YMCA Day Camp Starfish
Explore. Create. Discover.
Where Curiosity Meets Community.
Located at the YMCA, Camp Starfish is a place where curiosity comes to life. Campers explore the world around them through STEM-based activities, hands-on challenges, creative projects, experiments, problem-solving, and opportunities to work together and with the programs of the YMCA of Kingston.
Starfish is designed to encourage campers to ask questions, think creatively, collaborate with others, and discover how things work. Rather than simply learning about STEAM, campers get opportunities to experience it—building, creating, experimenting, testing ideas, and finding solutions together. Campers will enjoy connecting with our Kingston YMCA Farm Project crew, learning from our YMCA Bicycle team and making a splash in the YMCA indoor pool.
But Starfish is about more than what campers learn. It’s about who they learn with. Through group activities and community-based experiences, campers build friendships, practice teamwork, and develop confidence as they discover their own interests and abilities.
At Camp Starfish, every question can lead to an adventure, every idea can become a creation, and every camper has something valuable to contribute.
YMCA SUMMER CAMP FINANCIAL AID (Q&A)
2026 FINANCIAL AID APPLICATION PERIOD: 2/15/2026-3/31/2026
When may I apply for camp financial aid?
Incoming YMCA Camp Scholarship applications will be accepted starting on Sunday, 2/15/2026.
What do I need to apply for camp financial aid?
As with all YMCA scholarship applications, applicants must provide a completed application and sufficient income documentation for processing. ***2026 YMCA Camp scholarship applications must be submitted with your household’s 2025 1040 Federal Income Tax Return(s), reflective of full, annual income for all working household members.*** Please contact our Registrar for other documentation options if you will not be filing a 2025 tax return for any reason prior to camp season start.
Where may I obtain a YMCA Camp Scholarship Application?
Please download the YMCA Scholarship Application form (click on the Apply Today! button below) to apply for financial aid for camps Seewackamano (SWK), Starfish (STAR), or Wiltmeet (WLMT), or contact our Registrar.
Do I need to complete more than one scholarship form if more than one of my children needs camp aid?
No. Please list all household members in Step 2 of the application. Clearly indicate, with a check mark, which children are applying for assistance.
Where do I submit my completed YMCA Camp Scholarship Application?
Please submit your completed application and supporting 2025 income document(s) to the Registrar either in person, though email, or by fax.
You may email the Registrar: registrar@ymcaulster.org
You may drop off your completed application to the front desk of the Y, Attention Registrar: 507 Broadway Kingston, NY 12401
You may fax the documents to the Registrar’s attention: 845-338-0423
What can a camp scholarship be used for?
A scholarship award, for Camps Seewackamano and Wiltmeet specifically, may be used towards ONE full, two-week session of camp (per child). An award for Camp Starfish may be used towards ALL SIX weeks of camp (per child), if so registered. No camp aid awarded will be 100%. You may have a balance to remit after aid is applied to your camper’s registration. We require a $125 deposit per session/standalone week to secure a spot in Camps Seewackamano or Wiltmeet; $60 per week to secure a spot in Camp Starfish.
When will my application be processed?
Complete applications will be processed by order of date received. Incomplete applications (forms received without the proper income documentation, forms with missing information, etc.) will suspend processing, as well as your camper’s place in line for aid. Awards are first come, first served. In the event aid for a certain camp is extinguished, your family will be placed on a waiting list and notified if any aid becomes available (this can be at any time prior to or during our camp season).
When will I know if I was awarded camp financial aid?
Our earliest financial aid determinations will be announced in late February/early March. You will be emailed an official determination letter to the email address you are asked to provide to us in your application. We will contact you via email if there are any issues with your application as well.
Do I wait to register for camp while I am awaiting my financial aid determination?
If your family would like to officially secure your camper’s spot in camp before aid is determined (camp space is limited and also first come, first served!), you should use our online camp registration system to complete the registration process by remitting the required deposits per session. Your camp account will be credited or refunded for any overage in deposit or overall camp balance payment resulting from a financial aid award later granted.
What if my child was awarded a scholarship towards my child’s YMCA before/after school program – can this be used towards camp?
No. The camp financial aid process, though same application form, is processed entirely separate from any before/after school childcare scholarships. Please apply with a new scholarship application and specific income documentation for camp.
What if I have questions/concerns that have not been addressed here?
If you have any questions/concerns regarding 2026 camp registration or financial aid please contact the Registrar: 845-338-3810 x122 or registrar@ymcaulster.org
Yellow Guppies-Entering Kindergarten and 1st grade
Green Eels-Entering 2nd and 3rd grade
Blue Sharks-Entering 4th and 5th grade
Camp operates from 8:30am until 5:30pm Monday through Friday from June 29 to August 7 2026. Camp tuition includes a daily breakfast, and lunch!
Each day is jam-packed with activities to keep your camper having fun, and staying active and academically engaged through the summer. Your camper will be busy taking swim lessons, learning about nutrition and farming on our Y’s farm, engaging in STEAM activities, partaking in service learning projects, and SO much more
Deposit per session: $60
Sessions 1-6: $255/week
Pre care: $42/week
Post care: $29/week
Combo: $62/week
YMCA of Kingston and Ulster County
507 Broadway, Kingston NY 12401
NOW HIRING FOR SUMMER 2026*
*Per Ulster County Department of Health regulations we cannot hire under the age of 16.
Youth Development Director,
845-338-3810 x110