Kitchi has been in our family for a long time. I went as a child, as did my wife’s brother and his wife (they actually met there, and both of their sons go now). Now both of our children go, and love it. My sister also went when we were kids, and all 3 of her sons have gone many times, and worked there as well. We all have very fond memories of our time there, and often think about how it was such a positive influence on us, in terms of learning to become independent and to get along with a variety of people.

My son says that going to camp has shown him that he doesn’t need his parents for everything, that he can learn to do things for himself and become independent in life. He likes that you can make friends there, even though you are only together for two weeks, and sometimes you can keep in touch with them after camp ends.

Kitchi is so special to my son because he gets to spend lots of time doing fun things like kayaking, canoeing, collaborative sports like lumbermen and voyagers, and just hanging out with special friends.

One of my son’s favourite things about camp is that people you don’t even know will come up to you and say “hey, do you want to come and play gagaball, or tetherball?”, and you can just go and play with them and make new friends.

Our kids look forward to camp all year long. When it is over, they are tired, dirty, relaxed, and as content as can be – except they’re not happy that it’s over. Every year, it’s the same – “Do we have to wait a whole year to go back?”, and “Can we stay longer next time?”

We certainly do appreciate the financial assistance that your subsidy program provides.