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The Ten Oaks Project is Ottawa's only charitable organization working to engage and connect children and youth from LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, two-spirit, queer) communities, which includes both children and youth who identify as LGBTQ themselves, and children and youth from LGBTQ families. Through its two core programs, Camp Ten Oaks and Project Acorn, the volunteer-driven organization works to empower children and youth through play that enhances self-esteem, life skills, independence, leadership and self-confidence. The goal of these programs is also to create safer spaces where children and youth don't need to worry about coming out to others regarding their LGBTQ family members and/or their own personal identity.
In 2010, the Community Foundation of Ottawa supported the fifth summer of Camp Ten Oaks, a one-week sleep-away camp for children and youth aged 8-17 from LGBTQ and/or non-traditional families, LGBTQ youth, and their allies. With the only summer camp of its kind in Canada, the Ten Oaks Project has embarked on an ambitious initiative to make the camp more sustainable, and to increase its capacity to serve its growing community of campers. The "Investing in the Next Generation" initiative allowed the organization to revitalize its staff recruitment and orientation process, while exploring program expansion opportunities.
"With 64 young people registered for camp last year and a growing wait list, we realized we had no additional room for growth at Camp Ten Oaks," said Danielle Raymond, Executive Director of the Ten Oaks Project. "Our volunteer counseling staff was also stretched to the limit with the demand each year, so we knew it was crucial to take a strategic approach to make the camp more sustainable and accessible over the long term. The grant from the Community Foundation of Ottawa allowed us to launch an aggressive recruitment and training program, while reviewing and renewing the staff model of Camp Ten Oaks. We have also completed an intensive strategic planning process that will help us to determine future directions of the camp and our entire organization."
Working to act as a year-round child- and youth-serving organization, the Ten Oaks Project is expanding its efforts to promote and enrich both its summer programs and its community engagement activities. It is also developing a strong multi-year financial plan to ensure long-term sustainability. For its summer campers, however, the bottom line is still all about having fun. With activities ranging from outdoor adventure to watercraft, swimming, arts and athletics, there is no end of things to do throughout the week. The camp also has a strong focus on social justice programming, giving campers the space to talk about issues like sexism, homophobia and the media, and to critically explore key issues that impact their daily lives.
In their own words, here is how some of the campers, parents and counsellors describe the Camp Ten Oaks experience:
- "Everyone is able to express themselves in a safe space and can be comfortable in their own skin." - Camper
- "Camp Ten Oaks is my favourite place on earth! I would stay here for the whole summer." - Camper
- "My son is gay only to himself, his two parents and a select few at high school. At Camp Ten Oaks, he gets to be truly himself 100% in a loving, caring and supportive environment. It just bolsters his self-confidence, which he takes back with him and it becomes a foundation for the rest of his year to build on." - Parent
- "This place is truly a magical place. The feeling of pride I have for us all was unmet anywhere else in my life." - Counsellor
For more information about the Ten Oaks Project, visit www.tenoaksproject.org.
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