The cost of living hasn’t made it easy to raise a family in 2025 — especially if you have six children under your roof like Annie Anguttitauruq and Matt Arnott do.

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It can be hard enough making sure bills get paid on time, there are clothes to be worn, and there’s enough food on the table, never mind having the extra funds for extracurricular activities.

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So, when Anguttitauruq got confirmation that the Sunshine Fund — which is in its 45th year of helping send Manitoba children to summer camp — could help her family, she was overjoyed.

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With the help of donations, the couple’s four middle children, Nevaeh, 13, Michael, 11, Carly, 8, and Sebastian, 7, were all able to spend a week at Camp Manitou, located just outside the city in Headingley, earlier this month.

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“The Sunshine Fund has helped me tremendously. My husband is a full-time student at the Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology, he’s taking the millwright program, and my dad lives with us. We have six children living at home, so we’re a pretty busy household and lots of bills to take care of,” said Anguttitauruq, who works for the Inuit Association of Manitoba.

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“Without the help of the Sunshine Fund, they wouldn’t have been able to attend that week of camp. They really, really, really had so much fun. They enjoyed themselves and learned so many valuable lessons. I think it taught them how to better navigate relationships with adults and other children.”

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The cost would’ve been around $400 a week per child to head to camp, but with the funding they received, the family paid $500 total for four children.

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“I know that I wouldn’t have been able to afford the full week for just one of my kids, so, having four of them approved, it let them have a week of experience and learning,” said Anguttitauruq, who is also a mother to a 20-year-old and one-year old.

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“They got to get out of the house, because I know when they’re in the house together all day, they fight, they don’t get along. This gave them a burst of energy and they learned new things. It was good for them.”

Donna Heppner would love nothing more than to take her children on a fun summer vacation.

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But Disneyland, West Edmonton Mall, or even a few nights in cottage country simply aren’t in the budget right now for the single mother of five. She juggles her home-based skincare business with part-time nanny work just to keep her family on solid ground.

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Times are tough — and basic needs take priority.

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Enter the Sunshine Fund, which is giving Heppner a helping hand in the memory-making department by sending her three daughters to Calvary Temple Camp, nestled on the shores of Red Rock Lake in Whiteshell Provincial Park, later this month.

The trio — aged 12, 14 and 16 — will have the chance to swim, rock climb, mountain bike, craft and dance all while escaping the lengthy “to-do” list waiting back home.

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“Like weeding the garden,” jokes Heppner.

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“It’s going to be great for them to go to a safe place together where there’s lots of fun activities and learning. And it’s nice for them to have things to do while I have to work. I can get some things done that I need to get done so that when we re-connect, I have even more time and energy for them.”

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The Sunshine Fund helps hundreds of children in low-income situations attend summer camp each year, thanks to the generous support of Free Press readers.

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Heppner’s 18-year-old son is actually working at the camp this year, while her 1o-year-old son would have attended, too, if not for a family commitment on his father’s side. As a show of appreciation, Heppner will also volunteer in the kitchen during her daughters’ camp week — with her youngest by her side for part of the time.

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“If you can give back, you should, right? That’s how things have to work,” she said.

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All five of her children attended day camps last summer and were eager for more — especially the chance to go overnight. Heppner said she was grateful to find a way to ensure their time away from school this summer won’t be spent entirely in front of screens.

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“This puts some really exciting things on their schedule and supplements maybe some of the big vacations that some of their friends are going on,” she said.

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“And given that we live in the city, it’s really nice because my kids enjoy being out in the country. This satisfies some of that for them, too. And it’s a really good alternative to the screen, which can be a huge problem.”

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Heppner never had the chance to go to camp as a child. She’s eager to hear about the fun her daughters will have.

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“I think they’re probably excited that I’m not going to be there to watch them to decide how much candy they can have,” she said with a laugh. “Just very thankful because this isn’t something they’d otherwise be able to do.”

In a few weeks, Thania Bazan’s son will have an experience she never did —heading off to summer camp for outdoor adventures and a chance to make new friends.

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Bazan, a single mother of three, Luciano, 22; Paula, 20; and six-year-old Sebastian, never had the opportunity for leisure activities outdoors as she grew up in Mexico.

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She says she’s grateful Sebastian will have that chance when he arrives at Camp Assiniboia later this month. It’s one of many summer programs organized by Camps with Meaning, the camping ministry of Mennonite Church Manitoba.

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“He really likes nature, so I’m sure he’s going to enjoy it,“ Bazan says. “I’m happy and very thankful that he’ll be able to join to have that experience, and I’m sure he’s going to be willing to go every year after this.”

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The camp, located 17 kilometres west of Winnipeg, has plenty of activities for campers, such as canoeing, kayaking, swimming, archery, zip-lining, wagon rides, rope courses, and scavenger hunts.

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She says Sebastian is most excited to be around the water.

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“He absolutely loves the water, and he’s an amazing swimmer as well,” she says. “He never took swimming lessons, I’ve just taught him since he was a baby, which is why he loves it so much.”

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Bazan says this camp experience will mark the first time Sebastian will leave the city without her.

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She says he was nervous to be by himself because he’s shy, so she arranged for one of his friends, Vlad, to attend camp with him.

“Once he heard his friend was coming too, he got even more excited.”

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Sebastian’s opportunity to be a camper is made possible thanks to the support of the Sunshine Fund, which has helped low-income families send their children to camps in Manitoba and northwestern Ontario for 45 years. Already 465 children have signed up this year due to the fund, with more applications being processed to date.

 

Bazan says she hadn’t known about the fund.

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She scrolled through multiple summer camp options and saw that the price was out of her range until she read up on Camp Assiniboia and noticed a subsidy option provided by the Sunshine Fund.

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“It’s impossible to pay for everything as a single mom, so it was very nice to see that,” she says.

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Bazan believes one of the amazing aspects about Canada is that there are always activities in place for children regardless of the family’s economic status.

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“That’s something that I really appreciate about Canada. People and organizations are always making sure that every child has the opportunity to attend.”

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Bazan, who has lived in Winnipeg for 20 years, is trying her best to make ends meet by working part time as an early childhood educator and collecting a disability benefit.

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While she recognizes supporting her family hasn’t been easy, she’s also grateful for everything she has.

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“In other countries, being a single mom on disability, I wouldn’t have any access to a camp or anything like this. I have never felt that, ‘Oh my goodness, I’m so poor that I can’t afford anything, here,’” she says. “I’m just pleased my son gets to join activities that other children can join when both parents are working full time.”

Anastasia and Walker Proden have been going to summer camp since they were seven and six years old.

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Now 13 and almost 12, the siblings still make the 30-minute drive from their home to Circle Square Ranch, south of Austin, a tradition that’s become a summer highlight.

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Walker likes swimming in the pool while Anastasia enjoys trail activities. The two are scheduled to head to the sleepaway camp in southern Manitoba for five days in August.

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Anastasia says she makes new friends every year and is excited to do so again this year.

“My favourite thing about camp is meeting people, learning new skills, being in nature and helping people,” she says. “It’s fun for a multitude of reasons, learning, making friends, and just the vibe is awesome.”

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Circle Square has a host of activities for campers, including archery, horseback riding, mountain biking, trampolining, basketball, arts and crafts, sand volleyball, wall climbing, zip-lining, wilderness cookouts and campfires.

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Stepdad Myles Evans says the value of the experience goes beyond the activities and benefits them in many ways.

Evans also went to camp when he was a kid, attending Shiktehawk Bible Camp in New Brunswick.

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“In this day and age, it’s more needed than you would realize,” said Evans. “Developing a moral compass and so on, it’s not so much out there anymore. I really appreciate having the kids being around others who have it and learning from them.”

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Vanessa Proden, the children’s mom, says they have continued to enjoy camp year after year, and that they’ve been able to keep going thanks to the Free Press Sunshine Fund.

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“It actually allows us to let them go to camp,” said Proden. “I wouldn’t be able to afford it otherwise. It’s super expensive.”

For 45 years, the Sunshine Fund has supported low-income families by helping send their children to camps throughout Manitoba and northwestern Ontario, including Circle Square Ranch, where Proden first heard about the program through camp staff.

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The Manitoba Camping Association sends approximately 600 children to various day and overnight programs at 31 camps each year. So far this year, 465 campers have signed up, with more applications being processed.

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Evans says the camp has helped both children grow during the week of fun.

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“They get to explore new opportunities, hang out with other people they wouldn’t normally get to in their everyday life,” said Evans.

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“I know they went for quite a few years, and it’s helped progress them in a lot of ways… Walker’s still struggling with some issues of being shy… but having this in their life has definitely benefited them a lot,” he said.

Arleen Kehler feels most at peace when she is surrounded by nature.

Now, she wants her children to experience that same feeling.

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Kehler grew up spending summers splashing in Clear Lake or picking sage for smudging in Birds Hill park.

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“They’re missing out,” Kehler said of her children, while fighting back tears. “They need to know how beautiful the planet we live on is.”

This summer marks the 45th year of the Sunshine Fund helping send Manitoba children to summer camp.

With the help of donations, Kehler’s two eldest children, Jayden, 7, and Nevaeh, 9, get to visit InterVarsity Pioneer Camp Manitoba this summer.

Nevaeh went to the same camp, located on Shoal Lake, nearly 150 kilometres east of Winnipeg, last year for the first time. She loved to swim in the lake every day and eat meals underneath the A-frame canopies, her mom said.

“Everyone deserves to go,” Kehler said. “Everyone deserves something nice when you’re a kid. City life is hectic, and it’s nice to have them experience what life is like when not around all the hecticness.”

Kehler is a second-level plumbing apprentice, but because she can’t find a before-and-after school program for her children, it’s difficult for her to work full time.

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The fund shrunk a nearly $1,400 camp fee to around $280 for Kehler, through its sliding scale based on family income.

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Over the years, the 42-year-old has tried to give her children a taste of the outdoors by taking them on road trips. Her fondest memory was driving to Banff, Alta., with her children in 2022.

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When they arrived, Kehler said she was overcome with emotion at being able to experience the mountains with her children.

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She was hoping to go on another trip this summer but expensive car repairs foiled those plans.

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“I was so worried I was going to disappoint them because of my situation with the car.”

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Something good came out of something bad, she said, when a neighbour told her about the Sunshine Fund.

Peyton Toth is weeks away from graduating from Grade 3 and heading to summer camp for the first time.

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And the bubbly outgoing eight-year-old will soon be on her way to Camp Arnes, on the western shore of Lake Winnipeg north of Gimli, thanks to the Sunshine Fund.

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Peyton’s mom, Lindsay, said she knows firsthand the type of experience her daughter will get. Three decades ago, when she was eight years old, she went to camp for the first time — at Camp Arnes.

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“I wanted her to go to camp so I began looking at the camps out there,” she said. “But I didn’t realize (camping fees) would be that much. It costs $800 for the week.

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“It really is the difference between eating and paying rent — you know, the little things in our lives.”

Thanks to the Sunshine Fund, and the sliding scale based on family income, Lindsay’s camp cost came down to a more manageable $200.

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Lindsay said she didn’t even know about the Sunshine Fund until she saw the link on the Camp Arnes website.

But there was something else Lindsay didn’t know: it was only because of the Sunshine Fund that she was able to go to Camp Arnes.

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Linda Hayward, Lindsay’s mom, said a few decades ago she was a single mom who had bills to pay on a low income.

“She was just bubbly when she came back from camp,” Hayward recalled. “It was so good for her. But camp is expensive… to have been able to send my daughter for that experience was great. I couldn’t have done it without the Sunshine Fund.

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“It also gave me a nice break. When you’re a single mom, that little bit of a break helps.”

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With your support, Peyton — just like hundreds of children in low-income situations which the Sunshine Fund aids — will be able to be away from home for a week meeting new friends.

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As part of the camp’s Explorers program, she’ll be able to participate in a high ropes course and even take a Corcl — a small round plastic boat — onto Lake Winnipeg.

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Pretty cool things to do when you’re eight. As Peyton says: “I’m excited to go to camp.