Camping in our own backyard.

On Sunday Nov, 8, 2009 Magicana was thrilled to present "Bootcamp Magic" a one-day magic workshop for children attending Camp Oochigeas' Urban Camp.

Camp Oochigeas is a privately funded, volunteer-based organization that provides kids with cancer and kids affected by childhood cancer with a unique opportunity for growth through challenging, fun and magical experiences.

Magicana was honoured be invited to provide a custom-version of our children's program, My Magic Hands. We created custom "Boxes of Secrets" for each child and Magicana provided all the instruction and Camp Ooch Counsellors took the role of Magic Coach. The children were, of course, our magicians for the day.

The morning started magically right off the top: as campers arrived, they checked into the "magic station" where "magic powers" were created ... with duct tape, crepe-paper streamers and a lot of imagination! We made magic wands, supercapes, power shields and of course, magic bands of power.

After taking our oaths of secrecy, we rolled up our sleeves and dove into learning magic. Children learned magic with ropes, "props", cards, sponges and even a fortune-telling fish! It was a jam-packed day of learning and fun.

A highlight was the immense delight the magicians showed as they discovered magic (and their own abilities!) and watching how their counsellors brought out the very best in each child. And, being at camp, you never knew when a group of campers and their coaches would suddenly break into song! Magicana "retaliated" with random acts of magic.

At the end of the day, we invited family and friends to come and attend The Big Show where 19 of the children presented the magic that they had learned. Family members confessed to us afterwards that they were astounded at how much the children learned in just five hours. The audience applauded wildly as the children graduated with their "Box of Secrets" and "Certificates of Completion" in hand.

What did the kids think of the day:

"The classes were fun and the teachers were great! The Big Show was awesome."

"The Big Show was the most fun of the program."

"I wish that we could learn more magic tricks!"

"It's wonderful to learn magic. I love magic now a lot."

Magicana was very proud to be a part of something so powerful and inspiring. We were pleased to have Julie Eng at the helm leading the team with assistance from James Alan and Magicana volunteer extraordinaire, Joe Culpepper. We applaud and acknowledge the incredible and hard-working volunteers and staff of Camp Ooch for making the event possible.

It is wonderful to see that anything is possible!