EVANS LAKE SUMMER CAMP 2020 UPDATE
This year would have been Evans Lake’s 60th year of summer camp—a milestone we are quite proud of and were really excited to celebrate. Unfortunately, COVID-19 had other plans. It is with a heavy heart that I announce that Evans Lake’s Overnight Summer Camp is cancelled for the 2020 season. Please rest assured that this decision was not made lightly — it was made after extensive research was done, on all possible options for operating overnight camp safely.
For the past few months, our team has worked diligently exploring every which way to make summer camp happen due to the pandemic. Along with the BC Camps Association, we created a robust re-opening plan for overnight camps, following guidelines provided by WorkSafe BC, the Ministry of Health and various industry sectors related to camps. We shared our proposal with Dr. Bonnie Henry, via the team at the BC Centre for Disease Control.
Last week, the decision was reached that “ the risk to public health this summer of overnight camps is too great to endorse…” and that “…day camps be considered as a safer alternative under the current circumstances.” Unfortunately, this wasn’t the answer we were hoping for, but we respect our Public Health Officer’s decision, as our campers’ and staff’s wellbeing is our top priority.
These have been very challenging times at Evans Lake and our team has met each and every challenge with creativity, a positive attitude, and a determination to try to make camp happen for your kids. Thank you for your patience and support as we worked to find answers. Thank you to our summer staff team who patiently stood by while we came to this decision. They too love their summers at Evans Lake and will feel the loss of not being immersed in this joyful experience. A huge thank you to our onsite team who has worked hard to prepare camp for the upcoming season, completing so much on a very restricted budget. And of course, a thank you to Conor and Mollie, our Program Team leaders who seamlessly shifted gears with each new announcement over the past 10 weeks, rolling with the constant changes and creating new paths forward.
Having a summer at Evans Lake without overnight camp is so hard to imagine and truly heartbreaking for us all. We will miss seeing all our returning campers, and the joy in meeting all the new ones. Please let your kids know that we tried very hard and we will miss them very much. But to reiterate what Dr. Bonnie Henry often says, “Remember, this is not forever. We’re going to get through this”.
Detailed instructions to cancel are noted below.
Sending you all warm wishes for a safe and healthy summer.
Sincerely,
Lauren Marghetti, Executive Director
Evans Lake Forest Education Society
P.S. Based on the recommendation by Dr. Henry and her team, we are now exploring a Day Camp program for summer 2020. This would be a modified version of our awesome overnight camp experience. More details will be communicated in the coming week.
FOR FULL POSTING AND INSTRUCTIONS HOW TO CANCEL- CLICK HERE
