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Western Canadian Pediatric AIDS Society

Brightening the lives of children living with or affected by HIV/AIDS

Camp Moomba is a specialized recreational and support program for children living with or affected by HIV/AIDS. The recreational camp, sponsored by the Western Canadian Pediatric AIDS Society, is designed to brighten the lives of children affected by this devastating disease.

Each summer, children aged 6 to 17 travel across Canada for a one-week camp at one of British Columbia’s most spectacular locations. The program combines personal growth, social development, and good old-fashioned fun — making a profound and positive difference in these children’s lives.

“A lot of these kids are dealing with devastating emotional issues; not just HIV/AIDS, but neglect, abandonment, and loss,” says Don Wong, Director of Development “Camp Moomba gives them the opportunity to set that aside and, at least for awhile, just be kids, sharing smiles, laughter, stories, and fun. Given the stigma and discrimination surrounding HIV/AIDS, such a community is of vital importance.”

In 1998, the first camp hosted 19 children at the YMCA’s Camp Elphinstone and was an immediate hit. Today’s Moomba, held at the YMCA’s spectacular Camp Howdy, hosts more than 100 children, and demand continues to grow. That’s one reason the grant from the Shooting Stars Foundation was so welcome this year. The money will allow two more kids to attend the camp this year, all expenses paid. That’s a generous and significant gift.

It’s an expensive proposition maintaining the excellence of the program. It costs an average of $2,500 to send one child to Moomba for a week. One of the goals of the program is to provide the camp at no cost to the kids and their families. If not for donations, few of these children would have the opportunity to experience this extraordinary program.

“Parents tell us all the time that this is the one chance their kids have to just be kids, and that,” says Don, “is everything.”