Camping in Canada: The History of Gracefield
by Alan and Dorothy Herbert

Located just one and half hours from Canada ’s national capital, Gracefield Camp and Conference Centre is a true blessing to the PCCCA family. Gracefield Camp & Conference Centre (GCCC) is situated on 280 acres of environmentally-precious wilderness in the Upper Gatineau Valley , near the town of Gracefield . The site includes two kilometers of shoreline on pristine Lac Castor Blanc. A two-kilometer section of the Trans Canada Trail passes through the heart of the camp: a truly unique feature. The site is owned and operated by the Presbyterian Church in Canada, Synod of Quebec and Eastern Ontario, and administered by the Presbytery of Ottawa and is a member of the Association des Camps du Quebec.

In the first half of the 20th century, the site that is now Gracefield Camp and Conference Centre was the summer retreat of the Billings family, whose ancestors built a prosperous farming and lumbering operation in the early 1800's in the area of Ottawa now known as Billings Bridge . Some time after the death of their brother, John Roger, Mimi and May Billings expressed interest in selling their summer property. In 1962, the Rev. Dr. John Johnston, then minister of St. Timothy’s Presbyterian Church in Ottawa , arranged the purchase of the property on behalf of the Presbyterian Church in Canada to replace Peace Memorial Camp, which had to be closed because of development plans for the St. Lawrence Seaway . Originally known as Gracefield Presbyterian Centre, it was renamed Gracefield Camp and Conference Centre when its ministry expanded to year-round use, not only as a place for children and youth, but for families and group retreats. Its mission statement recognizes that the ministry of GCCC is offered not only to Presbyterians, but to people from many denominations or no church connection at all, and also to people from schools and community organizations. The Centre has developed through the years with labors of love and generous gifts of time, talent and material resources. Some recent Gracefield staff represent the third generation of family involvement.

The Gracefield community includes not only staff and camper alumni, but a unique group of seasonal campsite holders, known as the Tent and Trailer community. Some of these individuals have been participants and supporters at Gracefield for more than 40 years, and hold the common memory and collective wisdom. The T & T-ers (as they are affectionately called) play a vital role in the camp community as they help get the site ready for the summer, and actively participate in programming with the campers and staff both during the summer and the rest of the year. Gracefield differs from many camps in that it is not just a summer experience, but an anchor point in the lives of many. The Centre is known as a healing place. On several occasions it has opened its doors to the local aboriginal groups who come to the site for healing workshops and has become recognized as a wondrous place.

Gracefield also has a strong commitment to its local community as it follows a shop locally policy, recognizing that in a region with an unemployment rate almost double the national average (in August 2006, 12.2%, compared to the national rate of 6.5%) buying and hiring in the local economic region strengthens the local economy. Brochures and t-shirts are printed in Maniwaki; about half the Centre’s groceries are purchased in Gracefield. Paper goods are bought from a local wholesaler. The Centre hires local people in food services and housekeeping when possible. In the summer, Gracefield Camp offers unique opportunities for local children to have fun while practicing English. It has also become known as a place of hospitality and emergency assistance on the Trans Canada Trail.

As a result, Gracefield is so much more than a camp and a conference centre . Everyone who comes to the site is warmly welcomed as a member of the greater Gracefield family: a family which extends itself into the lives of children, churches, and schools. This sense of community and family is the fiber that binds Gracefield together. As articulated in their mission statement the camp will forever commit “To invite all people to experience the loving presence of the living God in creation, in Christ, and in Christian community.”