Sep 01Friday morning reflection - Gratitude on the last full day of camp
Good morning Kivita Families and Friends!
How time flies at camp! it is already Friday morning and our last full day of camp for this year. We have definitely been blessed with gorgeous daytime sunshine and perfect weather for camp. The nights are cool but we manage well with comfy camp attire. Yesterday was another full day of activities- the waterfront was booming with canoes, sails, paddle boards and swimmers. On land there was archery, tennis and so many arts and crafts. And of course we had our famous talent show where campers throw away their fears and inhibition and sing, dance, perform magic, tell jokes and stories and just laugh and cheer. At the talent show, one our campers said in his skit:
“Ask Emily if we can make camp last 365 days a year!’ 
We are truly so grateful for the magic of camp and to see how it can transform lives and the positive impact it has on our campers. Friendships have formed that we hope will last a lifetime. Memories have been made that we hope will be cause for joyful reminiscence for years to come.
There are so many incredible people we need to highlight who help us make this camp a reality. From our amazing hosts at Camp Wenonah- huge thanks to Jeff, Whitney, JJ and all the outstanding wenonah counsellors and staff who have demonstrated heartfelt committment, patience, passion and joy, warmth, kindness, hard work and empathy. We are so grateful for all you do.
To our medical volunteer team- there really are insufficient words of gratitude to express thanks for all you do; and a very special thanks to our program director Tom who has been just absolutely awesome!!!!!!!
Thank you to our outstanding nursing team- there are no words to thank each of you for all you do. To Liz D, Elizabeth, Krista, Maria, Kalyn, Emily, Suzy, Hazel, Lauren, Alyssa, Jen S, Jen L, Margaret, Amelia, Alice, our medical director Christina and director of operations Emily (who work all year on camp!), and to our phenomenal 2023 camp doctors: Dr Nicola Jones, Dr Chia Wei and Dr Harry Sutton. Thank you for the gift of your time, knowledge and passion for camp for all our campers! You are the very best of the best. Here is a photo of some of the team :)
And finally, we would not be able to provide camp if not for generosity and support of our donors. Each day we are full of gratitude for each of you for supporting us, believe in our dream, vision and mission of providing camp at no charge to ALL children living with organ transplants and organ failire. The gift of camp is an opportunity to transform lives, shared experiences and memories and friendships.
While we cannot provide camp 365 days a year as our camper requested, we are grateful that we have this week to celebrate organ donation and transplantation and provide our campers with a transformative camp experience each year. Each individual donation we receive, from individual charitable gifts, memorial donations for a loved one, money raised through events or milestones, to organizational cotributions .(please see our site for a list of organizations who support us). From new donors to those who have supported us repeatedly over the years - we thank you from the bottom of our hearts, lungs, livers, kidneys and intestines as we like to say!!!
Here is to a fabulous Friday at camp, with gratitude,
Yours in camping,
Stacey
 |
ReplyForward
|
