Southern Alberta summer camps coping with second pandemic summer
After a year that was anything but normal, Albertans are looking forward to what could potentially be a summer of at least some normality.
One part of summer that was severely impacted last year was summer camps for children.
The recent announcement of the government’s "Open for Summer Plan" have given optimism that camps will indeed run this summer.
While the government has plans for the province to fully reopen, camp operators are still being cautious.
"For this summer we’re a more cautious and conservative approach again," said Bill Halma, the director of horns recreation at the University of Lethbridge.
Southern Alberta summer camp (Courtesy U of Lethbridge)
"We want to make sure the experience and the comfort level for all the kids coming to the camp are as high as possible."
Halma said the university did run limited in person camps last summer, but is hoping for a more normal summer this year.
He also noted that since the province’s announcement on a reopening plan, camp enrollment numbers have jumped.
"Our numbers have spiked up significantly over the last week after the announcements for stage two and stage three came about. But prior to that we had stagnated for over a month, we had very few registrations."
While there will be camps at the University of Lethbridge this summer, attendance will still be limited.
Halma noted that the camper to counselor ratio would not exceed 10 to 1 and some camps may be limited in attendance simply because of lack of demand.
Programs like the basketball and ringette camps which are mainstays at the university camps have had noticeable drops in registration.
Despite the province’s plan however, some camps have opted not to open for a second consecutive summer.
Summer camp, southern Alberta. Courtesy Camp Nookoowai
Donny Coulter, the founder of Camp Nookoowai in Fort Macleod, said it was just not possible for the camp to be ready in time for summer.
"The latest we could probably wait was February to get volunteers lined up and travel arrangements made," Coulter told CTV.
The camp was planning on celebrating its 25th summer of operation.
Even with the province’s re-opening plan, Coulter said there was just no way to be prepared for the summer.
While the camp may not be running, Coulter still maintains relationships with those who would attend the camp.
"We are very close to the community, and we believe in relationships, so we have lot of relationships with these kids that last throughout the year. They’re a part of our lives."
Some camp operators are still not sure what their camps might look like and whether or not there will for sure be any camps.
Lethbridge College said that they are still figuring out what exactly the camps might look like.
A spokesperson from the college stated, "Lethbridge College is working to provide summer camp options this summer, and will have more information available in the days and weeks ahead."
While camps may be able to operate to some level of normalcy, they have yet to reach the stage where they can operate the same as they did pre-pandemic.
From the looks of it, a 2021 summer re-opening offers hope, but normal is still a ways away.
With Files from Quinn Keenan
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.