By HARRY ANDERSON

For almost 70 years, kids of all ages have played hoops, baseball and soccer, went swimming in the pool and slept in old World War II barracks at Camp Casey, ever since the Army decommissioned it as a fort and Seattle Pacific University bought it in 1956 and made it a playground and retreat center.

Usually several thousand folks every year would visit Camp Casey, including entire families who would rent an old officer’s quarters house and spend several nights enjoying activities and the magnificent view of Admiralty Inlet and the Olympic mountains. In addition, many organizations held retreats for their members, who also slept in the barracks and usually ate in an old mess hall.

But in the past several years, many fewer folks came. SPU had no budget for the large deferred maintenance items, from plumbing to wiring, and over time it reduced the staff needed to run the camp.

In steps the YMCA of Snohomish County, a large nonprofit based in Everett with half a dozen traditional YMCA facilities and two early learning centers spread through Skagit and Snohomish counties. It purchased the camp and took ownership on Jan. 1, 2025.

And the YMCA has pronounced a broad vision for what Camp Casey is and will become.

“The whole framework is to serve everyone in our communities from birth to old age,” said Jennifer Willows, senior vice president and chief development officer at the YMCA of Snohomish County. “This expression of the YMCA here at Camp Casey will be here for generations to come.”

She adds that because the ownership is new, they are studying what’s needed and how they can provide it. But it’s already working magnificently.

Last summer, about 640 overnight campers were there. They came from all over, with about 20% from Whidbey Island and the rest from Snohomish and King counties and others from Spokane, Bellingham and even Oregon. “Camp Casey is known as a great place to get away and have some fun,” Willows said.

Schools are bringing classes for day trips to play sports and swim in the beautifully renovated pool. And parents will drop off their kids in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon. YMCA staff supervises and watches out for all those who come.

More and more senior citizens are coming, too, either for day trips or overnight retreats. The YMCA added a pickleball court inside the renovated camp gymnasium as well two more outside to attract seniors drawn to that sport.

“We continue to add more groups for retreats all the time. Navy cadets are coming. And we have a Golden Getaway program for senior citizens,” Willows said.

The YMCA has launched wellness classes for all ages as well as programs specifically for teenagers. It has also opened the pool to the general public, with no reservations, on several days in summertime.

Of course, all this renewed activity costs money. Campers and day trippers pay a relatively modest fee that includes all meals. That means the YMCA depends on donations from as many people as possible to fund all the programs. In addition to the more than $5 million it paid to buy the camp, it seeks to raise $2 to $4 million a year to pay staff and keep all the activities going. Information on how to make a contribution may be found at ymcacampcasey.org.

“The YMCA of Snohomish County is more than just a nonprofit that has suddenly appeared on Whidbey Island,” Willows said. “It has a history of 125 years serving a number of communities and we are happy to have this great opportunity at Camp Casey.”

Harry Anderson is a retired journalist who worked at the Los Angeles Times and now lives on Central Whidbey.