Testimonial

I am currently working as a corporate lawyer with a large downtown Toronto law firm - Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP. But having spent years growing up at camp in Algonquin Park as a camper and as a staff member, my heart has always been in camping. When I explained why I wanted to come to Ooch in my interview last year, the follow-up question was “Why did you ever become a lawyer?” Happily, coming to Ooch as a staff member allows me to do both. Last summer I spent my first two weeks as a counsellor at Camp Oochigeas and I will be back again this summer.
Through Ooch, I met an amazing group of people, both campers and staff. The staff were not really what surprised me - I had expected them to be a talented, fun, responsible, entertaining and skilled group of diverse individuals with a strong interest in, and love for, children (and they were). What amazed me most were the campers, specifically their strength, courage, wisdom and the joy they brought to all of us who were lucky enough to be allowed to spend time with them.

One of the greatest strengths of Ooch is the support network it provides to its campers. I would bet that no one, including campers, L.I.T.s, staff, medical staff and directors has made it through a session without trying a new “first” (often something they were afraid to try), and these are always with the complete support and encouragement of all those around them. In my short two weeks I saw many “firsts”: climbing up the rockwall, swimming to the lighthouse, teaching a song to the camp in the dining room, being away from home for the first time, dropping a water ski, climbing Silver Peak in Killarney, carrying a canoe, cooking over a Coleman stove, jumping off the top of the party barge… The best part for me (in watching these firsts and trying some myself as well) was the support and encouragement received, coupled with the recognition that everyone faces different challenges, and that all accomplishments are worth celebrating. This is just part of the magic of Camp Oochigeas.

Katy Waugh, Volunteer Counsellor