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Liberty Lake Day Camp 1195 Florence-Columbus Road
609-499-7820
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Events04/19/2026: Open House at Liberty Lake Day Camp Liberty Lake Day Camp is a transformative outdoor experience that builds character and community. Campers leave their screens at home to expand their horizons while forging strong friendships on sixty magnificent shady acres. Campers customize their days with the "Freedom of Choice" elective program, choosing Athletics, Fine/Performing Arts, STEM, Boating, Fishing and Adventure. All-inclusive tuition includes bus transportation, swim lessons, catered lunches/snacks, daily "spirit events," and 2-8 week session options. Space is limited. Schedule an in-person tour or visit LibertyLakeDayCamp.com Open House Schedule January 31, 2026 – Tailgate Party February 22 – Delish S'mores March 22 – Ga-Ga Tournament April 19 – Earth Day + Fishing Derby May 17 – 25th Anniversary Tie-Dye Event 05/17/2026: Open House at Liberty Lake Day Camp Liberty Lake Day Camp is a transformative outdoor experience that builds character and community. Campers leave their screens at home to expand their horizons while forging strong friendships on sixty magnificent shady acres. Campers customize their days with the "Freedom of Choice" elective program, choosing Athletics, Fine/Performing Arts, STEM, Boating, Fishing and Adventure. All-inclusive tuition includes bus transportation, swim lessons, catered lunches/snacks, daily "spirit events," and 2-8 week session options. Space is limited. Schedule an in-person tour or visit LibertyLakeDayCamp.com Open House Schedule January 31, 2026 – Tailgate Party February 22 – Delish S'mores March 22 – Ga-Ga Tournament April 19 – Earth Day + Fishing Derby May 17 – 25th Anniversary Tie-Dye Event News01/22/2026: How Liberty Lake Day Camp Builds Leadership, Confidence & Character Through Joyful Summer Experiences
How Liberty Lake Day Camp Builds Leadership, Confidence & Character Through Joyful Summer Experiences Families in the Princeton area often look for summer programs that offer more than entertainment. Parents want a place where children can explore new interests, build meaningful friendships, develop confidence, and practice real-world skills in a supportive community. For 25 years, Liberty Lake Day Camp has been fulfilling that vision - blending traditional camp fun with a thoughtful, values-driven approach to youth development. Set on 60 shady acres just a short drive from Princeton, Liberty Lake Day Camp offers a program intentionally designed to help children grow socially, emotionally, and intellectually. Whether your child is outgoing, reserved, adventurous, or still discovering who they are, Liberty Lake Day Camp provides an environment where each camper can thrive. A Mission Anchored in Character Education At Liberty Lake Day Camp, the fun of camp is grounded in a clearly defined educational philosophy. The camp’s signature 5-Star Points - Independence, Integrity, Inspiration, Teamwork, and Friendship - shape how counselors interact with campers, how groups function, and how traditions unfold. This isn’t an add-on to the program; it’s the heartbeat of the entire community. Throughout the summer, campers experience countless opportunities for:
Parents interested in how these principles translate into day-to-day experiences can explore the Parent Handbook Summary (https://libertylakedaycamp.com/parent-handbook-summary/ ), which outlines expectations, communication practices, and the camp’s developmental philosophy. Leadership Growth Through Everyday Moments Leadership at Liberty Lake Day Camp isn’t derived from formal titles - it comes from meaningful, everyday experiences that help children stretch their comfort zones in safe, supportive ways. Campers develop leadership skills from:
These small but powerful experiences build skills that translate directly back into school, sports, and family life. If parents want to meet the adults guiding this process, the Liberty Lake Day Camp Staff & Leadership page (https://libertylakedaycamp.com/liberty-lake-staff/) highlights the experienced educators, specialists, and directors who shape the camp culture.
Inclusion as an Everyday Practice Princeton-area families value environments that support diverse learning styles, personalities, and backgrounds. Liberty Lake Day Camp takes inclusion seriously by training staff to foster welcoming, supportive dynamics for all campers. Counselors are trained in:
The goal is simple: to ensure every camper feels seen, heard, and valued. At Liberty Lake Day Camp, inclusion isn’t a program - it’s a daily commitment. Activities That Spark Discovery and Confidence Liberty Lake Day Camp offers an impressive range of activities, each designed to help children try new things, develop their skills, and gain confidence at their own pace. Activities includes:
This variety helps campers discover passions they may never find in a classroom. Previewing upcoming camp traditions and celebrations is easy through the Spirit Days & Events page), which showcases camp-wide moments that build excitement and unity. The Role of the Waterfront in Camper Growth A defining feature of Liberty Lake Day Camp is its five-acre lake and comprehensive aquatic program. Campers enjoy daily waterfront activities such as kayaking, paddleboarding, swimming, boating, and water-play rotations. These experiences help children develop confidence, strength, and comfort around water - essential skills for families who value enrichment as much as recreation. Parents looking for specific safety and supervision procedures can review the Pool & Waterfront Overview, which explains aquatic staff training certifications and group monitoring requirements. Safety as the Foundation for Learning and Confidence Leadership and confidence grow best in environments where children feel safe. Liberty Lake Day Camp takes this to heart with a detailed and transparent approach to safety. Families can explore the camp’s full safety framework - including training standards, emergency protocols, medical procedures, kitchen safety, and campus supervision practices - in the Dedication to Safety page (https://libertylakedaycamp.com/our-dedication-to-safety-at-liberty-lake-day-camp/). This level of transparency reflects the camp’s philosophy: safety is not a procedure; it is a culture. A Community Recognized Throughout the Region Princeton-area families often look for third-party validation when choosing camps. Liberty Lake Day Camp has been featured in numerous regional publications, recognition lists, and community articles over its 25-year history. Parents can explore this external feedback in the Featured Mentions collection. This independent coverage reinforces the camp’s reputation as a trusted, high-quality summer experience. Why Liberty Lake Day Camp Is a Powerful Choice for Princeton Families Liberty Lake Day Camp offers everything parents want in a summer enrichment program: Through its values-driven curriculum, deeply engaged staff, and expansive outdoor setting, Liberty Lake Day Camp helps children grow into more confident, independent, expressive versions of themselves. For families researching summer plans, the Top Questions & Helpful Guides hub (https://libertylakedaycamp.com/liberty-lake-day-camp-top-questions-guides/ ) answers everything from schedules to transportation to communication practices. A summer at Liberty Lake Day Camp is more than a season of fun - it is a transformational experience that shapes character, strengthens resilience, and builds memories that last for life.
01/05/2026: Open Houses at Liberty Lake Day Camp Liberty Lake Day Camp is a transformative outdoor experience that builds character and community. Campers leave their screens at home to expand their horizons while forging strong friendships on sixty magnificent shady acres. Campers customize their days with the "Freedom of Choice" elective program, choosing Athletics, Fine/Performing Arts, STEM, Boating, Fishing and Adventure. All-inclusive tuition includes bus transportation, swim lessons, catered lunches/snacks, daily "spirit events," and 2-8 week session options. Space is limited. Schedule an in-person tour or visit LibertyLakeDayCamp.com
January 31, 2026 – Tailgate Party February 22 – Delish S'mores March 22 – Ga-Ga Tournament April 19 – Earth Day + Fishing Derby May 17 – 25th Anniversary Tie-Dye Event 04/21/2025: How to Choose a Summer Camp
When your kids have graduated the local Day Care, Rec. Program, or "Camp Mom", and you're looking for the next logical step in giving a wonderful growth experience away from video games, smart phones, the internet, and TV – Summer Camp is the answer! In the last summer, over 20 million children attended Day Camps, Resident Camps, and specialty programs across the country- Here's some helpful pointers to find the best fit for your child:
ACA ACCREDITED – While county and state health departments have guidelines for Camps, American Camp Association standards are much stricter, and ensure the high quality supervision and facility that most parents want for their children. You can find the best camps in the country directly through the ACA website at find.acacamps.org.
DAY CAMP vs. RESIDENT – Do your children wish to sleep in their own beds, or away in the mountains in a cabin of new friends? While Resident Camp is the "real-deal," Day Camp is the logical first step, and many Day Camp programs are very adept at keeping their older campers through progressive programming.
LENGTH OF STAY, HOURS OF THE DAY – How many weeks? What time does it start? When can you drop your kids off? When can you pick them up? All important questions for busy families who should be able to get what they need in regards to their specific childcare needs and session length flexibility.
COST – There are Camps available for every budget, but as we all know – you often get what you pay for. Many Private Camps offer extensive programs with mature, experienced staff, and lots of amenities – but subsequently come with a heftier price tag. Non-Profit camps can offer less "spectacular" programming, younger staff, and less amenities, but can be an affordable alternative. Find out what discounts are offered, the refund policy, and what ALL the costs are.
STAFF – Who is directly interacting with your child? If it's primarily middle-school and high school students, that is something to be concerned about. The best Camps have teachers and college students running their programs with high school students simply assisting. ***And very Important: Meet the director and speak with him/her in person, for it is their personality and philosophy that trickles down to the rest of the Camp staff. You are entrusting these people to take care of your children, and you need to be comfortable with them doing so.
PROGRAM & FACILITIES – Go for a visit to see if the facility gives you a good feeling. Is there daily swim instruction? Is there a pool or a lake? Athletic fields? How extensive is the Fine Arts program – Is it popsicle sticks or serious projects? Performing Arts? You need to decide what's important to YOUR child. Is it computer coding, climbing towers, water trampolines – or a diverse mix? And who chooses the activities- the kids, or the camp?
AMENITIES – These items are "icing on the cake", but are very important to most working parents: Transportation – what are the parameters? Are lunches and snacks included? There are even Camps with towel service and bathing suit laundering! What kind of customer service do they offer? These days, communication is king- So find out how they stay in touch with their camp families.
REFERENCES – "Word of mouth" is by far the greatest factor in choosing a Camp for most people. So speak to your friends who attend the Camps you are considering, or ask the Camp if you can contact families from your area with like-aged children. In most cases, these parents will give you a better idea of the Camp than the website or marketing materials will.
Camp is a big financial decision for your family, and you should feel confident that you are making the right choice. So take your time, do your homework, and ASK LOTS OF QUESTIONS!
ABOUT LIBERTY LAKE DAY CAMP and the AMERICAN CAMP ASSOCIATION Liberty Lake Day Camp is an American Camp Association Accredited Camp that provides an outdoor, tech-free experience, serving families in five New Jersey counties as well as Center City Philadelphia, and Lower Bucks County. The American Camp Association is the overriding body of the best summer camps in the USA, accrediting over 2,400 camps that meet up to 300 standards for health, safety, and program quality. For more information, go to acacamps.org
* All photos, courtesy of Liberty Lake Day Camp, with permissions granted by all parents and staff.
Andy Pritikin is the owner/director of Liberty Lake Day Camp in Bordentown, NJ, as well as the co-owner of Everwood Day Camp in Sharon, MA, and Camp Southwoods in Paradox, NY. He's the Past President of the American Camp Association NY/NJ, and the host of the "Day Camp Podcast"
04/07/2025: Summer Camp: The Antidote to Screen-Based Society
At a local restaurant last week with my family, we were seated next to a family who had just given their order to the waiter. They then immediately took out their phones and proceeded to stare, scroll, and play on them for the entire time they were waiting for their food... and then continued while they were EATING! Crazy, but not surprising these days, and it made me think of Jonathan Haidt's 2024 book, "The Anxious Generation: The Great Rewiring of Childhood." According to research cited by Haidt, the average teen spends five hours per day on social media, mostly on TikTok and YouTube. If you add messaging, video games, school, TV- it's 8-10 hours per day on screens, leaving little room for much else. We are all being constantly interrupted and distracted by an average of 257 notifications per day- kids during school or doing homework, and adults during work and with their families. This "attention fragmentation" reduces our capacity to stay on task, get things done, and pay attention to what's around us. "Phone-based childhood" took off with the introduction of the iPhone in 2009, with most young teens having a smartphone in their pocket by 2015. Children's lives quickly went from the real world to the digital world, connected to the internet while disconnected from one another. Kids went from watching TV together as a family or group of friends, to going over to each other's houses and watching different videos on their separate phones. Even video games now force kids to play in separate homes, on separate consoles, alone. Haidt cites this kind of social deprivation as a major factor for anxiety with young people. Kids need to spend time with other kids to develop their social skills. Once kids get a phone, data shows that their actual time with friends, plunges. "Online time with friends" is no substitute. Screen-free Summer Camp is the perfect antidote to this social development epidemic. Haidt offers four common sense solutions to help children navigate modern society: 1. No Phones in the Schools- It's happening already! In the UK, Canada, 18 US states, and brave school districts willing to go against the will of needy parents (Kids actually love it!) Banning phones in schools is a return to sanity, with test scores this year improving by 6% in schools with banned phones. We've never allowed phones at my Summer Camps, and the kids consistently THANK US for it.
2. No Smart Phones until High School- Give'em a flip phone! 10- and 11-year-olds only have smart phones because "everybody else has them," a true tragedy of the commons. Hold back giving your kid a phone risks them being socially isolated and miserable- or, do what everyone else does, and risk making your child stressed, and depressed, with unnecessary social pressures and unfiltered nonsense. It's a no-win situation for parents... until Summer Camp season rolls around!!
3. No Social Media Until Age 16- it's just not suitable for minors, and we all know it. TikTok has been socializing our teens the past few years, with an addiction similar to gambling, resulting in significant mental health issues. If any other consumer product had this kind of negative effect, we'd do something about it. But Americans overprotect our kids from the "real world," while under-protecting them from the virtual world of algorhithmic and human internet predators. Bring on Summer Camp screen detox!
4. More Unstructured, Unsupervised Play- Humans enjoyed a play-based childhood for millions of years, as mammals play is key for all mammals in brain development, developing skills, and risk taking. Young people NEED play, thrills, and excitement, and boys need physical play. This was the norm prior to the 1990s. We played outside, got into trouble, and learned how to stay out of trouble. Then, parents and schools became focused on prepping for career success, but not for life. Teachers teach for the test, while parents navigate their kids' lives to get them into the right college, the right job, and the right salary. Society decided that we needed more math and less recess, while kids just need to go out and play. While Summer Camp is supervised, it's a place where kids learn how to develop and manage social relationships. High quality Summer Camps cultivate a strong sense of community and purpose, encouraging their campers and staff to empathize and help one another, which brings residual joy, and a sense of optimism. Summer Camp feels so magical to kids because it fosters a unique sense of community that's unlike anything else in their lives. A tight community looking out for one another, giving comfort, knowing that they can count on each other, while developing the skills of making and keeping friends. At Summer Camp, kids develop strong relationships with their peers and role-model counselors, creating a foundation that forges resiliency in the face of stressors like the heat, liquid sunshine, frustrations, disappointments, compromises, and more. They learn that it's easier to handle challenging situations when part of a supportive community. Camp doesn't eliminate hardships; it cultivates relationships that will be there to support us through tough situations. When speaking with Jonathan Haidt recently, I told him all about Liberty Lake, with our outdoor, screen-free, supportive community. He's a big believer in Summer Camp, and he wanted me to convey to our camp parents that perhaps the biggest benefit of the camp experience is the aspect of risk-taking, forcing kids out of their comfort zones, and pushing them beyond their perceived limits. It's a skill that children can't learn while sitting home in bubble-wrap or being shuttled to and from adult led obligations. The learned skill of taking safe risks as a young person will help them find the courage in life to try new things, take chances on a great idea, ask someone out on a date, put down their phone and get off the couch to go out and experience the rites of passage in life that can only be achieved through real, human relationships.
Andy Pritikin is the owner/director of Liberty Lake Day Camp in Bordentown, NJ, as well as the co-owner of Everwood Day Camp in Sharon, MA, and Camp Southwoods in Paradox, NY. He's the Past President of the American Camp Association NY/NJ, and the host of the "Day Camp Podcast" 01/18/2023: This Winter, Summer Camp is Hotter than Ever! We're all experiencing the effects of these difficult, post-pandemic times. Especially young people. They are navigating post-lockdown life with the intense pressures of screen-based friendships, self-esteem in the volatile hands of social media, academic demands, as well as the societal effects of climate change, gun violence, economic inflation, and political nastiness.
But alas, many have found a great way to unplug, decompress and see life from a fresh vantage point- At Summer Camp! This winter has seen unprecedented numbers of campers enrolling in Summer Camp programs, by parents recognizing the need to pry their kids off their screens and regain their social skills. Many high school and college students have found a similar reprieve from the weight of worldly cares by WORKING at Summer Camp as well. With fresh air, sunshine, laughter, comradery, friendships, responsibility, and a whole lot of FUN- it's the ultimate summer job, and a great option to let loose, hone their lost social skills, and develop the work ethic and professionalism that employers are seeking.
In my new favorite book "The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting up a Generation for Failure," authors/researchers Greg Lukanoff and Jonathan Haidt bring to light the unintended consequences of how raising children has evolved in the past decade.
· Fragility: What doesn't kill you makes you... weaker? Wasn't it "What doesn't kill you makes you STRONGER?" Young people have been taught and encouraged of late to be risk-averse. Attending or working at Summer Camp can be super-fun AND super-challenging. They meet new people, develop and nurture friendships, learn to compromise, try new things, and at most camps- persevere through the heat and "liquid sunshine." Longitudinal research spearheaded by the American Camp Association is showing unequivocally that young people attending or working at Camp come out stronger, and more resilient!
· Emotional Reasoning: Always trust your feelings? We've all experienced negative, and even overwhelming emotions at times. To be emotionally healthy though, we need to learn to manage these feelings and not let them rule our lives and logic. At Summer Camp, any given day can be an emotional rollercoaster. There will be winning and losing, disagreements with friends, fear of failure, and disappointments like NOT getting your favorite blue ice pop! It's REAL LIFE, in a structured, well-supervised setting where we turn stressors into growth opportunities, preparing young people for the inevitable challenges that lie ahead of them.
· Us vs. Them: That life is a battle between good and evil people. Cancel culture has become normalized by what has transpired on the news, in colleges, and in the workplace, causing negativity and polarization. Meanwhile, there are huge commonalities of shared beliefs between all of us. While accepting differences in others can be difficult, good Summer Camps create a training ground to practice diversity, equity, and inclusion. Whether it's the annoying kid on the bus, the kid that looks different, the kid with physical or emotional challenges, or even the quirky counselor, Camp creates an environment where young people learn to adapt and build an understanding and appreciation for the uniqueness of others.
It's been a rough past few years, but a "covid silver lining" is the that families are now recognizing the significant effects on their children of increased screen time/social media, isolation, anxiety, depression, prescription drugs, and over the top parental "safetyism" which has led to declining free play. Parents are actively seeking solutions, and they have found one in Summer Camp.
That's the good news. The bad news is that Camps are filling up quicker than ever, so do your research and reserve your spots now! The word is out, that Summer Camp is way more than kickball, making bracelets, and cooling off in the pool. It's the ultimate learning environment for young people, including young staff, to develop and practice the social skills essential for success in the 21st century. Nothing compares to the Camp Experience!
Andy Pritikin is the owner/director or Liberty Lake Day Camp, and a partner at Everwood Day Camp and Camp Southwoods. He's the Past President of the American Camp Association, NY/NJ, and the host of the Day Camp Podcast.
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