Premier Doug Ford announced May 19 that overnight summer camps would be cancelled due to the risks associated with COVID-19, ending all discussion by camp operators on how they would proceed with this season.
鈥淲e had been toying with the idea prior to the government鱿鱼视频app announcement as well, so I guess we weren鈥檛 really surprised when they confirmed this is the way it was going to go,鈥� said Collin Girard, chair of the board of directors at Camp Vincent, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul-run camp located in Bothwell in southwestern Ontario.
The topic was front of mind for camp operators since mid-March when much of the nation went into lockdown to keep the coronavirus in check. It was always on the table, but when it was announced by Ford, it didn鈥檛 make things any easier.
鈥淩ecognizing that this isn鈥檛 going to be a possibility this summer was a bit depressing. It wasn鈥檛 a decision we wanted to be making, but we recognize there鱿鱼视频app a need for safety,鈥� said Girard, who has been with the camp since 2005.
Still, it鱿鱼视频app not an unexpected move. The Ontario Camps Association, the umbrella organization that oversees more than 450 day and overnight camps in Ontario, said it understands why the decision was made.
鈥淭he Government of Ontario made this decision in the best interests of Ontario鱿鱼视频app children and their families,鈥� the association said in a statement posted to its website.
More than 400,000 children take part in summer camps, day and overnight, which employ 35,000 people.
The association has worked closely with the province to share concerns and offer its support. It will continue to do so for the day camps, which remain in limbo as no announcement has been made as to whether they will operate this summer.
鈥淗osting a physical summer day camp is definitely a moving target,鈥� said Kelly MacKenzie, executive director of Silent Voice which operates camps for hearing-impaired children, in an email to The Catholic Register. 鈥淲e are planning for a digital engagement of campers with deaf counsellors and mentors. What our camp will look like 鈥� is undecided.鈥�
The Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) in Hamilton, Ont., operates two separate camps, Camp Marydale and Camp Brebeuf. Upon hearing the news these camps won鈥檛 be able to operate, administrators asked that parents 鈥渞emain patient with us as we work through the cancellation process.鈥� The CYO will also need time to review how government restrictions will affect day camps and 鈥渉ow we can put them into place to operate our programs safely,鈥� said a statement on the CYO鱿鱼视频app website.
While Girard can鈥檛 argue with the overnight camp closures, he can鈥檛 help but feel for the kids who won鈥檛 have a chance 鈥� perhaps their only chance 鈥� at this kind of experience.
鈥淚t鱿鱼视频app probably the right choice but it鱿鱼视频app just unfortunate that the population we serve is not going to have access to that programming,鈥� he said.
Many of its campers, as well as the society鱿鱼视频app Camp Marygrove and Camp Ozanam, are from underprivileged families that can鈥檛 readily access camping.
Trying to go online, like churches have done in live-streaming Masses, is not an option. There鱿鱼视频app just no way to recreate the camp experience online, he said. The social aspect is the camp鱿鱼视频app greatest calling card.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think you could do anything that would come close to mimicking that experience. The kids interacting with each other, with the staff, with nature, that鱿鱼视频app really what drives the program home,鈥� said Girard.
For those that may be too old to attend next year, it鱿鱼视频app been suggested by some parents that the program be expanded on a one-time-only basis in 2021 for them, and it鱿鱼视频app definitely a possibility, he said.
鈥淭hose sort of things are not out of the question, those are conversations we鈥檙e having,鈥� said Girard.