Summer Camp 2026
Four days of free hockey at Leaside Memorial Community Gardens, with funded places for families at a camp week at Ted Reeve Community Arena. Professional coaching, lunch every day, and a full set of equipment every camper took home to keep.
Key facts
The camp at a glance
- Dates
- Tue 4 to Fri 7 August 2026Four days
- Arena
- Leaside Memorial Community GardensDr. Tom Pashby Play Safely Rink (Rink A), plus Ted Reeve
- Ages
- 5 to 10Grouped by ability on the ice
- Hours on ice
- 3 hours a dayTwo 90 minute sessions, 12 hours in all
- Coaches
- Marc Muruve, Head CoachMike Wilson, acting Head Coach on Day 1
- Volunteers
- 26 Program AssistantsEach leading a house group
- Partners
- HockeyStickMan, Pizza PizzaLeaside Hockey Association, Toronto Leaside Wildcats
- Cost to families
- $0No fee, no deposit, gear kept
The story
Two arenas, one week, every child kitted out
Our third camp, and the first run across two arenas in the same week.
Summer Camp 2026 ran from Tuesday 4 to Friday 7 August 2026. The flagship site was the Dr. Tom Pashby Play Safely Rink (Rink A) at Leaside Memorial Community Gardens, 1073 Millwood Road at Laird Drive, where Open Ice ran the full programmed day. In the east end, we funded places for families at a camp week at Ted Reeve Community Arena, so families there did not have to cross the city.
Every child who joins Open Ice is new to hockey when they first arrive. Campers were chosen through our written, needs-based selection, which looks at a family’s circumstances and never at skating ability. Some summer campers came back to us after starting at March Break; for many others, this was their first week on skates.
Each day brought two ninety-minute ice sessions, a mid-day block of guest speakers, life skills and games, a free lunch from Pizza Pizza, and a closing circle with a Camper of the Day award. On the last day every camper carried a full set of equipment out of the arena. It is theirs to keep.
The shape of every day
The same timetable ran all four days at Leaside, so campers always knew what came next.
7:45 amArrival and gear-up
Check-in at the front desk, then into the dressing rooms with a volunteer, ready by 8:25.
8:30 to 10:00 amIce session one
Skating, edges and puck work in skill groups, with a small prize at the end.
10:30 to 11:30 amMid-day block
A guest speaker or life-skills workshop, otherwise off-ice games.
11:30 am to 12:30 pmLunch, free
Pizza Pizza, provided every day so no family had to pack one.
1:00 to 2:30 pmIce session two
Drills, then small area games, with a second small prize.
2:30 to 3:00 pmClosing circle
Camper of the Day, the daily prize and a snack.
3:00 pmPickup
Day by day
Four days in August
What happened on the ice and off it, from the first skate box to the last bag out the door.
Day 01 · Tuesday 4 August
Media DayGear fitting and first strides
Families arrived to registration tables in the lobby and a tower of skate boxes. Volunteers fitted every camper for skates, helmet and cage, gloves, pads and pants, while children waiting their turn played floor hockey in the hallway.
- Mike Wilson ran the ice as acting Head Coach and spoke to the group in the mid-day block
- Green jerseys on, a talk off the ice, then the first session on the Pashby rink
- A professional photographer and video crew captured the day
Day 02 · Wednesday 5 August
SkillsOutdoors, then the skate assessment
The morning moved outside: instruction in a circle on the grass, ball hockey and lunch outdoors. In the afternoon every camper was watched on the ice and placed into a skill group by what they could do, not by age.
- Four skill tiers, from First Stride for brand-new skaters to Experienced
- House groups of three or four campers, each with its own Program Assistant
- Camper portraits on the ice
Day 03 · Thursday 6 August
SkillsThe most hockey of the week
Drills in lanes, pylons across the ice and four groups rotating through stations: stride and edges, stopping, stickhandling with the head up, passing and receiving. Thursday was the day first-time skaters stopped watching their feet.
- Pizza Pizza lunch beside the rink window
- Campers who could barely stand on Tuesday skated the length of the ice
- Life-skills themes through the week: Courage, Teamwork, Resilience and Leadership
Day 04 · Friday 7 August
Closing dayShowcase, awards and gear home
The final day brought the last drills, a closing showcase on the ice and a closing ceremony with families invited. Nolan from HockeyStickMan presented hockey cards and hats as MVP awards.
- Final Camper of the Day awards and prizes
- Every bag of equipment packed and carried out by the child who wore it
- Coaches scored six skills again to compare with Day 1
On the ice
Who coached and who helped
Professional coaching, student leadership and a lot of willing hands.
A member of the Open Ice Headquarters Team, Marc led the on-ice program across the four days, with the coaching staff and Program Assistants working to his plan.
Mike ran a hockey camp with Rick Tocchet for four years, plus one in Sweden. He led the first day on the ice and spoke to campers in the mid-day block.
Every volunteer led a house group of three or four campers under the coaching staff. The Toronto Leaside Wildcats shared the call with their U15 and U18 players.
Jake Harrison hand-fitted the helmets and cages before camp, and Nolan presented the MVP awards at the closing.
On the first morning of camp, the City Councillor met with founder Andrew Adair and connected Open Ice with Leaside Life.
UCC staff signed off community service hours for the student volunteers who gave their week to camp.
What campers learned
From standing up to playing the game
Coaches scored six skills on a one to five scale on the first day and again on the last.
Stride and edges
Balance first, then a proper stride, inside and outside edges and crossovers for the groups that were ready.
Stopping and getting up
How to fall, how to get back up without help, and how to stop under control. The first wins for every new skater.
Head up, soft hands
Stickhandling around pylons, protecting the puck and shooting with technique before power.
Passing and house groups
Give and receive a pass, then use it in small area games with the same house group all week.
Courage and resilience
Life-skills themes ran through every day: Courage, Teamwork, Resilience and Leadership, with a Camper of the Day each afternoon.
Gear that is theirs
A full, fitted set of equipment to keep, so a child can keep skating long after camp ends.
What our students gave and learned
Open Ice is led by a twenty member Headquarters Team, working with the founder and an adult administration team and overseen by the board. The team keeps every Open Ice chapter across Ontario to the Open Ice standard and runs the flagship camps in Toronto, with student volunteers on the ice. Camp is where they learn to lead.
Program AssistantsLeading a house group
Each of the 26 volunteers looked after the same three or four campers all week, on the ice and off it.
- Onboarding package: Read First, Safety and Emergency, On-Ice Coaching Reference and Schedules
- Off-ice roles at the front desk, gear fitting, snack and hydration, and life-skills games
- Community service hours, signed off for every student
Headquarters TeamRunning a real organization
The Headquarters Team booked ice at two arenas, ordered lunches, collected registrations and waivers, and sized and sourced equipment for every new camper.
- Sponsorship outreach and partner relations
- Logistics, scheduling and a Location, Family, Child records system now used for every camp
- Media Day, photography and the website
Skills for lifeWhat it builds
Students leave camp with experience most people meet years later.
- Leadership and responsibility for younger children
- Budgeting, procurement and partner communication
- Working to firm deadlines in a team of their peers
Made possible by
Thank you to our Platinum Partners, MCW Consultants, Platform Insurance, Rockland Resources, TorontoToday and HockeyStickMan; to our Pilot Sponsors, Pizza Pizza and the PHPA; and to our program partners, Upper Canada College, Stronger Together Hockey, the Leaside Hockey Association and the Toronto Leaside Wildcats; and to the twenty-two Community Referral Partners who share our application with the families they serve. Every hour of ice, every set of equipment and every lunch at an Open Ice camp is theirs as much as ours.
Our partners and sponsors
Community Referral Partnerswho share our application with the families they serve
At this camp
The people who made it possible
Every place at camp is free because these partners fund the ice, the equipment and the lunches.
- Equipment partnerHockeyStickMan Sticks, caged helmets, jerseys, tape, base layers, socks, water bottles, coaches’ boards and MVP prizes.
- Lunch partnerPizza Pizza A hot lunch for campers, coaches and volunteers on every day of camp.
- Ice partnerLeaside Hockey Association Sponsored part of the ice time at Leaside Memorial Community Gardens.
- Ice and volunteer partnerToronto Leaside Wildcats Supported the ice at Leaside and shared our volunteer call with U15 and U18 players.
- Platinum partnerMCW Consultants Cash support for ice and equipment since our first camp.
- Platinum partnerPlatform Insurance Funding for ice and equipment across the season.
- SponsorRockland Resources Sponsorship support for the 2026 camp season.
Thank you as well to the 41 people who gave through our fundraiser, and to Upper Canada College for signing off our volunteers’ service hours. See every partner.
Read more
Coverage and stories
After camp, founder Andrew Adair sat down with Leaside Life for a feature on the week. Here is more from our newsroom.
Camp report
Aug 12, 2026
Jul 1, 2026
Aug 16, 2026
Jul 1, 2026
Photographs
The week in pictures
Get involved
Be part of the next camp
Christmas Camp 2026: five days of free hockey for children aged 5 to 10, planned at four arenas across Toronto.
Apply for Christmas Camp 2026. Applying takes about 15 minutes, and every place is free.
Apply nowVolunteerLead a house group on the ice, help with gear fitting, or run the front desk. Student volunteers earn community service hours.
Volunteer with usSponsor a campPartners fund the ice, the equipment and the lunches. One child’s full camp place is $1,060.
Become a partner