Summer can hold so much possibility for a child. It can be a time to try something new, discover an interest, build friendships, spend time outdoors and return to school with excitement. But school closures can be particularly challenging for working parents and caregivers. Families need safe and reliable care, while the costs of camps, field trips, meals, transportation and other activities can quickly add up, especially for families with more than one child at home.
We believe every family should have access to meaningful summer experiences that help children learn, explore and enjoy their time away from school. That belief shaped MFRC’s Summer Camps this year as well: creating opportunities that were accessible and affordable, encouraging more families to participate.
MFRC Summer Camps provided families with a safe, structured, welcoming and enriching place for their children to learn throughout the summer. Parents and caregivers could go to work with confidence knowing their children were supported by experienced adults who cared about their development and well-being. Camps also helped reduce the “summer slide” by giving children opportunities to continue practicing academic, social and developmental skills they built during the school year. MFRC’s Summer Camps gave children a chance to keep learning and growing in a safe and supportive environment.
Over eight weeks, we offered more than 1,200 camp spots across Scarborough and Markham for children and youth. Camp created a place where children could spend their days learning, playing, making friends and trying new things while their parents and caregivers worked or managed other responsibilities.
Children need different types of support, experiences and opportunities as they grow. For this reason, MFRC created camp experiences that match each stage of development. Tiny and Kinder Ready camps helped our youngest campers feel secure and supported, giving them the structure and encouragement to build stronger foundations.
Variety Camps were instrumental in helping school-age children explore their interests and learn new skills. For older kids, Tween Camp offered chances to take on more responsibility, practice leadership and connect with peers as they built confidence and discovered more about themselves.
Some of the most valuable learning took place outside the usual camp setting. Field trips let campers leave their community and experience educational, cultural, scientific, recreational, and natural places in person. These trips introduced children to new environments and ideas, making learning feel real and giving them the thrill of exploring places they might not have visited otherwise.
One of our 9-year old camper shared how baseball was something new that he tried during camp.
“I usually just watch baseball on TV but this time I got to actually play it. My favourite part was getting a home run.”
Experiences like this empowered children to participate, explore and discover their own capabilities.
Nutrition has always been a priority area for us. We believe that when children are nourished, they have the energy to learn, play and enjoy every experience. That’s why across all our camp sites, we made sure to offer healthy meals and snacks each day. One of our parent described how daily meals and snacks meant her child could stay energized and focused throughout the day and how that kind of support strengthened the whole family, not only her child. Including nutritious meals and snacks helped create a well-rounded camp experience, giving children the energy to enjoy their day while giving families confidence that every part of the camp day had been thoughtfully planned.
This summer, our camps followed the HIGH FIVE® Principles of healthy child development. These principles helped us create a place where children felt welcome, included and supported as they grew. We saw them in action every day: leaders-built trust with campers, kids made new friends and everyone had time to play as well as master new skills. Each child was encouraged to participate and by focusing on these principles, we gave children a holistic camp experience.
The impact of camp is often easiest to see in the moments children remember when they go home whether it’s hitting their first home run, feeling more confident, discovering independence or feeling proud after trying something new.
This was possible because of an incredible community who came together to make summer meaningful for children and their families. We want to celebrate our wonderful camp counsellors who greeted the children each morning, as well as the staff, facilitators and placement students who brought care, creativity and energy every day. We are also grateful to parents and caregivers who trusted MFRC. Our partners, donors and supporters played an important role in making camps affordable and accessible for families. Their generosity helped create meaningful pathways to learning, growth and discovery this summer.
Summer might be over, but the joy and memories of camp will always stay with them.
