SHEBANDOWAN – According to official Camp Quality lore, Vera Entwistle didn’t know what to name the support camp she was starting in 1982 for kids with cancer in Australia until a physician offered some philosophical perspective.
“No one can do anything about the quantity of life,” the doctor said, “but we all can do something about the quality.”
Lily, 10, has enjoyed her quality time this week at the annual Camp Quality for Northwestern Ontario, being held for a third year at the Wilderness Discovery Centre west of Thunder Bay.
The fun has included crafts, planting flowers, fishing, swimming and a Disney trivia quiz, she said Tuesday.
“There’s nice fishing places and it’s good to meet new friends,” Lily said just minutes before a talent show involving all 17 Camp Quality children and many volunteers.
It’s the third time at Camp Quality for 13-year-old Nathan, who agrees there’s much fun to be had at the lakeside retreat.
“There’s lots of new people here and you meet new friends,” he said.
Being able to hang out with friends, make new friends and enjoy outdoor recreation is “pretty awesome,” he said.
The first Camp Quality in Canada was established in 1988 at a location northwest of Toronto. Two other camps in Ontario and one in Alberta followed in the next 12 years before the Northwestern Ontario program started in 2002.
Organizers pivoted to a “camp-in-a-box” experience for two years while the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted everything and then revived the full in-person program in 2022, camp director Sam Stovel said Tuesday.
“We’re extremely excited that Northwestern Ontario is able to provide this camping experience,” she said.
“So far, it’s been a really great week.”
Stovel added that the Camp Quality organization delivers inclusive programming year-round and happily accepts donations at its website, campquality.org.
Lily took part in Tuesday’s mirthful talent show as part of a magic act; Nathan and his Moose Manor teammates entertained with a poem cycle.
The final couplet, read aloud by Nathan, summed up the Camp Quality experience:
“From campfires at night to the games in the sun / At Camp Quality, we’re all having so much fun.”
