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  • Home
  • Children
    • After School Program
    • Piano Lessons
  • Pool
    • Schedule and Fees
    • Swimming Lessons
    • AquaFit & Aquatherapy
  • Programs
    • Inclusive Recreation
    • Weight Room
  • Rentals
  • Register!

Blog

Summer Camp Information 2020

23/6/2020

 
Summer Camps 2020

We have decided to run two limited COVID-19 adapted Summer Camps to accommodate families requiring care in our community. This year's camp activities will all take place in the Jack Purcell Community Centre, both indoors and outdoors. Activities will themed around be good ol' fashioned summer fun, with sprinkler activities, crafts, yoga and sports --- all while making sure kids stay healthy and happy! Check out our sample day schedule here! Weather permitting, we have also secured camp-only access to St. Luke's wading pool, to cool off in the summer sun! 

Dates

We will be running weekly camps from July 6, 2020- August 21, 2020.

Times

Please note that times have changed! We will be starting the intake process at 8:30 a.m. everyday; parents and children are to line up 2 meters apart outside and come in one at a time for our intake assessment each morning. Temperatures and health check-ins will be done each morning.

Intake will only be from 8:30 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. any late arrivals will not be permitted entry to the camp for the day.
Children can then enter the camp which will run from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. (Hours may be subject to change due to COVID-19 restrictions)

*We will not be allowing parents into the building at any point*

What to Bring?

Items from home will be limited to:
  • 1 lunch box, please no nuts or sesame
  • 1 water bottle, filled to the top at the time of drop off
  • 1 beach towel
  • Sun hat, and one bottle of sunscreen that the child is comfortable applying themselves. Leaders will assist using verbal cues only.
 
*Label all items you send your child with daily, do not send them with anything else.

Pricing

The cost will be $260/per week per child. (no discounts of any kind except for families on our subsidy program).

Registration

First come first serve, registration is now open online. 

Please note that ACTIVE Net, our registration portal does charge service fees. Apologies, we do not have control over these fees. 

Ratios and Camps

We will have two camps running in the building for ages 5 -12 and will divide the children based on ages after registration. Each group will include two staff and no more than 8 children and each “bubble” of 10 will not cross paths with any other group.

*Once everyone has registered, we will divide the children, siblings always need to be in the same cohort of 8 children. You will receive an email as to which camp your child will be participating in prior to the start date.

Health and Safety
  • Physical distancing of 2 metres will be emphasized and enforced, with the exception of staff interventions for behaviour management and issuing first aid.
  • Those who have indicated that they or a member of the same household has travelled outside the country in the past 14 days will not be permitted into the program.
  • Campers or staff who are exhibiting symptoms of illness may not be permitted into the facility. Those who exhibit signs or symptoms of illness during the program will be isolated from the group and sent home immediately. Others in the group will be notified immediately.
  • Health questionnaires will be sent out to parents via email in advance to each week of camp, if they are not filled out and submitted back in advance the child will not be permitted into the program.
  • Each camp of 8 children will have the same 2 staff working with them all summer.  
  • ​Unfortunately, due to the COVID situation, there will be no trips, guests or entertainers or specialty camp programming. There are still a few regulations/approvals we need to go through, and please be aware the government could shut down the re-opening at any point. If we cannot run the new camps, rest assured, we will issue a full refund. 

Waiting Lists

We will be putting children on waiting lists once camps are full. If the camp is full please email sarah.routliffe@jpra.ca and you will be put on the list in a first come first serve manner; you will be contacted if there is a spot.

Please note that due to volume of email, we will not be able answer emails requesting status on the wait list -- we apologize for this. 

Sick Child

If your child is exhibiting any signs and symptoms of illness, they will be put into an isolation room and you will be called. Parents must come immediately and pick up their child; if they do not come in a timely manner, we reserve the right to remove the child from camp for the rest of the summer.
 
Camps are subject to change at any time due to COVID-19 restrictions.

this Year's Camp....coming soon!

12/6/2020

 
We have decided to move forward with COVID-19 adapted Summer Camps here at JPRA. 

This camp will run from July 6- August 21, 2020. 

More details including reduced camp hours, pricing, ratios, and registration will be out early next week.

A Note on Summer Camps... (UPDATED)

19/5/2020

 
Dear Neighbours,

We hope everyone is continuing to stay safe and healthy during this time
 
Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 we are cancelling all current Summer Camps for 2020. We cannot run camps at the same child to staff ratio, pricing and programming. 

We are optimistic that once we receive guidelines from the City of Ottawa, we should be able to run a new Summer Camp Program with strict health and safety guidelines. As soon as we have any information on the new camps, we will email them to you.
 
Refunds:
 
  • If you paid for Summer Camp via credit card- we will refund your card if you are able to do a credit to account instead please let us know by emailing sarah.routliffe@jpra.ca.
  • If you paid with a debit card, we will put a credit on your account for future use.

If there are any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Sarah at sarah.routliffe@jpra.ca. For the most up to date information please follow us on Twitter- with the current reduced staffing e-mail responses may be delayed.

The April Centretown BUZZ is here -- but online

1/5/2020

 
Have you been wondering why you haven't seen the Centretown BUZZ at your door?

Centretown's community newspaper has gone online-only for April and May, in order to protect the health of its volunteers and readers.

But it's still available to read! To make up for it not being printed on paper, it's bigger, with more Centretown-specific stories, and all in colour. You can read and download the paper at centretownbuzz.com .

This issue will tell you about the people helping others in Centretown, the fight for more space for pedestrians on Bank Street, Centretown's new public school trustee, how the City of Ottawa responded to the 1918 Spanish Flu, how and where to get your bike back on the road -- plus recipes to comfort you in these difficult times.

Make sure you don't miss future issues: sign up for the new BUZZ notification-only list at subscribe@centretownbuzz.com.

Meet our Amazing General Manager, Sarah

26/7/2019

 
​Sarah Routliffe has spent the past 10+ years working in recreational and community development. Sarah’s passion began when she was an undergraduate student at uOttawa completing her Bachelor of Arts: Communications Studies and minoring in Theatre Studies. During her studies, Sarah worked at Jack Purcell Recreation Association (JPRA) as an After-School Counsellor and upon graduating was moved into the position of Children’s and Youth Program Coordinator. Most recently, Sarah was hired as the new General Manager of JPRA, allowing her to incorporate her passion for recreation into her everyday work.

“A Meeting Place for the Community”
Sarah describes JPRA as a pillar within the Centretown and Elgin community. Her goal is to ensure that those who visit can find something they are interested in doing and working collaboratively with the community to ensure everyone’s recreational needs are met. As such, one can often find Sarah working with clients to facilitate new and exciting ways to generate unique programming that is both accessible and affordable for the community.

Sarah sees JPRA as a place for children, youth, adults, and seniors of all backgrounds and places. As such, she takes every step to make sure that her door is open for clients, kids, and staff. Sarah’s “open-door policy” is built into her philosophy as a manager and improvement expert in the recreation field. Some of her favourite moments are when children that used to be in the After-School program apply to be an After-School Counsellor when they get older. It’s a full circle, Sarah described, seeing children take part in JPRA programming wanting to move into the recreation profession.
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The Future of JPRA
By mobilizing others and enforcing a community-based philosophy in her everyday work, Sarah hopes to create a community centre that is safe and accessible for anyone who wants to use its services. Her main goal is to modernize JPRA (such as the most recent re-design efforts on social media and website) and to streamline all the processes, policies and procedures. Sarah hopes to increase JPRA’s visibility by online engagement, upgraded equipment, and launching new and innovative programming supported by trained and dedicated staff. 
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“I love the diversity and welcoming environment that we built – people from so many different places and backgrounds come through the centre every day. So many new and interesting challenges. And I strive to make sure that we offer something for everyone. Something for people to do and enjoy” ​

Meet our Amazing Summer Camp Coordinator!

28/6/2019

 
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Meet Mikka Zeisig, JPRA’s new Summer Camp Coordinator!
​

Mikka Zeisig was born in Boston, MA and moved to Ottawa when she was six years old. Currently, as a student in Sustainability and National Development at Dalhousie University, Mikka spends the fall and winter months in Halifax, Nova Scotia. As she wraps up her final year at Dalhousie, Mikka plans to enroll in a Social Work program to continue her passion for working with children and youth.
Since the age of 12, Mikka has worked with children as a Dance Instructor, Ski Instructor, and held a position with Snow Hawks. More recently, Mikka published a children’s book called Mac and His Monster, that follows the story of Mac, a young boy and his journey as he struggles with depression. Mikka hopes to challenge narratives of mental health by allowing people to know they are not alone.

Mikka is most excited to work JPRA because of its central location and accessibility of the centre, and its programming! Mikka is most thrilled to incorporate her many different years of experience into the summer program and having the opportunity to work with volunteers who were once participants in the summer program (full circle!).

Summer Camp

Don’t forget that this year summer camp is going to be a blast! The Children’s and Youth Coordinator in collaboration with the Summer Camp staff devised a plan of summer camp thrills that should not disappoint. Each week offers a new and exciting theme focused on physical activity, art, travel, and summer fun.

Every week will be overseen by the new Summer Camp Coordinator, experienced Summer Camp Counsellors, and a variety of volunteers.

The themes for this year are:
  • Go 4 Gold Sports Week
  • Artistic Adventures Week
  • Carnival Week
  • Wet N’ Wild Water Week
  • Hanging on to Summer Week
  • Prehistoric Buggin’ Out Week
  • Imagination Domination Week
  • Under the Stars Hollywood Week

HUMANS OF JACK PURCELL: ALDO BRAVO, Fitness Coordinator & Instructor Short Circuit

21/10/2018

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Aldo became a certified group fitness instructor in 2004 when he was advised he had high blood pressure. Fitness is a way for him to promote and maintain his own good health.

In 2009, Aldo joined the JPRA fitness program as the Monday evening step/cardio instructor, which was the only type of class he taught early in his fitness instruction. Over the years, he has expanded his range to include cardio circuit, Tabata, interval training, and weight and strength training.

Aldo’s favourite workout is weight training and he teaches his class at a high intensity level. He  encourages his participants to challenge themselves and to move their intensity level up in each class. He also likes to build in some unpredictability in his classes. Just when you think you’re finished with that routine . . . .! And, of course, he may use a short simple round of stepping to get you warmed up.

In 2012, Aldo became the Coordinator for JPRA’s Fitness Program, a position that he holds today. He creates seasonal fitness sessions that provide a workout for everyone, regardless of their fitness level. He ensures that qualified and committed instructors are available to teach in the program.

Whether its weight lifting, stepping, cardio moves or Tabata, Aldo wants new participants to understand that “you and your body have to learn how to do cardio moves and how to lift weights correctly. Give yourself time. This is a commitment.” He has made the commitment for over 14 years now.

One area that Aldo enjoys most about fitness is building relationships with participants over a long period and developing a social connection with his participants. Many people have been attending his classes for several years, coming back for the challenge he offers in each of his classes, pushing you to take your workout to the next level.

​Aldo’s favourite post-workout meal: Chicken, roasted sweet potatoes. He doesn’t actually watch what he eats!

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Humans of jack purcell: PETER STANIFORTH

19/10/2018

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Peter is both a certified group strength fitness (for over 10 years) and Mossa Core instructor (a workout offering a new training techniques). He also teaches group fitness to the visually impaired for the City of Ottawa at the Jack Purcell Community Centre.

Peter took up fitness as a way to relieve the tension in his high-stress job. He decided that he wanted to be an instructor after taking several core and strength classes at the YM-YWCA. He also does triathlons, half marathons and is an avid cross-country and alpine skier. He bikes, he swims, he trains, and he does the annual 3K Bring on the Bay nonstop swim across the Ottawa River.

Peter first joined JPRA as the early-morning Boot Camp instructor in October 2011. In fall 2017, he taught a Tuesday evening Total Body Strength-Core class as part of the Fitness Program. He loves adding variety in his workouts offering circuit training, sports conditioning, Tabata and strength training. He also likes to introduce lots of equipment or fitness “toys” as he calls them, setting up the room with different equipment from his bag of toys. He’ll also add partner group workouts that move the intensity level up another notch in his classes. Because his favourite type of workout is core, Peter dedicates at least 15 minutes of each class that focuses on working core/abdominal muscles.
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He likes to coach and uses a down-to-earth and enthusiastic approach in his teaching style. The bottom line for Peter: he wants participants to have fun, enjoy themselves , have a good workout and be introduced to as much variety in the workout and in the range of equipment that he can fit into each hour.
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His favourite post-workout meal: “depends on the workout and how hard you worked.” But soon after a race, Peter always ensures a good protein intake as part of his recovery process.

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