French Communication Institute

Lee & Rebaia Corley have won my confidence and have impressed me with Camp Voyages. Some circumstances, like the weather, is beyond his control. I appreciate the camp's organization and I agree counselors should be dismissed if they are not properly supervising the children. I feel that my son is safe at camp. Trips are a great mix of education and fun. I have seen Lee handle situations quite professionally. I highly recommend Camp Voyages to anyone!

I don't know what camp you experienced but our family absolutely advocates on behalf of Camp Voyages! It lives up to its reputation of quality childcare with fun filled agendas, safety first, close monitoring of children and environments, competent staff, expert leadership and always educational opportunities. My son always came home asking me if I knew something he learned about at this camp! He was never bored and always entertained. As parent, I NEVER had to worry about their wellness or safety becasue of the visible and involved hands-on leadership of Lee and Rebaia and their high expectations of their staff. Never was my child lost, never was my child hurt, never was my child bored, threatened or uncomfortable. Always a new learning experience at so many different places. I never had to worry about anything. My children attended and participated in at least 4-5 camps before committing to Camp Voyages and we have NO REGRETS. Our kids were never bored with the same routines that most other camps offered which would include local trips to the zoo, poole, playground/park or such. NO WHERE ELSE have we participated in a camp that actually followed its itinerary so accurately and timely. I never received multiple entertaining video grams throughout the summer revealing great videos, photos and memories of the kids summer camp experiences. As parents, we actually witnessed and was able to share with our family and friends weekly albums of our children days of learning and fun. If your kids didn't enjoy the long bus rides, why did you join a camp with trips to NY, NJ, Allentown, Hershey, to name just a few of their trips. This camp is worth much more then every penny spent! Before summer ended, next years summer calendar was planned and shared with us. The work was all done- all we had to do was show up with our kids for a great time! That is absolutely what our children had time and time again-- A GREAT TIME! It is unfortunate that you did not enjoy the camp but it is imperative for the public to know that your experience is not the norm and may be related to other matters unrelated to the true experiences of the campers and parents at Camp Voyages. Our family has had excellent memories and experiences with this camp and look forward to many more in the future. The detailed daily agenda was followed and as the children traveled, we all knew the schedules layed out by the day and hour. Never did I experience or hear of a lost or hurt child. My kids never told me about nor had I ever witnessed what you described as inappropriate behavior. Your descriptions are NOT reflective nor representative of the observations I have made of this camp. Lee and Rebaia Corley are highly committed to a quality fun filled educational experience that is safe and memorable for all children. I value their high standards for competent counselors and I never had any issue or concern with their leadership or decisions. They are directly accessible, highly communicative with everyone, reliable and consistent. I was impressed with the constant ability to stay on schedule and manage such a large summer program of so many children with diverse back grounds and mannerisms. What also impressed me was the proactive verses reactive interventions for creative changes in event planning when safety of children was compromised. Simply EXCEPTIONAL communications to parents and campers as they plan for exciting fun fill substitute trips and activities at no added cost to us. We have to remember the camps events are pre-planned and more then likely pre-paid so if any trip is cancelled due to safety reasons, its probably a lost to the camp financially. We never incurred any additional cost for this rare occurence which were appropriate and totally reasonable. To reschedule any trip means cancellation of another preplanned event. How unreasonable can that parent be? It is unprofessional to negatively judge this successful camp simply based on one parents comments. Experience the camp for your self. I guarantee, you will have no regrets!

I would like to address the two previous poor reviews of Camp Voyages. I have had a child attend Camp Voyages almost since the first year and have always been pleased. My now 16 year old attended both the younger and older divisions until she was 12. My second daughter graduated to the older division this year. It was her third year. I am constantly amazed by the patience and understanding both Lee and Rabia consistently show the children in their care, the counselors and the parents alike. Not only does my daughter go on awesome trips EVERY SINGLE DAY but when there are circumstances outsides of his control, Mr. Corley immediately notifies parents via email. Personally, when I am at the office and I see an email stating the sailing trip was cancelled due to thunder and lightning I was thrilled. I certainly wouldn't want my child on a sailing craft in those conditions. During those few times when inclement weather affected a trip my daughter was happy as a clam to go to the movies. Seriously, she had a great time EVERY SINGLE DAY! The most important thing to note is that I trust the Corleys with my childrens' lives. I am not constantly worried during the long summer days because I know for a fact that Lee has his counselors in line, trained and caring for my child in as fine a way as possible. Needless to say, I have already pre-registered for Summer 2011. My daughter wouldn't miss it for the world. One more thing, having priced other camps you get more bang for the buck from Camp Voyages then anywhere. With convenieny Center City drop off and pick up it is perfectly ideal in every way.

It is appalling to read such comments about me and the camp from someone who has had several children enroll in our program over the past 4 to 5 years. Why did you return year after year? Could your comments come from the fact that I had to suspend one of your children for being disrespectful to several counselors and a teacher, the fact that you were called several times because your children were still at camp after hours or could it be because I threatened to withdraw your children several times during the summer because of missed payments and a bounced check? All parents, you included, were made aware via email why the horseback riding and sailing trips were changed and what they were replaced with. As you were informed, we tried twice to go sailing but both times the trip was cancelled NOT BY ME but by the Captain of the ship due to heavy rain and lightning. The 1st horseback-riding outing could not take place due to the high temperature of 101 degrees. The 2nd horseback-riding outing was replaced with the rescheduled sailing trip. You also phoned me and I explained what steps I was undertaking to replace the sailing trip and that we were scheduled to take another trip to the horse farm during the 9th week of camp. You summed up the trips your children took to 2: Chuck E. Cheese’s and the mall. Chuck E. Cheese’s was on the schedule for the younger campers and the older campers went to the mall to have lunch or to fill time after their scheduled trip was completed. All parents were notified by email that our scheduled trip was completed and we were heading to the mall. Evaluating Camp Voyages on 3 missed trips is not fair especially when there were 45 scheduled trips and numerous classes taken over a period of 9 week in both the younger and the older divisions of camp. Your comment about how your “children felt stressed with the amount of long bus trips they had to endure” is very interesting especially since you received the 2010 camp calendar highlighting all the trips the campers will be taking back in August 2009 and another updated one via email well before camp started. The structure of the camp has not changed since we founded it. You also stated “they did not enjoy the trips to the beach, due to Mr. Corley’s style. He made them sit on the sand for a while, he would have a meeting with the counselor's first ( this should have been done before they got there) and then after sitting in the hot sun on the hot sand, the kids could go in the water when he was done with his meeting.” I explained to you during our lengthy phone conversation that in order to insure the safety of the campers, all of the counselors are stationed in the water. While they are going to their assigned stations the campers must be supervised. Therefore, the campers had to sit in the wet sand near the lifeguard station for 5 to 10 minutes. During those 5 to 10 minutes I went over the general rules of the beach with the campers. Once my counselors were positioned, the campers were allowed to go into the water. This procedure was also explained to you during the 1st orientation you attended. You said the only time your children had fun was when they stayed at camp and played games. Spirit Week was designed, organized and ran by me. No parents took or “snatched” their children out of camp and no one has ever approached me regarding an inappropriate comment being made to their children. I did however dismiss a camper due to his behavior. Yes, I did dismiss two counselors and my wife dismissed one. We care about the safety of all the children and we will do whatever it takes to protect them. The counselors that were let go were not directly responsible for your children’s care. If you were truly unhappy why didn’t you withdraw your children and find a more suitable program? As a parent no amount of money can replace my children’s overall happiness and my peace of mind knowing that they are safe and in good hands when they are dropped off. After serving hundreds of families over the past 15 years I know that I cannot please everyone. Some people will never be pleased not matter what I do or say. Your comments are totally unfounded and defamatory. Anyone that knows us will clearly see that you are only looking to damage our personal and professional reputations.

I was extrememly dissappointed with camp this year. The director, Lee Corley, was extremely difficult and rude to the children as well as the parents. Several parents had to confront him about being inappropriate comments made to children which left them with hurt feelings and dissapointment. I did not feel like I got what I bargained for out of the camp. Starting first with the exciting trips planned that really intrigued me. Ie horseback riding and sailing. They were cancelled and never rescheduled. When Mr. Corley was asked about the rescheduling, he replied: " I could take my money elsewhere next summer If I was unhappy about the scheduling". Keeping in mind, the fact that most trips are paid for in advance, there were an awful lot of times where our kids visited the mall, the beach and of course Dorney park where a season ticket is purchased. I had asked if one of those trips could be replaced with horse backrigding and I was told " this was not a democracy" Given that his camp is one of the most expensive in the city, I believe he should be more accomodating and POLITE to children and parents. He wants the kids to have a funfilled summer, however my children felt stressed with the amount of long bus trips they had to endure, with so much tension between Mr. Corely and the counselors. They did not enjoy the trips to the beach, due to Mr. Corley's style. He made them sit on the sand for a while, he would have a meeting with the counselor's first ( this should have been done before they got there) and then after sitting in the hot sun on the hot sand, the kids could go in the water when he was done with his meeting. Again when confronted about that he reply's he doesn't have to explain his style of running the camp. Some of the trips were uneventful and a waste of money. According to Lee, Majority of the money goes to the buses. I understand what he is trying to do, but he hasn't a clue about how to deal with people or understand what the children want. The most fun my children had this summer was when they played games at the camp all week long. I would not reccomend this camp to anyone, especially if Lee Corley's attitude stays the same. These sentiments are not expressed against his wife Rebia Corley, who is very nice and accomodating.

I experienced Camp Voyages for the 2010 summer season and was very disappointed. The camp looks good on paper, but it ends there. The creative trips that were scheduled did not occur due to poor planning in my opinion. Ofcourse some of the outdoor trips could not be had due to inclement weather, however taking the kids to Chuck E. Cheese, the local malls and other uneducational venues was not what I wanted to spend my money on this summer. The director, Lee Corley, is very rude and unfriendly. A handful of the counselors were fired and some parents snatched their kids out of the camp because of certain incidents. One reason is that the director made fun of some of the kids and camp counselors openly and in front of the kids. Any good parent knows that kids (pre-teenage years) easily get their feelings hurt when they are taunted. I would never recommend Camp Voyages of the French Communication Institute in Philadelphia, Pa. to anyone - friend or foe. Our children are our gems and when parents pay a "pretty penny" for summer camp, positive results and happy memories are expected- not unhappy, sad memories. The kids I know where counting down to the last day of camp as if it were torture! This is sad when it's supposed to be a fun-filled summer.