REMOVING BARRIERS: Extend-A-Family Waterloo Region makes summer camps accessible to all
Relationships and skill-building opportunities are front and centre with help from WRCF
For many, the summer camp experience evokes fond memories that often involve group activities, usually swimming, and maybe some s’mores, and campfire sing-alongs. Yet for some, including those with developmental disabilities, summer camp opportunities can be far more complex.
Extend-A-Family Waterloo Region (EAFWR), which has been providing opportunities to individuals with disabilities for over four decades, has incorporated summer camp experiences into its range of services and programming for years.
For five weeks each July, individuals with disabilities who are ages 13 and up gather for EAFWR’s in-person summer day camp, where they can enjoy swimming, outings, dancing, sports, arts and crafts, special guest appearances, and more, all catered to a range of backgrounds so that every participant has a chance to take part in the activities.
“We’re hoping to build varying skills early on and form relationships, so they can plan for what to do after their school tenure ends,” said Ron Trajano, EAFWR’s Director of Services.
“A lot of the folks that we support have specific needs and sometimes that’s a barrier for them to attend a non-specific disability camp," Ron added. “We want to provide the camp experience both for the day and overnight camp.”
In addition to the day camp, EAFWR hosts an overnight camp in August, emphasizing time spent in nature. This weeklong event includes traditional camp components for those aged 15 and up. The staff-to-camper ratio is four to one at the day camp and even greater at the overnight camp to ensure that all campers’ specific needs and requirements can be met.
In 2025, Waterloo Region Community Foundation (WRCF) provided the financial kindling for EAFWR’s campfires with funding through The Waterloo Region Record – Lyle S. Hallman Foundation Kids to Camp Fund. The fund provides grants to camps for children and youth who reside in Waterloo Region and need financial assistance to attend camp. Since the fund’s inception, more than $1.7 million has been distributed to support kids in having a camp experience.
For EAFWR, this funding has allowed families to access the camp experience without any barriers.
"The funding helps provide a subsidy for individuals who can’t afford the registration fees,” Ron said. “We don’t want finances to be a barrier, so it either provides a full subsidy or a partial subsidy for the campers who are in financial need. It make a big impact on those who could not attend otherwise.”
Some of the highlights at EAFWR’s camps have included guest appearances from Mad Science, Bollywood dancers, and kickboxing experts. Depending on the theme, the overnight camp has included day trips to places like Bingeman’s, the Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory, and African Lion Safari.
"We don’t want a camper to be just there,” Ron said. “We want it to be learning, as well."
To that end, EAFWR recently introduced its Leaders in Training Program for people aged 14 and up who are interested in working in the disability and/or recreation sector. The program includes training and hands-on learning during the summer program.
“A lot of the campers -- we recognize that they have gifts,” Ron said. "We’ve noticed some of the campers have some leadership aspirations. We want to cultivate that and encourage that. They’re campers, and then when they take that course, they’re eligible to become leaders themselves and get a paid position with us.”
The summer camp programming is an extension of EAFWR’s mission of championing inclusivity in the community, something made possible with help from community partners such as WRCF, which has been supporting EAFWR for many years.
“We value the partnership with WRCF," Ron added. “It’s great to have that relationship.”
Relationships are what it’s all about for the summer campers, too, with the hopes that participants can develop their skills and build their support networks through the camp experiences. Our hope and our goal are always that, once they build those relationships with others, once they build those skills, they’ll be much more ready when they become adults.”
For more information on EAFWR and its summer program, visit eafwr.on.ca.
To learn more about The Waterloo Region Record – Lyle S. Hallman Foundation Kids to Camp Fund, go to wrcf.ca/kidstocamp.