Shift to virtual summer camps for kids and adults with disabilities

Easter Seals is announcing a virtual summer camp option after earlier deciding to cancel their Winfield Summer Camp in Lake Country for children and adults with disabilities due to Covid-19 restrictions.

The organization has now launched Camp@Home.

“The mandated closure of facilities and social distancing, along with our inability to start staff training, a sudden decline in funding and the need to keep everyone healthy and safe, are just some of the reasons we had to take early action to redesign our overnight summer camps,” said Lisa Beck, President and CEO of Easter Seals BC/Yukon. “It was so disappointing to have to cancel our traditional camps for this year, but it was the right decision as we keep the health and safety of our campers, who are some of the most vulnerable to COVID-19, a priority.”

Campers will now have the option to continue their camp traditions virtually at home. Easter Seals’ new Camp@Home Program will give campers the same sense of community they have at overnight camp.

Virtual camp will take place throughout July with eight weekly sessions available to various groups from ages 6 to 49 years. With a set schedule, campers will log in alongside their peers and a trained counsellor for engaging programming and social connection each day, that include many of the traditions of camp, such as campfire sing-a-longs and their famous Talent Show and Kangaroo Kourt.

A week before camp starts, campers will also receive a Camper Kit in the mail filled with all the supplies they’ll need to do their weekly activities. Each week’s activities will follow a different theme and will include various materials for arts and crafts projects, t-shirt colouring, games and activities, all from sponsors like Indigo, Cabela’s and BC Egg.

“We are excited to bring our 50 years of Easter Seals Summer Camp to the online learning world,” added Beck. “For our campers, it’s their favourite week of the year and we wanted to make sure they still have an Easter Seals camp experience even if it’s different than we all had hoped for. Though we wish we could see all our amazing campers in person, we hope virtual camp will be the next best thing.”

Camp registration is $75 per week, with the remainder of the cost subsidized by donors and sponsors. Register for camp at www.eastersealsbcy.ca/virtual-summer-ca