THUNDER BAY – LIVING – Hello, my name is Kennedy and I’m going to write about day four of Camp Quality Northwestern Ontario. My day started off with a very cheerful wakeup call of a song from the movie The Lion King being sung all around the campground at the early time of 7:30am.
I stumbled out of bed and made my way to the dining hall for a well prepared breakfast by our amazing kitchen staff. While I write this part of my day, I would just like to note how much the kitchen staff truly are appreciated.
I have been coming to Camp Quality for approximately eight years now and I have seen some of the hardest and most dedicated workers who spend hours preparing some fantastic food.
After my first meal of the day, I went back to my cabin to pack some things I needed for the immensely busy day ahead.
Our devoted bus drivers drove us to the Aerosports Trampoline Park where we had some fun while jumping on what seemed like endless flooring of trampolines. Personally I found the most interest in the highly competitive yet incredibly fun games of dodgeball that many campers and volunteers took part in.
The most memorable part of the park was to see my younger sister doing backflips into the foam pits. (For such a strong and outstanding young girl it’s hard to believe she was once in a hospital bed every day.)
To our surprise, even after our time in the amusement area was over, the workers at the park were generous enough to allow us some more time for some much needed energy release. And best of all, they were sponsoring our visit so we got to be there for free…thanks Aerosports Trampoline Park!
At the end of our visit while the group photo was being taken a spontaneous burst of the song Let It Go erupted throughout our group which caused smiles on everyone’s faces.
The next stop on the list was to Boston Pizza for a delicious lunch of multiple types of pizza along with caesar salad and nachos. At my table we continued the camp spirit with funny conversations and the challenge to eat as much as we possibly could to not let any food go to waste.
Our entire table of eleven people managed to eat four pizzas, three big bowls of salad, and two plates of nachos. We had full bellies after this and were ready to continue our journey.
Upon arriving at the Canada Games Complex our group split up to all do the activities that we would all have the most fun with.
Some people went to the gym, others took advantage of the endlessly hot showers and spent as much time there as possible, but most took the route of enjoying the water and waterslide while splashing around. I spent my time showering first then going to see what all the action was around the pool. I was happy to see that everyone was enjoying themselves and had others to have a great time with, it reminded me how much of a family Camp Quality truly is.
Our final stop in town before the ride back to the campground was to Merla Mae for some tasty ice cream. We shared some laughs together as we sat upon the picnic tables and enjoyed our deserts while taking in what is expected to be our last sunny day this week.
After free time back at camp for about an hour, which I had spent on the beach soaking in the sun and playing UNO, we all came together to eat dinner in the dining hall along with some of our Camp Quality supporters – Kristie & Mike from KOA Campgrounds, Stephanie & Derek from Magic 99.9/Country 105 and Rene and Shirley who put on a poker rally fundraiser for us each year.
Harley rides were the last thing on our daily schedule and definitely a hit amongst the CQ crew. The kind people, all part of the Harley Owners Group, who came out to give our campers and volunteers rides were deeply appreciated. I loved the feeling of the wind blowing in my hair and the music from the motorcycle blasting while I was riding on the bikes. The campers were all given Harley t-shirts as a gift from the lovely men and women who support us and came out today.
To end the day off on a good note, we sat around the campfire and sang along to old song books while roasting marshmallows and making spider dogs. We spent the remainder of our night in the enjoyment of each other’s company and with smiles on our faces that lasted until we all got snuggled into bed.
This is the fourth year that NetNewsLedger.com has hosted the Camp Quality Northwest blog. We are pleased to support the work of Camp Quality, and the ongoing battle to beat cancer. On a personal note, cancer has taken both of my grandparents, it tried to take my mom. There are few people in Northwestern Ontario who are not impacted by cancer. When cancer takes on children, it is time for us all to rally to help them.
