Summer camp is a fun and memorable time for so many Canadian kids. Acquiring new skills, forging friendships and building confidence are among the many benefits. But for 2SLGBTQ+ adolescents, summer camp can be daunting.
Noah Gibson is a 21-year-old who identifies as a transgender fluid individual who prefers to use the pronouns they/them. Summer camp was a tradition for Noah and they see summer camp in general as a valuable experience. Noah was 14-years-old the first time they attended a typical gender-segregated overnight camp.
“I didn’t feel comfortable coming out to the camp and was made to sleep in one of the gendered cabins,” said Noah. “There was another camper, similar to me, that had a gender-expansive identity and we ended up connecting and being inseparable that week.”
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National recognition for Rainbow Camp wasnât something for which co-founders Harry Stewart and Chris Southin found themselves prepared.
Neither was the effortâs long-term success.
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Yes, they hail being among this yearâs recipients of Governor Generalâs Meritorious Service Decorations as âincredible.â
But the fact that such a safe space for two-spirited, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer questioning and allied youth, could actually be founded â and subsequently blossom â in Canadaâs hinterland remains, for them, likely the biggest shock of all.
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