HULL -- Yvette Kanter likes to call herself the "fun aunt" of Sunset Point Camp in Hull.

Sunset Point, operated by Catholic Charities Boston, is a weeklong summer sleepaway camp for low-income Boston-area youth between the ages of five and 16.

Ninety percent of campers live below the poverty line. Many of them come from broken homes and have to care for their younger siblings. Before they arrive at Sunset Point, most of them have never seen the ocean. Kanter loves it when their faces light up seeing the campground and the water for the first time.

"They don't have to worry about what's at home or where meals are coming from, or what they're doing next, who's watching them," she said. "They get to come here and just be a kid."

Kanter has volunteered at Sunset Point since 2010. Her job is to give the 80 kids who come to camp each week a memorable experience. They can enjoy swimming, boating, sports, arts and crafts, and academic tutoring. The camp has a basketball court, swimming pool, gym, art room, and rec room, among other amenities

"I think it's very humbling, to start with," she said. "These are amazing kids."

"I was blessed in my upbringing and in what my parents could provide, and I am Catholic, so I definitely feel the need to give back, to help others be involved," Kanter said.

The Pilot visited Sunset Point on the stormy evening of July 31. The salty smell of the sea, visible from the camp's entrance, was thick in the air. It was Treasure Night, the highlight of the week at Sunset Point.

Treasure Night begins with an ice cream social staffed by the Knights of Columbus in the camp's main house, formerly part of a veterans' hospital on Bumpkin Island in Boston Harbor. The Knights of Columbus donated the building to Catholic Charities to use as a summer camp where sickly Boston children could get fresh air and exercise. The building was uprooted from its foundations and pulled by horse over the frozen Hingham Bay to Sunset Point, where it was blessed by Cardinal William O'Connell in 1920.

"It's been a very enjoyable experience, because I like to get away from whatever's around in the world," said Sablynsky Bruno of Brockton, who has been coming to camp every year since he was five.

Sablynsky, now 15, likes to swim and play basketball at Sunset Point and said he wants to work there as a counselor when he is in college.

Fifteen-year-old Jonathan Riviere of Stoughton has camped at Sunset Point every year since he was six. Like many campers, he didn't know how to swim before he got there. The counselors taught him.

"I think the counselors are really nice," he said. "They're very respectable. They get to know you very much. If you're having a hard time, you know you can come and talk to them always about everything."

After ice cream, the campers are led to the basement, where they play games like Skee-Ball, basketball, cornhole, bowling, darts, and mini golf in exchange for tickets. These tickets can be exchanged for donated toys, candy, and prizes.

Ninety-year-old Betty Crowley, who has volunteered at Sunset Point for over 30 years, makes popcorn. Another room is filled with donated clothing, including swimsuits and shoes. Most kids come to camp with their few belongings in a grocery bag.

Camp Director Brandon Cox grew up in Boston and understands the city's "challenges," as well as those of the campers who live there.

"I understand the neighborhoods that some of these kids come from," he said. "I understand the culture that they come from, the different parenting techniques, the way city life is a little bit different."

This is his 10th summer at Sunset Point. In his day job, he works as an educator and enjoys the chance to work with kids outside of school. He sees himself in some of the campers, while others are completely different from him.

"I think that's the beauty of this place," he said. "We bring many different people together, many different backgrounds, and that's what makes it so special."

He attended football camp as a child, and likes playing flag football with the campers, but he never spent his childhood at places like Sunset Point. Now, he said, he gets to give kids the summer camp experience he never had.

"It's really great to see a kid come here on a Sunday, not really sure of themselves, not really sure if they want to be here, and then by the end of the week, it's like they've always been coming here," he said. "It's really great to see. It really warms my heart."

Sunset Point receives extensive support from the Catholic parishes of Hull, Scituate, and Hingham, and St. Cecilia Parish in Boston.

"Treasure Night probably couldn't have run as it's running if we didn't have that support of those churches and communities," Kanter said.

Camp counselor Fanety Bruno, Sablynsky's older brother, dressed up as a peanut butter sandwich to entertain the campers on Treasure Night. He remembers coming to Sunset Point for the first time as a socially-awkward nine-year-old. He made friends that he's still in touch with to this day.

"It's a fun little experience for the kids," he said of Treasure Night. "I remember when I was a camper, I loved it, so being able to give back and seeing the kids' reactions is always great."

Along with his peanut butter costume, Bruno wore one of many medals he has won in the "camp Olympics" over the years. He is still friends with his favorite counselor, Irwin.

"If I could be that for another kid, I will," he said.

He has met campers who are in foster care or recently lost a parent.

"Sometimes they just need somebody to listen," he said. "So if you could be that friend and change their experience at camp, I'll do the best I can."