You’ve heard the old maxim: don’t judge a book by its cover.

It’s my opinion that is true for many things in life — people in particular.

I remember one day walking into a Starbucks around the corner from my grandparent’s home in Los Angeles. There was a man wearing sunglasses, a tattered baseball cap, a 5 o’clock shadow that was a few 5 o’clocks old and jeans that were worn in all the wrong places.

Wouldn’t you know, it was George Clooney.

The same could be said for many buildings I’ve seen.

Take, for example, our own Suffolk News-Herald building.

The building includes few frills and special features, but inside, we’re busy putting out a paper six days a week, two magazines and special sections for our 30,000 readers — that’s one-third of the city.

However, there are some things that not only can, but should, be judged by their cover.

What you see on the outside is often a representation of what is on the inside.

In the case of the YMCA’s regional day camp on Kenyon Road, that will be true.

The inside of the building has recently been finished. The outside is expected to be complete by next summer.

The interior has all the bells and whistles to accommodate not only children, but also other parties interested in renting the facility for a wedding or event. The floors look of wood and marble that will withstand the traffic from the children but be a beautiful foundation for adult activities.

During camps, the entire facility will be used, but the building was designed to accommodate up to three separate parties at once. Each of the three sections can be closed off from the others and each has deck access, its own entrance and a kitchen area.

Outside there will be a baseball diamond, soccer fields, basketball courts, a water park with a six-lane pool, an amphitheater, a zip line, archery range and much more.

As a child, I remember going off to camp hours away and making friends that turned into pen pals and counselors whom I formed relationships with — all of whom I’ve subsequently lost contact with.

At the regional day camp, when you see children learning life skills and lessons from their counselors and engaging in team building exercises and creating memories with their friends, those are relationships they’ll be able to build on in future years.

What you will see happening at the YMCA’s regional camp is indicative of the work being done in the lives of the children there.

The camp and organization is one to be judged by its cover.