Each week, about 50 staff - most of them volunteers - handle everything from food and activities to medical needs for the 50 or so campers. The camp has a full medical team, and staff are trained to handle individual scenarios, such as if a camper has had neural surgery or has a central IV line.

Camp Goodtimes has a 30-plus-year agreement with Loon Lake and this year has full run of the retreat from the end of June to Aug. 7. The site might appear rustic to some - the cabins, for instance, are well maintained but original from 1949 - but it's luxurious and spacious compared to the camp's former long-term site, a boy scout camp on the Sunshine Coast. As part of its agreement, the Canadian Cancer Society will help renovate the cabins.

"It's perfect. It's got great vistas," MacKenzie said. "The main thing is the staff - the UBC and Loon Lake staff have been great. In short order, they've become an integral part of the team."

Mornings at Camp Goodtimes sometimes start with a quick dip in the lake before breakfast. Or, sometimes the campers sleep in. Meals are often themed - trucker dinner, birthday lunch, pep rally. This year's camp has a university theme, which is carried into several activities and even honourary names for the buildings.

After breakfast and lunch, counsellors organize a flexible menu of activities, with something for everybody's ability. Hiking, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, rock wall climbing, crafts, baking and games are among the offerings. Teens also have a Pass the Stick gab session, while younger campers have Celebration of Life, which focuses on the good things cancer has brought. At night, there are casino nights and dances, ghost stories and campfires (or mock versions during fire bans).

This week's campers are an able-bodied group, but it's not uncommon to see a few wheelchairs and prosthetic arms and legs.

"We make sure things are inclusive," MacKenzie said. "We change things sometimes - I mean, soccer here isn't the same as everywhere else. We make sure a wheelchair wouldn't be out of place."