Friends of Oochigeas
A camp supporting children affected by childhood cancer Winter 2016
Giving kids with cancer what they need - the chance to be kids! This summer more than 500 kids with cancer experienced the friendship and fun of Camp Ooch because of generous donors like you. Your support is changing lives and impacting families both in your community and across the Province of Ontario. Your continued support will ensure that more kids with cancer have access to Ooch programs In Hospital, In City and at Ooch Muskoka.
Ooch In Hospital
The printing of this newsletter was generously donated by RR Donnelley Charitable Business: 13111 6022 RR0001
Ooch Muskoka
Ooch In City
Camp Oochigeas, 464 Bathurst Street, Toronto, ON M5T 2S6 t: 416.961.6624 f: 416.961.2267 e: oochigeas@ooch.org
ooch.org
Program Spotlight: Ooch Muskoka This summer Ooch Muskoka served a record-breaking number of kids because of individual and corporate donors like you! We asked the kids what they would want you to know if they could thank you personally and this is what they had to say!
“Thanks for giving me a place to laugh and be silly!”
“People outside can be really cruel but at Ooch it’s a safe place, a place I love to be!”
“Thanks for letting me be myself.”
“I forget about cancer when I’m at Camp because there are so many other things to do!”
“Ooch is a really incredible place, everyone here has a connection that words can’t describe. It’s my home-away-from home.”
Imagine the Magic Gala Thanks to your generosity and the support of our donors, sponsors, volunteers, paddle artists and guests, the 2016 Camp Ooch Imagine the Magic Gala and #PaddleProject raised an exceptional $1.2 million (net)! This means 334 kids with and affected by childhood cancer will have the opportunity to experience the Magic of Camp Ooch. Special thanks to our Gala Presenting Sponsor GFL Environmental, our Gala Co-chairs Karen Fonn & Dennis Kavelman and Emily Burnett & Jonathan Bloomberg, and to all Gala committee members for their leadership and generosity.
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Presenting Sponsor
Expanding the In Hospital Program Ooch currently serves 21 per cent of kids with and affected by childhood cancer in Ontario. With your support we have been working hard to increase that number and we are excited to report that we are now actively running programs in London, Hamilton and Ottawa. As the first touch-point where program specialists meet kids and their families, these programs are critical in helping us reach more children, more often with more Ooch. As we continue to support this regional expansion we are looking to engage volunteers and community organizations who live, work and play in these locations to help spread the Magic of Ooch.
The draw will take place at 117 Lakeshore Blvd. W. Coronation Park, Toronto on Sunday, May 14, 2017 at approx. 10 a.m. Winner does not have to be present at time of draw. Camp Oochigeas • 464 Bathurst St. Toronto, ON M5T 236 • 416-961-6624 • www.ooch.org License # M78O120
Dedicated Program Room at SickKids Camp Ooch has been an active partner of The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) since our inception 33 years ago. Supporting their family-centred care model by providing specialized Ooch programs and a much-needed break for families in crisis, programs are facilitated in play rooms, in corridors and even bedside for patients too sick to attend group activities. It has always been a dream of our program specialists to have a dedicated space committed to Ooch programming and we are delighted to share with you that this dream is unfolding into a reality. This step of commitment from our partners at SickKids affirms the incredible value they place on Ooch programming. Our research suggests that we are the first and only Oncology camp in Canada to be provided this kind of wonderful privilege. Thank you SickKids! We are delighted to support the wonderful work you do. “My mum says the doctors cured my cancer, Ooch healed my soul.”
Every day, your support makes stories like Grace’s possible. Grace, a camper who has been attending Ooch programs since 2011 (the year she was diagnosed with cancer), first met Ooch while at London Children’s hospital as an in-patient receiving treatment and continued to participate in programs throughout the year. Finally old enough to go on an overnight camping trip at Ooch Muskoka, Grace spent the entire year eagerly anticipating the 3-day canoe trip in Massassauga Provincial Park. In her words it would be the “experience of a lifetime!” Grace’s treatment included a new trial medication that needed to be refrigerated. Timing and temperature of this medication were crucial for Grace’s treatment and unfortunately made the much-anticipated three days in the wilderness impossible. Grace would have to miss out. The Ooch medical team decided missing this trip was not an option. Each day, two volunteers drove to Massasauga Provincial Park from Ooch Muskoka and paddled a canoe out to deliver the necessary medication directly to Grace at the campsite. On day two, this meant a total of six hours of canoeing! The dedication and commitment of the staff and volunteers is beyond anything I have ever seen. After the trip, Grace told her cabin mates and counsellors, “The reason Camp Ooch is so wonderful is because they always makes things possible.”
THIS HOLIDAY SEASON GIVE THE GIFT OF FRIENDSHIP AND FUN TO KIDS WITH AND AFFECTED BY CHILDHOOD CANCER.
WILL YOU HELP SEND KIDS WITH CANCER TO CAMP OOCH?
YOUR GIFT WILL PROVIDE: Two weeks
at Camp and memories that last a lifetime
One week
at Camp where new friendships are formed
A weekend
at Camp full of laughter and fun
One day
of being a kid instead of a kid “with cancer”
Half a day
of silly songs and new adventures at Camp
$3500 $1750 $500 $250 $125
Donate today at www.ooch.org/giftofcamp "Ooch Is A Place Where We Can Express Ourselves And Not Be Judged Or Feel Like We Aren't Good Enough. Ooch Is There When We Need A Shoulder To Lean On And Where Friends Stay In Our Hearts Forever."