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Kwasind and COVID-19 (see FAQs below)
Last Updated: Dec 7, 2020
Kwasind is an amazing place that provides young people with hope, opportunities, leadership and fun. One of the reasons Camp thrives is because we prioritize the safety and health of all campers, staff and guests. As we look to Summer 2021 we are moving ahead with plans to be able to operate our Overnight Camp experience, with like a few modifications to ensure safety in light of COVID-19 and to meet public health and government regulations. So Yes, we are aiming to run summer camp in 2021.
It is important to know that we are following all health and safety measures put forward by our government and public health authorities and will continue to follow new requirements as they unfold. Our staff are currently working remotely in preparation for a safe, healthy, memorable, and fun summer in a few months. Camp Kwasind property at this time is official closed (currently a construction site for the Kwasind Centre) so there is no public access to the property. We have shifted any in-person meetings and our planned staff interviews to a virtual format. If you need to reach any of us, email is best, but we also will be responding to voice messages.
While we are planning and hiring in anticipation of a great 2021 Summer – we also recognize that we may need to adapt or change our plans in light of COVID-19. Going forward, decisions regarding the usage of Kwasind property, any gatherings and our summer camp will be informed by directives and recommendations from government and public health authorities, with the ultimate goal of ensuring the health and safety of all campers, staff and guests.
What this means is that we have the intention of running a great camp this summer and hope to have Work Weekend happen in late Spring, this will only happen if it falls in line with government directives and parameters, with the support of the public health authorities and our confidence that we have put the appropriate measures in place.
Right now, we are following and monitoring the directives from government and public health authorities regarding the management of schools and other public facilities (different restrictions for different regions) before making any further decisions regarding our rental groups and summer programs.
As we open up registration on Dec 10, 2020 we want you to be able to register with confidence. While we will be restricting our capacity at this point to 60% each week, we encourage you to make sure you register your child(ren) now so that they have a spot reserved. However, in these uncertain times, we want to offer a certainty in regards the financial investment you are making. In the unfortunate event that we are unable to run summer camp this summer, anyone who is registered for camp will be provided a FULL REFUND as which happened last summer.
We want you to know that we LOVE our campers and their families and we want to give you the confidence that we are seeking to provide a safe, healthy and memorable camp experience in 2021.
We are so grateful that we have a “home” called Kwasind – that for over 75 years has been a blessing through times of great opportunity and great challenges and continues to inspire young people to grow in confidence, character, faith and leadership. This time is no doubt one of those seasons of great challenges, but which we will come through stronger and with renewed hope. Thank you for your ongoing support of Kwasind, for your many prayers and supportive emails that we have received during this time, and for your ongoing belief in the significant and life-changing impact that young people experience through their time at Kwasind.
If you have any questions, please reach us by phone and by email. We will continue to post updated information here on this website, so check back regularly and be sure that you have signed up for our General Mail List to get the latest e-new updates at http://www.kwasindupdates.com/
For more details on frequently asked questions, please read the information below:
What is happening at Kwasind right now?
What is Kwasind's Leadership team planning to do when it comes to Summer Camp?
Will I get a full refund if summer camp is cancelled?
What is Kwasind doing to ensure Summer Camp is safe?
Who is advising camp leadership in regards to safety?
What will be done their Summer to ensure increased safety?
We deeply value our partnership with families in providing campers with the life changing experience of camp. To be in partnership with you in these difficult health and financial times we will be at the end of the summer waiving any cancellation fees and offering a full refund if we are not able to provide summer camp.
Having said this, the good news is that things are looking positive for an EPIC 2021 Summer for campers – so we are encouraging everyone to register as early as possible, with the comfort of knowing that any deposit and payment fees will be returned to you if camp is cancelled or needing to be significantly adapted in the future.
Can I still apply for camper sponsorship for my camper?
With this outbreak, we are going to be investing significant dollars to enhance our Health & Safety and respond to COVID-19 requires but we are seeking to not significantly increase our campers costs – if you can support Kwasind in this area that would be greatly appreciated with a donation – please give here.
If you have any other questions about Kwasind’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak, please contact our Executive Director, Matt Wilkinson at matt@kwasind.com.