Ep. 05 Camp-in-a-box, Virtual Campfires, Real Connections

Peresa Jensen, Director , Community and In-Hospital Programs and Kelley Scadding, Director, Overnight Programs (Rainbow Lake) of Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium join Janneke to talk about the realities of taking camp virtual.

Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium, or Ooch and Trillium for short, is a privately funded organization that serves kids and families affected by childhood cancer in Ontario. 

As we can all imagine, a diagnosis of childhood cancer is a big, scary swerve in the road.

It changes life in an instant. For affected kids and families, it can suddenly feel like everything is about cancer.

Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium offer a different journey, where kids with cancer and their siblings can just be kids, and families connect with a community of strength and support when they need it most.

They focus on building fun, friendship and community, all injected with a healthy dose of camp spirit. 

In March, Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium, like other Ontario organizations had a big decision to make--, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person experiences would not be possible at overnight camp, in the hospital, and in communities all across Ontario…at least for a while.

Hardly missing a beat and clearly driven with a strong sense of purpose, the amazing people at Camp Ooch and Camp Trillium embraced modern technologies to transform 100% of their programs and create a virtual camp experience for their campers and their families. They’ve proven that even COVID-19 Can’t stop Camp.

This is their story.

To learn more about Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium, please visit www.ooch.org or contact Melanie Lovering, DIrector, Marketing & Communications mlovering@ooch.org.

Want to learn more about bricksTObytes and what it takes to go digital? Have a great story to share? We’d love to hear from you.

Kelly Scadding, Director, Overnight Programs, Rainbow Lake with happy camper.