THUNDER BAY – An accessible wilderness camp slated for closure later this year might still have some life left.
The Wilderness Discovery Camp, which is located on Shebandowan Lake, has been run by the HAGI Community Services for Independence but is slated for closure on Oct. 1 as the organization has publicly stated it will not continue to operate the facility.
The camp, which has been a summer paradise for many people living with disabilities, has become a cause taken up by the nearly 28,000 people who have signed a petition to ensure it will continue operating in the future.
Catherine Cummins, who started the Friends of the Wilderness Discovery Camp, said the group which was started to save the camp has been reaching out to non-profit groups looking for an organization to take over the facility.
She said the volunteers have been working to market the camp to more than 100 different organizations, with at least two responding positively.
One recently toured the facility, which she said only seemed to enhance their interest.
Though Cummins would not disclose which groups were interested, she said it’s a good step forward in hopes of saving the camp, which is equipped with hospital beds in every room, ramps, roll-in showers patient lifts and specialized chairs.
“This came out of nowhere. We had no idea this was going to happen,” she said emotionally on Sunday. “To know there might be light at the end of the tunnel is incredible.”
Volunteers will be conducting a site assessment in the coming weeks, to determine how much repair and maintenance work is required on site and an estimate of the costs to submit to any interested parties.
The property is located on Crown land, with HAGI paying a $3,600 per year lease.
At an April meeting MPP Bill Mauro (Lib., Thunder Bay-Atikokan) said there was a possibility the province could extend the lease if another organization could be found to run the camp.
Cummins said the group is hoping the provincial government will keep the land from hitting the real estate market when HAGI ends its involvement later this year.
The group will be demonstrating on Monday when Premier Kathleen Wynne comes to visit and intends to forward a copy of the petition, which is now a nearly 700 page document.
Meanwhile, HAGI executive director David Shannon issued a media release Sunday evening stating there is potential for a collaborate relationship between local business leaders and service clubs to continue operating the facility.
"We have been having discussions with organizations that are presenting intelligent and sustainable ideas that will broaden the mandate to have full community focus, and we hope this means sustainability well beyond this year,” Shannon said in the release.
“There is still much work to do, and nothing is confirmed, but we now have a new sign for optimism that we are prepared to announce today."
