Four generations of Camp Pine Crest magic

An unexpected gift

Six months earlier, just before Christmas, Penny and her husband Bob gathered their three adult children — Brad, Leslie, and Julie — and shared a surprise: they had donated $30,000 to leadership programs at Pine Crest in honour of the three of them. They also shared that an online giving page had been set up for what they named the Pashby Family Pine Crest Leadership Fund, inviting others to contribute to the cause that had been so important to them.

The reaction? “There were tears,” Penny recalled. 

All three siblings grew up attending leadership camp at Pine Crest, later becoming counsellors. The leadership camp program, for youth ages 14–16, combines progressive leadership development, experience working with children, and multi-week canoe trips in some of Canada’s most pristine wilderness spaces. After several years, participants can qualify to work as camp counsellors.

The idea to support Pine Crest’s leadership program had come from Bob. He and Penny deeply appreciated how transformative Pine Crest had been for their children, helping them become the adults they are today. 

Beyond the practical skills their children had learned, like leading youth and wilderness survival, the three of them also developed transferable skills such as resilience, teamwork, and good judgment, along with core values like respect, integrity, and inclusiveness. Bob and Penny felt these skills and values were even more important for young people today in an increasingly challenging world.

Soon, Julie and Leslie began sharing the fund on social media, and donations started coming in. Within a few weeks, the fund was over $8,000. 

Then, on February 2, 2025, Bob Pashby passed away. It was a devastating loss of a remarkable man described as “a guiding light” for his family, friends, and others who had known him throughout his life and career in ophthalmology. 

Two days later, the Pashby family published an obituary with a link to the fund for anyone who wished to donate in his memory. 

A fitting tribute takes off

Donations rolled in rapidly from family, friends, former Pine Crest campers, colleagues, patients, and students Bob had mentored.

“Great idea!” wrote one of them. “What a wonderful way to remember Bob and to share great experiences and life lessons with the next generation,” wrote another. And on it went.

“We were overwhelmed,” Penny shared later from Winnipeg, where she was visiting Julie. “It was so exciting watching the fund grow in the first few months.”

“The fund really seemed to resonate, like people felt part of something,” said Julie.

"In the middle of our grief, this wonderful thing happened. It made us so grateful to everyone supporting it,” Penny added.

By the end of 2025, 119 donors contributed over $27,000 to the Pashby Family Pine Crest Leadership Fund. Together with the family’s gift, they had contributed nearly $58,000. 

Their collective gift meant that nine youth facing financial barriers could attend multi-week leadership camps; 12 young adult staff received an additional week of advanced leadership training; seven counsellors received support with the high costs of certifications needed for their employment, and much more. 

One day, on a tour of Pine Crest, Penny had the chance to read a message from the mother of a teen who was attending leadership camp that year thanks to the fund’s financial assistance.

This mother described her daughter as over the moon with happiness that she would be able to attend camp, something that wouldn’t have been possible for them otherwise. Penny could not help but be moved. “I’ve seen the real need for this,” she said later, “and we are happy to do more.”

The third generation of the Pashby family at Camp Pine Crest: Leslie on a canoe trip along Canada’s West Coast Trail (left), Julie on a Bruce Trail trip (middle), and Brad (right).

Four generations and counting

The Pashby family’s connection to Y leadership camps began in the 1930s, when Penny’s father, Bailey, was a counsellor at Camp Pine Crest during the Depression. Pine Crest looked very different then. It was only open to boys, and there were no buses or direct roads into the site. After driving up from Toronto, campers had to canoe across the lake to get there. 

A generation later, Penny went to YMCA Camp Davern in Ottawa and grew into a more resilient and independent young person. When she later moved to Toronto, she became a Y camp counsellor herself.

Then came Brad, Leslie, and Julie — the third generation — who attended Pine Crest from the 1980s through the early 2000s. Penny remembers years of driving back and forth, their car nearly on autopilot, and filled with their teenage children and their friends singing camp songs. 

“Camp Pine Crest is a magical place,” says Brad from Vancouver, where he lives today with his wife and two daughters, who go to a Y leadership camp similar to Pine Crest. 

“I will never forget early morning dips in the lake with new cabinmates, the warmth and community of campfires, and performing the Beatles song ‘Blackbird’ with my two sisters in front of the entire camp. There is something about the trees, the Canadian Shield, and the lakes that anchor the experience in something deeper and almost eternal.”

“Magic” seems to come up a lot when the Pashbys speak about their Pine Crest experience. 

“Waking up on a trip and unzipping the tent to see a lake covered in mist, the crazy antics of an all-camp day, the bond of a group after completing a challenging portage or paddle, and songs with lyrics I still remember ... I still feel the magic today when I return,” says Leslie.

“You don’t get generation after generation attending programs at every camp,” she adds. “While attending, I knew how much I learned and the confidence I gained from each leadership experience. Now that my own children have attended and I’ve seen their growth and development, it further solidifies the program’s value.”

Left photo: Brad Pashby and his grandfather, Bailey Powell, at Camp Pine Crest’s 75th anniversary celebration in 1985. Middle photo: Camp Pine Crest Director Leigh King (left) and Penny Pashby standing on Sunset Bridge at Camp Pine Crest. Right Photo: Historic artifacts displayed at Camp Pine Crest, highlighting the camp’s long history.