Reflection 4: Gratitude for our supporters

Dear families and supporters, This morning’s reflection is dedicated to our amazing financial donors and supporters. It is very early morning here at Kivita and the rousing of  the camp is just starting. The lake is simply breathtaking and the air crisp and fresh. It is supposed to be a sunny and fantastic day and we are so thrilled that to be sharing our new reflective garden space with one of most steadfast supporters here at camp. This journey would not be possible without the absolute generosity and commitment of our supporters and financial donors. In establishing something new, such as our camp, we undoubtedly faced many challenges and obstacles along the way. We also were fortunate to meet many people who shared our vision, and helped us to break down barriers along the way such as the Wenonah team. Along our journey we have been blessed to have the incredible support year after year of  if some amazing organizations and families: The Kidney Foundation of Canada, the Citron Family, The David Foster Foundation, and KRG Children’s Charity. Along the way we have had other phenomenal donors join our village of supporters and they include INTACT insurance, the Benjamin Walker Foundation, Astellas Canada, and so many extraordinarily generous individuals who have made tremendous contributions to Kivita that have made us almost weep with gratitude. We have also had strong support from our board members including Paul Martin, Dr Nicola Jones and Senator Jerry Grafstein and so many others. I regularly meet people in the community who share our dream and have joined to help support our camp. We are so excited that Camp Kivita will be growing. We will be sharing more details of our plans to expand for next summer later but today we are focused on gratitude for what we have and all we have achieved thanks to each of you. This afternoon we will be sharing our new Kindness Counts bench in the magnificent new reflective garden space at Wenonah. It is a breathtaking, quiet place for our campers to find solace, quiet time and reflect. This bench is in honour and memory of Dr Ken Citron, and a testament to his passion and relentless advocacy for focusing on and improving the quality of life of children living with organ transplants and organ failure. We are so full of gratitude to what we learned from him over the years in his role as psychiatrist at SickKids and are proud that this special space will stand as a memory of his compassion and care forever. We thank the Citron family and community of friends for their deep generosity and critical support over the years.                              Have a wonderful day! With gratitude, yours in camping Stacey On behalf of the team