Family affair: fund sends five kids to camp

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/08/2022 (1170 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Smook family is large, happy and full of faith.

Together, parents John and Cathy have seven children aged three to 14.

This year, thanks to the help of the Manitoba Camping Association’s Sunshine Fund, five of their children have experienced the joy of summer camp.

“We have a lot of kids, and we make ends meet,” Cathy said. “To have this kind of help is just incredible. It’s been such a gift, and the kids, they look forward to it.”

Anna, Zelie, John Jacob, Tobias and Matthias Smook attended St. Malo Catholic Camps.

John Jacob and Tobias spent five days overnight at the faith-based camp, while Matthias, the Smook’s eldest child, was a camp counsellor this year.

Anna and Zelie, the youngest of the bunch, enrolled in the day programs. Much to their delight, Matthias was one of their counsellors.

“They loved it. They had a water fight, and they got to soak the counsellors, so everybody was after their brother,” Cathy said, laughing. “I wasn’t ever sent to camp, so I think this is so great for them.”

Cathy has witnessed her kids reap many benefits from their camp visits, including the typical things like new experiences, friends and confidence.

But, she has also noticed more profound effects. The camps brought the children’s faith to life through Bible readings, songs and re-enactments, Cathy said.

“It reinforces that faith can go with life. That you don’t leave your faith at home, you kind of take it with you,” she said. “For them, to be with other kids that share the same faith, its important.”

The Sunshine Fund subsidizes the cost of summer camps for children and their families.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Jen Zoratti | Next

Wednesdays

What's next in arts, life and pop culture.

Sign up for Jen Zoratti | Next

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

For more than four decades, the camping association and Free Press have collaborated to maintain and promote the fund, which relies heavily on donor support. During that time, the joint efforts have sent upwards of 22,000 children to camp, including the more than 375 kids who’ve accessed support this year.

“If you’re in doubt that (the Sunshine Fund) is for you, just do it,” Cathy said. “The Sunshine Fund people, our dealings with them have been so good… you feel like you’re being taken care of. They care about your children.”

Cathy expects the children to continue attending summer camp throughout their youth, and she encourages people to donate so other children can do the same.

When the children are beyond camp-going age, Cathy and her husband plan to donate to the Sunshine Fund, she said.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca

Tyler Searle
Reporter

Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press’s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic’s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler.

Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.