All kids should have creative, outdoor fun in the summer. This camp tries to make that happen for everyone

But then a friend recommended subsidies through the Harbourfront Centre Camps, funded by the Star’s Fresh Air Fund initiative. Suddenly her son, whom the family asked to remain anonymous due to his age, could spend his summers dancing, writing plays and trying improv comedy instead of being entertained by screens. 

Harbourfront’s 10-acre non-profit campus on the city’s waterfront gets 400 participants each summer at its flagship summer camps, which are aimed at pushing kids back into a world of outdoor fun and creativity, regardless of economic obstacles.

The camp goals are to let kids create their own cultural works and develop their creative voice through more than 20 arts-based programs and to spark a love of the water through kayaking, canoeing and sailing programs. 

“Neurologically, developmentally, for these very formative years, it’s important for him to be able to create, rather than just consume,” Angeli said. 

Angeli was never able to go to camp as a child but wanted to be able to give the experience to her own child. At theatre camp, he and the other kids learned how to choose their own stories to tell, like the detective tale picked last summer, and to arrange every step of the production, like crafting costumes. Her son also got to create his own characters at a camp sponsored by The Second City. 

Ross Fenlon, one of the centre’s program leads, says it’s about giving kids time to find their inner voice.

“I see these campers come in that have been in the school system the whole year and have never experienced a space which is so open and encouraging for them to express who they are creatively and artistically,” Fenlon said. 

Fenlon has worked with the camps for five years but began as a camper himself. He started as a teen working one-on-one with campers with disabilities before transitioning to running camps and now helping behind the scenes with administrative work. 

Fenlon said he was a quiet kid who didn’t have an easy outlet for his inner thoughts and remembers the first time a counsellor sat him down to talk about his creative interests: “It’s something that I never had before.”

Many of the kids can only take part in camp because of the subsidies offered, as fees can often be unaffordable, but to Fenlon, creativity should belong to everyone. 

“A lot of people just aren’t able to have that platform … we want campers from all walks of life, from different life circumstances, being able to come together and bond over being creative and embracing culture, embracing art.”

He’s chosen to stick around for so long because he sees “that same light in the kids’ eyes that I did when I was a camper, that I still do when I’m staff.”

It’s all about the face-to-face interaction between campers, said Fenlon, something that can’t be replicated through technology.

Angeli said she thinks about the value in those interactions whenever she sees the clear blue skies meet the water near the campus. This is the third straight summer her son will be able to attend camp, something that wouldn’t be possible without the subsidy support she receives thanks to the Fresh Air Fund.

“This charity that supports and allows families like me to be able to afford these experiences for our kids, I’m very grateful for.”

The Angelis are far from the only family that will enjoy some camp time this summer. The Fresh Air Fund helps families across Ontario find programs that support their kids’ individual needs. As screens continue to dominate more and more time, outdoor spaces that allow kids to truly be themselves are more vital than ever. 

You can donate to the Fresh Air Fund below to help fill another camper’s summer with fresh air and help ensure the next generation can build these formative memories.