News

We are kicking off our 108th season today, June 25th and we can’t wait to see you there! Our first week is our Membership Fee-Free Week, and we encourage you to invite your friends and family to try out classes…swimming, sailing, tennis, surfing, golf, arts & crafts, drama, and so much more!  If you haven’t already, take a peek at our website detailing all the amazing classes we offer.  We have a lot of fun activities planned for this season…read on for more details.

 

We’ll see you at the beach!

 

 

Summer is here and we are so happy!  We officially open the KBIA office on Monday, June 18th, and KBIA classes commence on Season Opening Day, Monday, June 25th. Thanks to our hard-working faculty and staff, we are ready to welcome new faces and welcome back old friends. And if you want to bring a friend, please do!  As always, Week 1 requires NO membership fee to register for classes, so this is a great time to share the KBIA experience or even check us out for the first time. See you Opening Day!

Today, we know the Smith House as a busy part of the KBIA campus where art, woodworking, drama classes and bi-weekly movie nights are held during summers. This building holds a lot of history within its walls, built over 100 years ago in the 1900s by Willie O. Littlefield as the Dipsy Baths, a full-service private bathhouse with 100 changing rooms and showers that ‘ran into the sea.’ Providing a place for summer residents and locals to change into their swimming apparel, the building also housed a small store, barber shop, and an upstairs pool room. The Dipsy Bathhouse was one of the only places to offer food in the Kennebunk Beach area, with a takeout window where beachgoers could order lunch or snacks – now used as the KBIA snack shack.

 

The Dipsy Bathhouse stayed a steady feature on Mother’s Beach for over 50 years, when in the 1960’s a developer from Massachusetts purchased the Dipsy Baths. KBIA at this time had just acquired Strong Cottage, and realizing the importance of this adjacent piece of real estate, Gordon Smith, a strong supporter and fixture at KBIA, wrangled a deal with the developer and KBIA became the new owners. Renovations commenced on the building immediately and it was ready for classes the following summer. Twenty years later in 1981, the Dipsy Baths were renamed the Smith House in salute to Gordon Smith’s efforts.

 

There have been many variations of the Dipsy Baths signs over the last century, with one pair of green and white signs on display inside the Strong Cottage office. In homage to our past, we have now placed the signs back onto the side of Smith House.   

 

We hope you come by to say hello this summer season, and take a moment to soak in a little history.

 

 

Join us in making summer the best time of year for the kids at KBIA!

Hired by Executive Director Martin Lodish, Junior and Senior Counselors are paid employees of KBIA, so they must be at least 15 years or older (or be turning 15 on a summer birthday and have completed ninth grade). Counselors help support our programs, keep our children safe and carry out the mission of KBIA. We make every effort to match positions with counselors’ interests, where possible, and give hiring preference to former CITs. Deadline for first consideration is March 15.

Managed by our Counselor In Training Coordinator, our CIT program gives 13- and 14-year-olds the opportunity to work together, develop leadership skills and grow into role models for our younger campers (children who turn 13 over the summer and have completed the 7th grade are eligible to be CITs). CITs must enroll in at least two weeks of consecutive classes to be considered. Interested teens should submit their paperwork as soon as possible.

 

2018!! It is hard to believe that KBIA is preparing to open in less than five months! Five months until we are able to enjoy that wonderful spot – KBIA. I think of that “spot” often. I will be ending my 15th year on the Board of Directors in August of this summer. Sadly, but understandably, our bylaws require that I step down. Upon some reflection, I have realized that KBIA is not just a location or a group of buildings. Although, a new pool, a new playground and significantly improved facilities do contribute to the KBIA experience, I believe KBIA is an attitude. It is a way of life. When I pass Sea Fields Condos and the backside of Webhannet Golf Club and I round the turn to pass KBIA, I smile and anxiously look to my right to see who may be at KBIA that day. I hope I see my granddaughter Sammie coming out of the pool or from under the tent. My thoughts go back to 1994 when my wife Jayne and I built our home on Beach Avenue. Our daughters Katie and Kelley were 9 and 7 years old. KBIA was described in magical, transformational terms. I cannot imagine what our 24 years in Kennebunk would look like without KBIA. It was the center of our children’s social world and soon became the center of Jayne’s and my social world. We made as many friends as our children. Friendships that still hold strong today.

 

I know I am making this personal. We all have these wonderful stories. KBIA creates that personal bond with each and every one of us. It is the fact that our relationships are so personal that makes the KBIA bond so strong. As I mentioned, KBIA is an attitude, a way of life, and that rings true. The community spirit, the values that we encourage and support in our mission is all built around the positive development of each and every child. Even the activities created for adult members, parents and grandparents are done so with the focus on strengthening the community spirit for the benefit of the children. As Hartley Lord, a long-time supporter of KBIA, famously said when asking for support of KBIA, “It is for the little children”. Of course, we also need to focus on the facilities, the equipment and the programming. Without our terrific staff and team members, we will not thrive. KBIA has been and is blessed with wonderful benefactors and competent volunteers. We are most fortunate.

 

We have done a lot to improve KBIA but it is the culture, the people, and our values that endure time and again. When, a camper’s family came upon difficult times and money was not available for KBIA, we were able to assist with scholarship money so that the child could continue their summer experience. When, money was needed for a disabled motor for one of our boats, donations were sought and raised to pay for the replacement. When, a physically challenged camper needed more personal attention, our staff answered the need quickly and completely for the entire summer. These are the things I have been thinking about and why I am so proud of KBIA. Serving KBIA for 15 years has been an honor.

 

Yes, it is for the children. So, I encourage current Board members, future Board members and the KBIA community at large, please, keep building upon the spirit of KBIA. Please, participate with KBIA. Whether you volunteer your time, your abilities or your financial support – your participation is needed. At a time when some of your interests get crowded out, please, continue to be a part of KBIA. Preserve this special “spot” in the hearts and minds of the children for generations to come.  

 

With this in mind, I invite you to join KBIA as a member.  Our 2018 membership form can be found on our website here.  Membership fees support KBIA in the year they are given and remain crucial to the financial health and stability of our nonprofit organization. Please also consider a donation to your choice of our scholarship fund, facilities fund, and/or our general fund in addition to your membership. Please visit the “How to Donate” section of our website for more details on each fund. Thank you.

 

Respectfully,

David Sweetser

President of the KBIA Board of Directors          

‘Tis the season for gratitude, for giving, for good cheer! Every day at KBIA we are grateful for the contributions of our members, volunteers, and donors…YOU are what keeps us going, and the children are the direct beneficiaries.  On this day – November 28th – we have been called to action…#GivingTuesday is a day we are asked to give in whatever capacity we are able, to a cause, an organization, to a greater good.  We hope you consider KBIA on this day.

What better spot to be giving thanks than overlooking the KBIA cove…we are so thankful for our dedicated staff, our insightful Board of Directors, our amazingly generous members and donors, and our beautiful campus by the sea.  We are most thankful for the smiles we see everyday on the faces of the children who attend classes with us in the summer – there is truely nothing better.