Choosing a summer camp for your child isn’t easy.
There are so many options now: sports specific, arts centred, STEM, overnight.
For Brooke Brown, the choice of which summer camp to send their son to was almost made for her.
“When we had our second child in 2018, we wanted to find something for Max, even though he was only 21 months at the time,” says Brooke, who moved to the Westboro area five years ago from Toronto. “I worked with Devora (Caytak) at the Jewish Montessori School so I knew the staff at Camp Gan Israel. We signed him up and he loved it.”
Brooke also says being close to where they live means they can just walk Max to the camp in the mornings.
This summer will be the third year in a row Max attends Camp Gan Israel, run out of the Jewish Youth Library of Ottawa, and he’s already looking forward to finally being able to go on the weekly outings.
“Last year, because he was in the toddler group, he could only wave as the older kids took the bus on Wednesdays to different outings, like going to Mont Cascades, museums and Fun Haven,” says Brooke.
While similar to other camps across the city, CGI does have a focus on Judaism. That said, it prides itself on having a “totally non-judgemental environmental”.
The camp organizes a number of different activities, and have in the past brought in carnival games and a petting zoo, set up tennis courts in the driveway and even organized pony rides in Hampton Park.
“I can’t say enough good things about the place.”