To Our Campers:
We are so very sorry to tell you that Camp Huron will not be able to run our sleep-over camp for another summer.
We were very hopeful we could return and keep everyone safe. We thought of all the ways we could do this that you already know about – staying six feet apart, wearing masks when we can’t, and washing our hands. We even thought that maybe a cabin group could be a bubble.
That would mean that you would only have your small cabin group to play with. All those awesome, wonderful times when the whole camp runs through the main compound, swims at the beach, gathers together for worship, campfire, meals, and camp entertainment would have to change so much or not happen at all. Visiting each other during rest hour would no longer be allowed. If one or two of us got sick we might have to send everyone home early.
As hard as we thought about all of this and learned from the scientists and experts and said over and over, “what if we tried this?”, we could not come up with a way to keep you and the staff safe.
For those who were looking forward to the LIT program, the hike cannot happen for the first years nor can shadowing and placement for second years. It is scary to think about next year without this program – believe it or not campers help teach our future staff all about what it means to care for you, so we are working on what we can do to get them ready for next summer.
We know this is so very hard to hear, especially now that all over social media, the news and the papers, everyone is talking about summer camps being open. But in all this excitement not many are remembering that it has not been made official by the government. No one is talking about the incredible amount of work and all the extra rules that will have to be followed, or that lots of camps have already closed or like Camp Huron, will decide to close.
Last year, I said that I was certain that we would once again gather around the campfire and I regret that this will not be the case this season. However, I never ever regret being hopeful – every time I look at our campfire circle, I imagine it full of all of us, stomping feet, laughing, and singing and then hushing, sitting close and leaning in to hear a story, or soft guitar playing. I feel the warmth of the campfire and see your shining faces and the flicker of flames in your eyes.
That campfire seems very far away now. We will get to that campfire again.
We wait and wait and hope and dream for another summer at camp. Thank-you for being someone who hopes and dreams – thank you for believing in camp.
If you want to ask questions or talk to me, let me know. I can be contacted at 519-434-6893 ext 217 or contact@camphuron.ca
Your friend, Gerry