Summertime is around the corner, which means our Recreation Department is in full swing gearing up for summer programs and activities for all age groups.

Registration is currently open for the St. John the Baptist Parish Summer Camp for youth ages 4 through 12. The camp is held Monday through Thursday, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., beginning June 10 and ending July 18. The registration fee is $150 for the 6-week camp.

Daily activities include arts and crafts, team sports, swimming, academic enrichment, games, field trips and more. Lunch is also provided through the St. John Parish Summer Feeding Program. Registration forms are available at the Parks & Recreation office inside the Regala Gym at 200 REGALA Park Road in Reserve.

Electronic forms can also be downloaded from the parish website at sjbparish.com. The registration deadline is May 10.

The Recreation Department is also accepting applications for summer employment for camp counselors and certified lifeguards.

Assistance with lifeguard certification will be provided, if needed. Employment applications are also available on the parish website.

Modernized Line Dancing Classes are offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays at REGALA Gym from 6 to 7 p.m. at no cost. The Parks and Recreation Department will be offering water aerobics classes this Summer.

Recently, St. John the Baptist officials cut the ribbon for the new Spray Park at the Juan Anthony Joseph Memorial Park in Edgard. This is the third spray park in St. John Parish and the very first on the West Bank.

The Thomas F. Daley Memorial Park and REGALA Park both have spray parks also.

The spray park comes off the heels of a $2.8 million park improvements project that was implemented parish wide funded through our 2014 Bond Issue.

The spray parks are no charge to residents. Hours of operation are Tuesday through Sunday from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The spray park will be closed on Mondays for maintenance.

On April 17, St. John, community stakeholders, and residents joined together to commemorate the naming of the Juan Anthony Joseph Memorial Park,  De’Vante Michael Smith Memorial Baseball Fields, Raeaneka Lanae Small Memorial Airnasium and Harold Scott Roussel Memorial Park.

The ceremony and renaming was a tribute to those devoted and loved members of the West Bank community that lost their lives. For more information on Parks and Recreation activities and park locations, visit the parish website.

Michael P. Wright is St. John the Baptist Parish Council District 5 representative. Contact him at District5@sjbparish.com or m.wright@sjbparish.com.