NEWBURYPORT — It was a bittersweet afternoon at Perkins Park last Friday when Recreation and Youth Services’ Clipper Kids, Mates and Crew summer playground program closed out its season.
“This program is truly the ideal of summer childhood,” Port Rec. Director Andrea Egmont said. “The kids are outside, playing and there’s a little bit of everything. They’ve got the playground, sports and some arts and crafts. The kids really have had a blast.”
Clipper Kids, Mates and Crew is offered each summer for children in the first through sixth grades.
Football, kickball and basketball keep the kids running and jumping while there’s also plenty of arts and crafts along with other activities/events on the menu.
Port Rec. ran nine weeks of Clipper Kids, Mates and Crew programming this year.
The playground program is staffed primarily by local high school and college-aged students.
Egmont said the last day of summer came for Clipper Kids, Mates and Crew on Friday, since her staff needs to get ready to get back to school.
“We actually ran a week later than last summer this year,” Egmont said. “School here doesn’t start until Sept. 5. Normally, that’s about a week earlier than that. So we gave the program another week.”
Fordham University junior Fiona Dunphy was a part of the playground program when she was a kid. She has been working as a counselor for the past six years.
“I’ve seen a lot of these kids since they were literally toddlers. And I’ve got to watch them grow,” she said. “That’s so fun to see.”
Watching young kids interact with their high school and college-aged counselors, Egmont said is a real treat.
“That staff is just incredible, they really make the connection,” she said. “Every Monday, I love watching kids who hadn’t been there since last summer come in. It was amazing seeing how many kids were recognized by their counselors and greeted by name. That really put a smile on their faces.”
Dunphy said she’s very happy to be that friendly face.
“That’s the highlight of my summer, for sure,” she said.
Ten-year-old Oliver Mucerall was spending his last day with 9-year-old Mason Rumore as well as 10-year-old Will Su.
Mucerall has been coming to the playground program since he was in kindergarten, while Su was finishing out his fourth summer at the park.
Mucerall said he enjoys playing kickball, while Rumore is a big fan of football and basketball.
Su’s favorite game was “everybody’s it tag.”
“We all get to chase each other around,” he said. “There’s a lot of freedom. The last time I played it, I got 84 people out.”
Port Rec. still had a few summer sessions like youth tennis running until the end of last week, according to Egmont who said this year’s registrations for all 147 programs held steady with 2023 numbers at 2,455.
“We increased the number of staff and spaces at the playground program this year,” she said. “But, even then, we had wait lists that could have almost doubled it.”
Egmont said she intends to meet with the Parks Commission soon to talk about finding more places for next summer’s Clipper Kids, Mates and Crew.
“This just continues to grow,” she said. “People love it.”