Dorset, Ontario, July 16, 2011 – Moorelands Wilderness Camp today celebrated the official grand opening of their new recreation hall and upgraded facilities, and kicked off the organization’s 100th Anniversary.
Since 1917, Moorelands Wilderness Camp, owned and operated by Moorelands Community Services, has provided Toronto children and youth living in poverty with the chance to attend summer camp to learn leadership and team building skills while enjoying the outdoors.
With the help of a government funding partnership, the recreation hall, known as ‘the Hub’, was replaced to provide a more modern, efficient and safe building for campers to enjoy. Basketball courts and sports fields, more than 60 years old, were replaced and six cabins were rebuilt to better accommodate the health and safety of campers and staff. These new facilities will enable Moorelands Wilderness Camp to offer an even wider range of athletic and cultural activities to the more than 600 who call the camp home each summer.
“Moorelands Wilderness Camp offers youth of Toronto touched by poverty a chance to experience the fun of summer camp,” said Barry Devolin, Member of Parliament for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. “The improvements we are celebrating today will allow deserving children the chance to continue to enjoy wonderful outdoor adventures for years to come. The Government of Canada is proud of the role it played in improving this facility.”
“The Ontario government is proud to have contributed to this important project,” said Rick Johnson, MPP for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock. “By helping Moorelands Wilderness Camp turn their dream for a new recreation centre and sports facilities into a reality, we have made this special camp an even more welcoming and engaging place for Toronto’s children and youth to learn and grow.”
“2011 marks a new chapter in the history of Moorelands Wilderness Camp”, said Patricia Jacobs, Executive Director of Moorelands Community Services. “With a 10-year rebuilding process finally complete, we are able to offer campers state of the art facilities designed with their input that complement our innovative evidence-based camp programming. The safe, secure and transformational environment we have been able to create supports our efforts to help campers learn important life skills, gain mastery and build self-esteem.”
The governments of Canada and Ontario have each committed $255,546 toward this project. Moorelands Wilderness Camp and community donors are contributing the balance of the project cost.
Federal funding for this project comes from the Government of Canada’s $4-billion Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, which is supporting over 4,100 infrastructure projects across the country. The fund is delivered by Infrastructure Canada.
In June, Ontario had an increase of 40,000 jobs and the unemployment rate declined to 7.7 per cent.
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For additional information about investments in infrastructure, visit www.creatingjobs.gc.ca.
For further information about Canada’s Economic Action Plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.
For more information on how Ontario is revitalizing its infrastructure, visit ontario.ca/infrastructure.
Contacts:
Vanessa Schneider
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
613-991-0700
Office of MPP Rick Johnson
705-324-6654
Moorelands Community Services
416-466-9987
Infrastructure Canada
613-948-1148 or toll-free 1-877-250-7154
