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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Boys pining for return to camp
Not too late for needed donations
Cassandra Golondrina with boys Keagan (left), Victor (rear) and Rhys. (KEN GIGLIOTTI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS) Photo Store
Donations as of Aug. 10
Dr. Judith Doyle $250
Phyllis Leadbeater $100
Lorne Paterson $100
Douglas Smith $150
Murray, Loretta, Sarah and Eric Steinbart $200
Agnes E. McCorrister $40
Valerie Nielsen $100
In memory of John Turnock
Beulah Cooper $300
In memory of Eric Cooper
Sarah Arnold $50
Richard and Sharon Deveson $50
Anonymous $100
In memory of Lou Picard
Anonymous $50
Anonymous $100
Margaret Weber $25
In memory of Marilyn Nabish
David and Heather Anderson $50
Daniel Hildebrand $200
Anonymous $100
Dan Janssens $100
In memory of my parents, Andy and Margaret Janssens
Allan Caron $50
In memory of Bob Caron
Mark Gray $252
Linda and Maren Tait $35
Margaret Deally $50
In loving memory of my niece, Gayle Agnes Staniul
Alexandra and Evelyn $150
Donations this week $2,602
Campers placed 730
Campers waiting 15
Donations to date $195,426.59
Campership cost $262,192.87
It's an added stress to the Golondrina household as they wait to see if their three youngest children can go to camp.
"I'm praying," said single mother Cassandra Golondrina, sitting in the living room of her Manitoba Housing unit. "I'm hoping, and it's stressful. I really don't know."
The Golondrina boys -- Victor, 14, Keagan, 12, and Rhys, 10 -- are all on the Sunshine Fund wait list, their camp spots pending enough donations coming in.
The Sunshine Fund still needs between $25,000 and $30,000 to send all the kids to camp this year.
"What I'm most worried about is the disappointment," said Golondrina. "They can get away from everyday life at camp. Unfortunately, being poor is a little bit stressful, and it's stressful on them too."
There are six family members who live in the townhouse in Shaughnessy Park -- Golondrina, 38, and her five children.
Golondrina is on welfare as she finishes her diploma in community development at Red River College. Not an easy life, she said, for the five children, who had to move from their home to government housing.
"Life has thrown every curveball you can imagine," she said. "They're great people and they deserve great things."
The boys have gone to Camp Arnes intermittently over the last three years through the Sunshine Fund, but with the money to the foundation from donors short, their hopes at spending a week away might be dashed.
When asked what the boys would do if they didn't go to camp, Golondrina pointed to the TV.
"Video games," she said.
"I'm usually bored at home," said youngest brother Rhys. "I'm going to be disappointed (if I can't go)."
A week with the boys away also means Golondrina can prepare to go back to school and let her two daughters, Paulina Redfern, 19, and Patricia Polden, 17, get a break from their brothers.
"It means I can breathe," Golondrina said. "It will be two weeks before I go back to school, and they can get a bit of free time."
Victor can't wait to meet his friends back at paintball camp at Camp Arnes, where he said his favourite memory is facing off against camp counsellors.
"You learn a lot of teamwork," he said. "I like making new friends because you meet a lot of people at camp."
In a year, Golondrina plans to be off welfare, and said she can't wait to give back to children like hers, who would otherwise never be able to go to camp.
"I can't wait until the day I can give money back to the Sunshine Fund and I can help," she said.
To donate to the Sunshine Fund, send cheques to the Winnipeg Free Press Sunshine Fund c/o 302-960 Portage Ave., Winnipeg, MB, R3T 0R4.
You can also donate in person or online by going to www.mbcamping.ca and following the CanadaHelps donation link. For more information on the Sunshine Fund, call 204-784-1130 or email sunshinefund@mbcamping.ca .
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition August 11, 2012 B2
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