's website for details! 

Here in Lorain County we love to cheer for the Lake Erie Crushers, who also host four two-day summer baseball camps starting June 11. These baseball camps will focus on the fundamentals of the game from professional athletes and coaches of the Crushers! These summer camps are meant for children ages 6 through 14. When signing up, each camper will get a 2013 Baseball Camp t-shirt, a Crushers logo baseball that campers will have an opportunity to have autographed at the end of the camp, and one general admission ticket voucher for a 2013 home game. 


Oberlin College offers two soccer camps this summer. The first camp is a youth day-camp that is hosted in Oberlin at the Oberlin Recreation Fields for boys & girls in grades first through eighth. The camp starts June 10th from 9 am until noon. The youth camp is designed to enhance the skills of players of many different levels. Coaches will consist of several local college and club coaches and players. The second camp that is offered is an elite boys camp starting June 28th through June 30th. This camp is a college prep camp for boys entering grades 9 through 12. It's designed to help players grow in a competitive and challenging environment. Players that have an interest in playing soccer in college will gain an insight into the tactical, fitness level, and skill set that many collegiate teams require.

Equine Differences Camp

 Equine Differences hosts a Monday through Thursday camp each summer for children age 8 and up. The camp is designed to teach children what it is like to own, care for, and ride a horse. The camps being June 24th and run through August 12th. Camp beings at 9 am with feeding the horses. There are 4 to 6 children per session so if your child doesn't like large groups this would be the perfect camp to sign up for! 

If you are looking for a more traditional type of camp for your child Lorain County also offers a variety of day-camps that cover many different subjects. 

The YMCA offers 10 week-long day-camps at the French Creek center and the Vermilion center for children kindergarten through age 12 from 7 am to 6 pm. These camps include field trips on Monday and Wednesday. Each week has a specific theme for children to learn new things each week! If your child needs a fun-filled day that is scheduled this is the camp for you!


The Lorain County Metro Parks offers a variety of week-long day camps starting June 10th. These camps are designed for children who's ages range from kindergarten to seventh grade.The different camp themes include an outdoor adventure camp, a fishing camp, and more! One thing each camp has in common is the incorporation of nature and the outdoors into daily activities. If your child is looking for a fun and interesting outdoor camp check out the Metro Parks' day camps!

Each summer the City of Elyria's department of Parks and Recreation has week-long summer camps starting June 10th. Each week has a different theme, from NASA to an Arts & Music Camp. There are camps for children as young as 6 and up to age 17. Camps are offered at different times during the day, if your child isn't a morning person there are afternoon camps that would work perfectly!



With Memorial Day behind us, the unofficial start to summer, planning out your summer is becoming very important. Registration for summer camps has started and there are limited spots. Reserve your child's place in one of Lorain County's awesome summer programs to guarantee a summer of fun!