Nearly 300 km northeast of Toronto and nearly 200km west of Ottawa lies the Madawaska Valley. It was in this area of Canada that the first 300 emigrants from the Kashubian towns of Bytów and Kościerzyna from Poland arrived in 1858. The Canadian name Kashuby was officially recognized by the Canadian government on June 9, 1960 in honor of the first Polish settlers who came from Polish Kashubia.

As Oblate missionaries, we have been ministering there for more than a dozen years in three parishes: Wilno, Round Lake and Barry's Bay, but only in Wilno does there continue Polish pastoral ministry. Descendants of Kashubians use some Polish, Kashubian words, but for the most part they speak only English now.

During the holiday season, on the other hand, Polish pastoral work flourishes. The region has been the capital of Polish scouting in Canada since the 1950s (“Polish Scouting Association (Ontario) Inc.”). Scouting has its own camps and centers in this area. Every summer there are summer activities for the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, as well as parish camps, so called “Vacation with God” for children and youth from our parishes in Toronto, Brampton and Mississauga.

Together with Sr. Anna Paluch, in recent days we organized a “Vacation with God” camp for our children and young people from St. Eugene Parish in Brampton. In addition to the daily Eucharist, catechesis and workshops, there was also swimming, hiking to the Mount of the Three Crosses for the Stations of the Cross, bonfires, soccer matches and the Olympics, etc.... It's fair to say that the Oblates are able to do not only mission with youth but also mission with kids!

(Fr. Paweł Pilarczyk OMI; TJ/DJ; photos - camp leaders)