For more than a decade, Kayla's Children's Centre (KCC) has operated its overnight camp from rented facilities, packing up at the end of each summer and starting over the following year. This summer marks a new chapter as Camp Lionheart opens on the former grounds of Camp Tamarack in Muskoka—the first permanent home for KCC's overnight program.
Camp Lionheart is the first Jewish overnight camp in Canada intentionally designed for children with disabilities and complex medical needs. The campus brings together the joy of overnight camp with integrated therapeutic and medical supports, allowing children to participate fully while receiving the care they need.
That commitment is reflected throughout the camp. Medical professionals from SickKids, North York General Hospital, Humber River Hospital, and William Osler Health System are embedded within daily camp life, allowing campers to receive the care they need without leaving the camp experience.
"Our camp is not just about accessibility—it's also about fun. Our campers spend so much of their time at therapy appointments and in the hospital, and camp should be the place where they get to just be kids."
— Baila Vaturi, Community Engagement & Camp Director, KCC
This summer, Camp Lionheart will welcome campers through two pilot sessions: a Main Division from August 3–13 and an Adventure Teen Division from August 17–25. Alongside swimming, campfires, sports, and cabin life, campers will receive integrated physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language pathology, ABA therapy, social skills programming, and music therapy.
"Establishing our own overnight camp has been a longtime dream of our leadership team," says Yaffi Scheinberg, CEO and Head of School, KCC.
The camp is named in honour of Larry Robbins, z"l, whose extraordinary generosity, leadership, and vision made it possible.
This inaugural season will welcome children already participating in KCC's year-round programs. In the years ahead, Camp Lionheart will welcome children and families from across North America while helping train the next generation of healthcare professionals, therapists, and educators through hands-on experience in inclusive care.
Kayla's Children's Centre is a UJA partner agency dedicated to empowering children with disabilities and complex medical needs to reach their fullest potential. Through its support of KCC and its network of partner agencies, UJA helps ensure children and families across Jewish Toronto have access to the programs, care, and community they need to thrive.
