Camp Tapawingo solves the case of summer fun

PARRY SOUND, ONT— There’s been a murder and the girls at Camp Tapawingo don their detective hats as they investigate who done it.

It’s part of the fun at the YWCA camp where girls rule as they put their heads together to solve the murder mystery of the Hawaiian Association of Authentic Leis.

Haven’t heard of it? That’s a clue; it means you’ve never been a camper at Tapawingo, where imagination and fun run high with games such as the mystery, which always involve plenty of shenanigans, false leads and questionable evidence followed by peals of laughter and squeals of delight with the inevitable capture of the culprit.

Wishes also come true at Tapawingo, from learning to paddle a canoe, sleeping in a tent under a sky of twinkling stars, tackling the ropes course or making something spectacular only a mother would cherish in the crafts cabin. Sometimes those treasures are given to new-found friends at camp.

Airamie, 9, is new at camp this summer and she’s having the best time ever. Her accomplishments so far are off the charts.

“I’ve been rock climbing and reached the top,” she says, adding she did “freak” when she recognized how high she’d climbed and then did the unthinkable: “jumped off” and down to the ground. Her harness and support team gave her the confidence to take the leap of faith.

She and her bestie Ashley, also 9, are also totally into dancing — hip hop and some jazz — as much as they’re into canoeing and swimming. Ashley is polishing her creative skills as well, painting pet rocks and tie-dyeing a T-shirt, both of which will have a place of honour in her bedroom as a reminder of what a good time she had at camp.

Tapawingo girls are also learning to be self-reliant, independent and selfassured as they tackle challenges such as overnight canoe trips in the woods, cooking over a campfire and getting down and dirty as they acquire survival skills. One never knows what life will throw at them outside of camp, but Tapawingo girls will be ready.

Abigail,11, has been a Tapawingo girl for five summers and loves the waterfront, including jumping off of Saturn — a big blow-up “floating planet” just off the dock. It’s harder to climb than it looks, but the girls are determined. Jumping off into the cool lake is the best reward.

Her friend Simone, 11, is celebrating her second year at camp. She returned “because of the great atmosphere. It’s really fun and so easy to meet new people you have stuff in common with. You just keep talking and you make friends.”

And at Tapawingo, they come in all shapes and sizes from different cultures and all walks of life to be united in a place where girls can be themselves, without judgment and where lifetime memories are made every summer.