Happy Holidays!
Letter from the Executive Director
Dear Fircom Community:
As I reflect on the year that’s passed, I am mindful that despite the challenges, there is so much to be celebrated! We welcomed many of our long-term rental groups back to site in 2022, and look forward to hosting them again in 2023! We also dove back into hosting weddings in the spring, summer and fall, and had the immense honour of being an integral part of the special days of eleven wonderful couples.
During the spring and fall, we offered three amazing retreat sessions - Open Heart. Quiet Mind., Mindful Movement, and From the Heart - Retreat for Moms (a personal dream come true for me!). A huge thank you to our lovely facilitators, without whom our retreat offerings would not have been possible. They brought their passion, creativity and authentic, grounded energy to these sessions, and it was a beautiful thing to watch each retreat weekend unfold.
The heart of our operations is our summer camp programming, and it was pure magic to observe children, youth and families connect, play, learn, reflect and develop a sense of belonging within our Fircom community here at camp. While we are aware that our awesome staff team and the activities they offer are a highlight for our campers, we also recognize that the natural beauty of the land that Fircom is situated on, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish First Nation), resonates deeply with all who spend time here. We are so blessed to be held so lovingly by the forest that surrounds us and the sea that expands before us, and we are mindful that it is a great privilege and responsibility to be stewards of this majestic place.
In October, we partnered with the David Suzuki Foundation and members of the Squamish First Nation to offer our first annual ‘Walking with the Skwxwú7mesh: Professional Development Retreat for Educators. This retreat was attended by 45 educators from around the Lower Mainland, who participated in a variety of workshops and activities led by Squamish educators that were focused on their history and cultural teachings. They also engaged in facilitated conversations around decolonizing education, advocating for and supporting Indigenous students, and weaving Indigenous curriculum and principles of learning into the classroom setting in authentic, respectful ways. Fundraising was particularly important for us this year, and we hosted several fundraisers, including the $22 for 2022 in February, the Gambier Grind Challenge in June, and our recent Online Auction. The highlight once again was Kendal Crawford’s Epic Marathon Swim Fundraiser. Kendal swam from Squamish to Halkett Point on Gambier Island, a distance of approximately 32km!
All the experiences that are worthy of celebrating this year are possible because of the generous support that you, our Fircom Community, continue to offer to our organization. Whether it was participating in a camp or retreat session, joining us on site through a rental or wedding booking, spreading the word about our offerings to friends and family, donating funds through CanadaHelps or to our various fundraisers, generously offering items to be bid on in our online auction, or volunteering your precious time as part of a committee or here on site, your support was once again impactful and appreciated.
I wish to express a heartfelt thank you to Fircom’s Board of Directors, for the on-going support they offer me, and for the time and energy they consistently give to our organization. I also wish to thank the Pacific Mountain Region of The United Church of Canada, for the incredibly generous COVID-19 Relief Grant they offered to us again this year. Finally, I wish to express my sincere gratitude for my wonderful staff team, many of whom wore many ‘hats’ this year so that we could continue to live our mission and values each and every day. It is such an honour to belong to a community filled with individuals who share a passion for Fircom and who consistently go above and beyond, especially during challenging times. I look forward to working with so many of our stellar staff who have already committed to returning for the 2023 operating season!
Cheers to the challenges that help us grow, and the many moments we experience that are worthy of celebration! Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year (that hopefully includes time spent at Fircom!).
~ Terra McKenzie