Camp Kindle celebrating groundbreaking for $8.9M expansion and accessibility project

Construction is underway on an $8.9 million expansion at Camp Kindle to build play spaces and enhance accessibility at the facility that welcomes thousands of children with medical challenges each year.

The project will see the installation of an accessible treehouse village and an outdoor percussion playground at the camp, located near Water Valley, Alta. The project is part of Kids Cancer Care’s mission to give children with cancer the best start in life by reconnecting them with their childhoods.

"We run 52 weeks a year at Camp Kindle," said Tracey Martin, CEO of Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta.

"We have lots of different organizations that come with kids with health-based issues that they're facing, so we can accommodate them in different time groups and organizations that just want to try the challenges of camp and be out in nature and explore."

The provincial government kicked off the capital campaign in the spring with $500,000.

Jason Nixon, Minister for seniors, community and social services, says the Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta does incredible work to help young people affected by cancer and their families when they need it most.

"I think together we will continue to be able to make sure that Camp Kindle is not only caring for the kids that they're currently caring for," he said, "but more in the future and will continue to be an important part of Alberta Mountain View County for generations to come."

The enhancements include accessible and flexible play surfaces, a multi-purpose building with an arts-and-crafts workshop, a teaching and learning kitchen and diverse collaboration spaces along with adaptable staff residences.

"It's really about like, how do we continue to build skills and kids confidence and resilience," said Martin. "So they really can shine and show their inner spark to the world and their potential."

The organization says 100 per cent of children who survive cancer face at least one chronic or life-threatening health condition for the rest of their lives.

These conditions grow worse with age and without any apparent plateau.

Kids Cancer Care exists to support families throughout the entire cancer journey by providing a healing community and programs designed to help families manage the immediate and long-term side effects of cancer and its treatments.

Christine McIver founded the camp 30 years ago and says Camp Kindle is always going to be a work in progress and evolve to meet the needs of kids and their families for years to come.

"It's got to be a place where kids come that they get to do new things and different things that they'd never do in the city, they never do on their family farm or wherever they're from," she said.

"They get to try new things and most importantly, meet kids that are going through the same thing that they've been going through."

To date, the campaign has raised nearly 80 per cent of the funds. Kids Cancer Care is a registered Canadian charity supporting Alberta families battling childhood cancer for the last 30 years.

The charity has invested more than $34 million in programs helping more than 30,000 children and families rebuild their lives after a cancer diagnosis.

Learn more about the organization on its website.