YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh permanently closes Camp Soles in Somerset County; sale in works

The YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh has permanently closed Camp T. Frank Soles in Middlecreek, Somerset County.

The 263-acre camp was a destination for kids, families and school groups for generations.

The YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh was unable to sustain the camp because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Carolyn Grady, chief development officer.

“Camp T. Frank Soles operated over the summer with pandemic restrictions but was never able to regain the level of program participation that would make it financially viable,” she said in a statement. “We made the difficult decision to end programs at Camp Soles in October and listed the building for sale.”

A tentative agreement with a buyer has been reached, but the deal has not been finalized, Grady said.

It’s one of several closures made by the Greater Pittsburgh Y because of the pandemic. In October, the organization announced the closure of its North Boroughs branch in Bellevue and its location at U.S. Steel Tower in Downtown Pittsburgh.

Camp T. Frank Soles opened in 1955, named after the McKeesport businessman who donated the land. It was maintained by the McKeesport YMCA until that organization merged with the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh in 2011.

News of its closure was especially hard to hear for students and staff at Greensburg Salem Middle School, who traveled there every May for more than 50 years.

“It’s a big deal for us, and it’s really important for us,” Principal Adam Jones said. “Our staff loves to do it, and the kids absolutely love it.”

Every year, the entire sixth-grade class was split into two groups, with each spending three days at the camp over the course of a week. The days were packed with canoeing, hiking, zip-lining, archery and more classic summer camp activities, according to Jones.

“They’re literally outside the entire day,” he said.

In 2019, the middle school celebrated 50 years of trips to Camp Soles by inviting retired staff members to the camp to swap stories of their time there. They didn’t know then it would serve as a farewell, Jones said.

The 2020 trip was canceled because of the pandemic. This year, sixth-grade students — and the seventh-graders who missed out because of last year’s cancellation — will travel to the Deer Valley YMCA Camp in Addison Township, Somerset County. They won’t be able to spend the night because of covid precautions, but they will be able to enjoy much of the camp experience, Jones said.

After that, Greensburg Salem will need to find a new home for its tradition.

“The tricky part is going to be after this year,” Jones said. “Deer Valley is booked up. People book that years and years in advance.”

However, Jones is confident the school will find a place for future generations of children to make memories.

“Camp Soles was all you had to say around Greensburg and everybody knew what you were talking about, but we’ll start a new tradition somewhere,” he said.