Sport + Spirit Retreats News/Updates:
2020 HOCKEY RETREAT CANCELLATION NOTICE
Update - July 15, 2020
- By Sophie McLaughlin, Founder, Sport + Spirit Retreats
In light of all the ongoing restrictions that we continue to be presented with as a result of Covid-19, we have made the difficult decision at this time to CANCEL the 2020 Sport + Spirit Hockey Retreat at Hockey Opportunity Camp this fall.
Although different parts of the province are slowly moving into new phases of opening, we still find ourselves considerably restricted due to the location of the retreat, arena closure and nature of the retreat based on the guidance of the Province of Ontario, Ontario Camps Association and our local health unit, North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit.
Restriction: Location of Retreat - Hockey Opportunity Camp
As you are aware, the Province of Ontario announced that all overnight children's summer camps in Ontario would remain closed for the 2020 summer camp season (Click Here: Closure Announcement - May 19, 2020). Therefore, our host venue for the retreat, Hockey Opportunity Camp (HOC), has cancelled its 2020 summer camp season.
As a result of this closure, HOC continues to be restricted to only minimal staff (local staff, not residing on the property) onsite for building repairs and maintenance.
In addition, all of the other fall bookings at HOC have been cancelled including overnight school groups, day groups, and women's wellness retreat. Therefore, opening, cleaning and preparing the camp facilities/buildings/areas that are required to be utilized for one weekend retreat would require significant manpower that isn't feasible both physically and financially by HOC.
Restriction: Closure of South River/Machar Arena
We have been waiting for and have just been officially informed that the South River/Machar Arena will not be opened until October/November at the very earliest. As you know, with the cancellation of Hockey Opportunity Camp bookings this summer, the arena is not in a financial position to open up any earlier in order to get the ice surface back in and ready to host our weekend booking.
Restriction: Nature of Retreat - Out of Area Guests
Although the location of camp is entering phase 3, many of our guests are coming from different areas throughout Ontario. Large gatherings of guests coming from different areas remains a significant health concern that we need to consider for the safety of our staff and other guests.
Refunds:
Full refunds will be processed back to all guests registered for the 2020 Hockey Retreat.
I am sure that everyone is disappointed by this cancellation, as you were hoping for a fun ladies' hockey retreat weekend away in the fall.
We hope that you understand the rationale behind the decision and know that we waited as long as we could in order to ensure we made a decision based on the latest guidelines, restrictions, and facility availability.
We want to thank you for your patience and understanding and hope that you consider joining us again for the fall of 2021. We will look forward to putting together an equally exceptional program itinerary so that you don't feel like you missed out!
Stay well, sincerely,
Sophie McLaughlin
