Summer Camp

A Summer Camp Fair, with activity options for San Francisco City and County children was held at the Bill Graham auditorium in Civic Center Plaza last Saturday. It was hosted by a group with a mouthful of a name: "San Francisco’s Department of Children, Youth and Their Families." (Click here to get to their elaborate website).



Here's a branding tip, folks, which is to keep your name consistent. Does it have an ampersand or the word "and"? Is it "Their Families" or just "Families"? And what consensus-by-committee came up with that dumb name in the first place back in 1989?



On their website, part of their mission statement proclaims:

DCYF achieves its mission by:

* Strategic stewardship of the city’s landmark Children’s Fund
* Creating innovative partnerships within government and with the community
* Researching and promoting policies and a shared agenda to make San Francisco a family-friendly city

I'd say they were falling down pretty badly on the job since 1989 with that last bullet point.



Private organizations had set up booths throughout the auditorium...



...and they ranged all over the spectrum...



...from little girls who love animals...



...to would-be windsurfers...



...to "Camp E'Ete" for the francophiles...



...and a fantasy camp for Sword-and-Sorcery Princesses.



The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department had a large area on a platform in the back of the auditorium where they were having people fill out elaborate forms for a database that would allow families to sign up online for Rec and Park summer camps at a discounted rate.



This is a new system with a fairly short enrollment window, from 1-6:30 PM, March 5 to March 16, at the following locations: Randall Museum (closed Monday), SOMA (6th & Folsom), Richmond Recreation Center (18th Avenue & Clement), Palega Recreation Center (Felton & Holyoke), and from 1-4 PM, Kezar Stadium (Stanyan & Waller) and The Lodge Annex (Stanyan & Fell). You can register after March 16th, but you chances of getting your children into the more popular programs will decrease.



And this is the mountain of paperwork they want you to provide:

* Proof of age: Copy of a birth certificate or passport for anyone 18 years of age or under
* Proof of residency: A utility bill that matches your address to your name or the name of the head of your household
* State of California issued driver's license or Identification Card - Your utility bill must match this address and the name of the head of household
* Emergency Contact Information
* Proof of Immunization (for children under 5 years of age)
* E-mail address (if you have one)



Outside of the "Silver Tree Day Camp" in Glen Canyon, all the activities in the Rec and Park pamphlet seemed to be taking place in the western section of San Francisco, mostly in and around Kezar Stadium in Golden Gate Park.



If you happen to live in the eastern part of town, such as the Mission or Bayview/Hunter's Point, you are just plain out of luck.



This doesn't seem quite fair.