Our History

The early years

Camp Ooch was founded in 1983 by enthusiastic volunteers who wanted kids with cancer to have the same opportunities to experience the joy and connection of summer camp. Its first summer camp session in 1984 welcomed 38 Campers for two weeks at beautiful Geneva Park.

Camp Trillium also welcomed its first campers in 1984, providing a recreational camp experience for children with cancer and their siblings. What began with 28 campers grew into a community where kids and families could step away from the realities of illness and enjoy the friendship, fun, and freedom of camp.

In those early summers, Camp Ooch grew around a spirit of courage, belonging, and trying new things—a spirit that would continue to shape its programs for decades.

By 1987, Camp Ooch had already outgrown the space at Geneva Park and moved to Rousseau Lake College, a private boarding school in Muskoka. With access to more lakeside facilities and lodging, Campers could now participate in watersports and enjoy wilderness camp excursions in Algonquin Park.

Camp Trillium also continued to grow. In 1989, it established a campsite on Garratt’s Island near Picton, creating another place where campers and families could experience memorable weeks of fun and connection.

Bringing Camp to the Hospital

In 1993, a group of volunteers began in-hospital programming at SickKids in Toronto, bringing the fun and connection of overnight camp to kids and families during hospital stays. What started as a once-a-month initiative eventually grew to seven days and four evenings a week at SickKids.

Today, our in-hospital program staff and volunteers often meet kids and families in paediatric centres across Ontario on the day of diagnosis, offering music, games, welcoming faces, and much-needed respite from the realities of childhood illness.

By the mid-1990s, Camp Trillium was also serving more children and families across Ontario. In 1996, 1,500 campers participated in its programs, and construction began on Camp Trillium Rainbow Lake in Waterford. When the site opened in 1998, it became Ontario’s first year-round camp for children living with cancer and their families.

The 2000s: Places to Call Home

Thanks to donors, Camp Ooch’s overnight camp program found a permanent home in 2004 at the former Camp Hollyburn campground on Donner Lake. With dedicated medical volunteers and staff, Ooch Muskoka continued to make traditional overnight camp possible for children with complex medical care needs, including campers receiving IV chemotherapy and blood transfusions. Over time, the site also welcomed bereaved siblings, introduced Weekends at Camp in the fall and winter, and added new activities and outdoor spaces for campers to enjoy.

Camp Trillium also expanded during this time, signing a new lease for the Rainbow Lake site in Waterford and introducing adolescent and young adult programs. In 2008, Camp Trillium purchased Garratt’s Island, helping secure the future of one of its long-standing camp sites.

Growing to Meet More Need

As both Camp Ooch and Camp Trillium continued to grow, demand for medically supported camp programs increased across Ontario. By 2014, Camp Ooch needed to expand its Muskoka site to welcome more Campers. With the help of generous partners and donors, construction began with the goal of serving up to 50% more Campers year-round. The project was completed in the summer of 2018, creating more space for Campers to experience camp year-round.

Camp Trillium was also experiencing growing demand, with more children and families seeking opportunities to take part in its programs than available space allowed. With its strong focus on family camp programming, Camp Trillium became a place where children, siblings, parents, and caregivers could reconnect, rest, and make meaningful memories together during and after cancer treatment.

Coming Together as Campfire Circle

In 2020, Camp Ooch and Camp Trillium merged, bringing together two organizations with shared roots in medically supported overnight camps, deep relationships with families, and decades of experience supporting children with cancer. As one organization, site work continued to make outdoor spaces more accessible for campers living with disabilities. When COVID-19 changed how camp could happen, we introduced virtual programs until in-person programs resumed in August 2021, continuing to adapt as needed throughout the pandemic. In January 2022, we rebranded as Campfire Circle.

In 2024, Campfire Circle expanded eligibility for overnight camp beyond cancer to welcome children with a broader range of serious illnesses, including heart disease, serious blood disorders, sickle cell disease, complex medical needs and, beginning in 2025, solid organ transplants and organ failure. These changes were supported by the thoughtful transition of programs previously offered by Camp Oki, Camp Jumoke, and Camp Kivita, whose legacies helped make camp possible for many children and families.

Today, we continue to bring camp-inspired programs to kids with cancer or serious illness and their families. As a privately funded charity, we rely on generous donations and incredible volunteers to bring more camp to more kids.