This project was inspired by the first St. Michael’s Youth Conference in Canada, which was founded in the Maritimes in 1987. The aims of these annual week-long conferences (the first of which was held in Massachusetts in the mid-1960s) are to provide an environment where high school-aged youth can grow in their faith, through worship according to the Book of Common Prayer coupled with teaching that is true to the Anglican tradition, along with discussion, recreation and relaxation. Clearly this initiative was very much in line with the aims and objectives of the PBSC, and so members of several PBSC branches in southern Ontario resolved to start a St. Michael’s Youth Conference in their own area.
The SMYC in Ontario was launched in 1996, and was held for 15 years at New Life Camp near Durham, and subsequently at Selah Camp near Wiarton. It adopted the same overall structure as the Maritime SMYC, with morning courses in the Bible, theology and spirituality; daily Morning and Evening Prayer (or Compline); and a closing service of Holy Communion. Afternoons were devoted to recreational activities such as swimming, canoeing, kayaking, volleyball, soccer, archery, ping-pong and crafts. Evenings featured music, guessing games, board games, a movie night, a quiz night, and a campfire on the last night. About mid-week there was typically an excursion to a local attraction; these included Inglis Falls, Sauble Beach, Southampton, Bruce Peninsula National Park, Tobermory, and Sainte-Marie-among-the-Hurons. The Ontario SMYC received financial support from several levels of the PBSC: the national Society, the Toronto branch, the Grand Valley branch, and the Ottawa branch. In time it drew participants from all over Southern Ontario.
Over the years a great many individuals were involved in the running of the conference. The initiative was spearheaded by Diana Verseghy, the president of the PBSC Toronto branch, and she continued as the main organizer of the conference for the 24 years of its existence, also teaching one of the morning courses. For the first six years Bill and Becky Creese (whose children had attended the Maritime conference), of the PBSC Grand Valley branch, were instrumental in spreading the word, recruiting staff, working out the initial kinks and establishing the conference on a smooth footing. Walter Raybould, of the PBSC Niagara North branch, brought enormous energy to the effort and served for five years as the conference’s registrar and treasurer. The Revd. David Burrows and the Revd. Geoffrey Sangwine, both of Toronto, were long-time promoters of the conference and served as teachers and chaplains, the former for seventeen years and the latter for eighteen years. Nancy Campbell, as chef extraordinaire, dished up delicious meals for ten years including an elaborate closing banquet, also serving as lifeguard and camp nurse. Anna Irish contributed her expertise gained at the Saskatchewan SMYC, and lent her communications skills to sprucing up the conference brochures, posters and website. The counsellors, who led and supervised the dorms and provided support to the staff and campers, also played a vital role; the veteran among these was Shastyn Griffin, who served for eleven years. Gratifyingly, a number of the teen participants, after they had “graduated”, decided that they wanted to come back as counsellors; among the longest-serving of these were Paul Burrows, Katherine Raybould, Sahar Honarmand, Jerome Henry, Alexander Urquhart, Andrewes Sissons, Julia Meadows, Laura Meadows and Elizabeth Aaltonen. Julia additionally helped out as camp cook, and as website custodian after Anna’s departure, and Laura took on the role of hymn teacher for several years.
A gallery of 20 photos, spanning the history of the St. Michael’s Youth Conference in Ontario, appears below.
