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Diocese of Scranton Closes Camp St. Andrew After 75 Years

LEMON TOWNSHIP — A well-known summer camp that has been in Wyoming County for 75 years is now closed. Camp St. Andrew was once a very popular summer camp....
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LEMON TOWNSHIP -- A well-known summer camp that has been in Wyoming County for 75 years is now closed.

Camp St. Andrew was once a very popular summer camp. The Diocese of Scranton owns the 387-acre camp near Tunkhannock.

Thousands of kids throughout northeastern and central Pennsylvania attended the camp, but the diocese said it has been struggling with enrollment the past few years.

It's the place where many summer memories were made, but now Camp St. Andrew is becoming a memory itself.

The Diocese of Scranton announced Tuesday that when the camp took down the entrance sign and locked its gates this summer, it closed for good.

"When I heard the news it was very sad. I actually had a sad feeling because like I said, it's so used by the local area," said David Rossi of Tunkhannock.

Rossi grew up down the street from Camp St. Andrew. He remembers how popular the camp was not only to kids in Wyoming County, but also to tens of thousands of kids from all over northeastern and central Pennsylvania.

Home video from as far back as 1960 captured all the memories made here over the last 75 years. For some it's been the place they learned how to swim in Oxbow Lake. Others said it's the place they picked up a new hobby. For the newer generation, with no cell phone reception, it's where everyone built bonds the old fashion way.

"It's like a really sweet memory from your childhood."

In its heyday, this camp saw well over a thousand campers each day, but in recent years that number has dwindled down to a few hundred. The Diocese of Scranton says the declining interest in summer camp programs is the main reason why it decided to close the camp.

"It's a shame because it's a beautiful place. It's a beautiful place. Even the kitchen is very rustic, but everything in it was doable and operable and fed as many as 500 to 600 kids a day," said Rita Shupp of Tunkhannock.

Shupp worked at Camp St. Andrew as a cook for the last 20 years. Her son also spent his summer here as a camper and she was hoping her granddaughter would spend next year there.

"I almost started crying," Martie Shupp said. "I just hope they don't destroy it."

The Diocese of Scranton has not decided what will become of the property yet. Future plans for the property are expected to be made in the next few months.

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