Girls Can Too contributed a lot to Bolton Camp restoration

November 9, 2017 · 0 Comments

By Bill Rea
The work goes on in the restoration of the Bolton Camp property, but a lot of progress was made over the summer.
A lot of that was due to the efforts of 61 young women, who were taking part in the Girls Can Too program. Members of the program were out showcasing some of what had been accomplished over the last couple of months Saturday. As well, they also held a tree-planting event.
Girls Can Too offers young women the chance to volunteer during the summer on restoration projects at the Camp, which is owned by Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA). The hands-on projects have included creating habitat, restoring trails, actual building, etc.
Nadia Zanardi, co-leader of the program, said she was among about 160 young people hired by TRCA in the summer of 2014 to do construction and restoration work.
“I really liked it,” she said, but she also noticed a lot of the girls had signed up for the more traditional projects on the site, such as the ones related to arts, etc. But there were some who wanted to switch to more of the “hands-on” work.
Zanardi said that with collaboration from TRCA, as well as a $25,000 grant from the Laidlaw Foundation last year, they were able to get the program going. There was also support from the Town of Caledon, Peel Region and the Bolton Kinsmen. They were also able to get assistance from artists, contractors, etc.
“It’s been a really good project so far,” she remarked.
Zanardi said she lived in Bolton, about five minutes away from the camp property.
“I had no idea this site existed,” she remarked. “I had no clue until I actually worked here.”
“This space has so much heritage and history,” she added. “We couldn’t let it sit here.”