8:00 am…Thursday, July 1, 2004...Check the oil...Load the coolers... ice... check... bread... check... eggs... check... bacon... 2lbs this year... Pencils flew furiously as checklists were marked off item by item. Sleeping bags...flashlights...extra batteries... Umbrellas...? "Please dad, can I bring my umbrella a little voice pleaded?"..."The van is pretty full...oh all right but I can't see that we will need it"... July 1 was a travel day for many families who were making the trek to Welwyn for the 9^th annual Family Camp. Families came from Toronto, Dryden, Prince Albert, Calgary, and Winnipeg! The camp started unofficially on Thursday eve-ning with a trip to Rocanville to watch the fireworks being set off to celebrate Rocanville's 100th birthday! A twenty minute display left everyone breathless with excitement.

8:00 am... Friday, July 2, 2004... And the rain came down!... Boy are we glad we brought those umbrellas!...

The forecasts by Environment Canada were not promising either! We could see that this was going to make Family Camp a challenge. As the rain continued to pour we decided that we needed to move the Family Camp into more hospitable conditions. After a brief consultation, we rented the skating rink, complete with waiting room and dirt floor in the arena. There was one small problem in the arena area though. The company that I work for, PCS, had set up a mock mine that they used for mine rescue training. Although the training was done and the Provincial competition was over they had yet to take down the wood frame panel structure of rooms, passageways, and doors. One quick call to one of the trainers and we were clear to go! The men brought out tools and quickly set to work to remove only enough of the structure to allow for a volleyball court, a badminton court, and a soccer field complete with nets! We left the remainder of the structure for the children to play in, and did they play! Friday night there was an all night adoration at the Church. All the scheduled activities for the weekend went unhindered by the rain, except for the hayride on Saturday. Father Rusak gave wonderful conferences during the camp. The children participated in crafts, games, and many other activities. Daily Mass and Ro-sary were the spiritual boosters during the camp.

Saturday evening concluded with the campfire sing-song in the arena with a very small fire (a candle) around which everyone sat.

The fire may have been small, but the smiles, the laughter, the camaraderie... these dwarfed the fire by com-parison.

I am often reminded by my 95 year old Grandfather about life during the 1930's. He always tells me that even though life was difficult, fami-lies had each other because everyone was in the same boat. He says that life during the depression was hard yet he still admits that many of his fondest memories are from that era. Adversity builds character...builds character...builds character.

This is what Family Camp is all about. Families that make many sac-rifices to drive many hours to come to
Family Camp. The rain comes down. Yet in the end, we are all in the same boat. Not just at Family Camp, but in life. We are all trying to save our souls in a world that denies a soul exists. We are all trying to pass on the Catholic Faith to our children, that they may save their souls. And the rain comes down. Yet from these ad-versities rises that unity of purpose that cements together the friendships and support between all these families that come to Family Camp, long after Family Camp has ended.