New LGBTQ+ summer camp working to help youth connect during pandemic isolation

EGALE Canada is getting creative offering a new virtual summer camp for LGBTQ+high school teens who may be feeling a little extra isolated this year on account of the ongoing pandemic.

"For some of them, school is the only safe place that they might have. For many others it's a very hostile environment. A lot, traditionally, have also had very difficult times at home. Coming out at home is not always safe,"said Helen Kennedyexecutive director of EGALE Canada.

"So now, since the pandemic a lot of our youth have been trapped in their homes which are not conducive to who they are and their identities, and they're really struggling. They've lost connection with other youth, they've lost connection with queer youth in particular."

Kennedy said mental health in LGBTQ+ youth has been deteriorating amid the pandemic. She said many have been reaching out for support.

Camp OUTshinewill employ a full-time counsellorduring its run for those needing extra support.

"So hopefully this will be a really good experience. At the end of the term of the camp they'll get a leadership certificate as anLGBTQ ambassador, and this is something they can take with them into college, and into their careers and hopefully change hearts and minds as they go," said Kennedy.

Programming

Camp OUTshine will focus on leadership, diversity and inclusion in theLGBTQ community. It will runfrom Aug. 17 to Aug. 28, and then once a week until March.

The camp is being held online in four parts of the country; Newfoundland and Labrador, Toronto, Vancouver and Edmonton.

Kennedy said the virtual camp isa way for high school youth to network with others across Canada.

Ending the camp in March was designed to help them through most of the school year.

"We're covering an array of topics overthe initial two weeks. In the morning we'll look at leadership skills, what makes a good leader, why you should be a leader and how to give the youth additional skills that they need to navigate their way through high school," said Kennedy.

"So we didn't want to just end it at the end of two weeks, we wanted to carry it through, one Saturday a month, right through to next March so we could support these youth right through the school year and help them navigate the system and really be strong leaders and advocates for inclusion."

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