Our Long and Prosperous History
Cairn is owned and operated by the Presbyterian Church in Canada, Synod of Central, Northeastern Ontario and Bermuda (CNOB).
From the Presbyterian Record - May 1930:
The board of S.S. and Y.P.S., through the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. James Playfair of Midland, Ontario, has presented a site for a summer camp on Lake Simcoe and have undertaken to erect suitable buildings. The first building will be one large structure for a dining room, living room and other accommodations. This camp promises to be one of the finest training and recreational centres for the young people of our Church.
Mr. James S. Playfair was a shipowner, the admiral of over one hundred boats plying the Great Lakes. His ships were all "Glen" boats. The camp was named after one of the Glen boats – Glen Mhor, which in Gaelic means "Big Valley."
The first Glen Mhor Board was formed at the Synod of Kingston and Toronto in May 1932. This board was to have full charge of the programme, management and property of Glen Mhor. The same system and regulations are still maintained in the Glen Mhor Committee today as it meets every couple of months from September to June to prepare for the administration of the camp each summer.
In the 1970s, the Lake Simcoe site was judged to be too small for the needs of a growing camp programme. The search began for a new location, and it was not long before our 137-acre site on Echo Lake was discovered (at present, our site has increased to 197 acres). Arrangements for the selling of the Beaverton site and the purchase of this new site very quickly began.
On June 24, 1978, the camp was officially dedicated and opened, with many guests attending a very special service on our new beach. At that time, the site included the main lodge complex, the director's cabin, the infirmary, the groundskeeper's home, the waterfront cabins, and several "tabins" – cabin walls with tent roofs.
Since the original purchase of the site, the camp has built 12 permanent camper cabins, the Fox Den (our arts and crafts cabin), a new washhouse for the staff, 3 simple "bunkies" for staff accommodation and the water filtration building.
The Glen Mhor programme celebrated its 75th anniversary in the year 2005. Over those 75 years, the camp has been able to minister to the needs of many, many children (presently over 1200 a year) . And our primary objective remains the same today as it did in the first camping season of 1930: to present Jesus Christ as Lord and to disciple individuals towards maturity in Him.
