Glenn Carpenter Centre

Programs

Programs for youth at the Glenn Carpenter Centre focus on summer day camps and agency programs (e.g. Boys and Girls Club, Aquatic Centre) run by the YMCA-YWCA and ACAP Saint John. The day camp currently accommodates up to 60 campers/day. Camping experience support the healthy development of self-esteem, self-confidence and independence in young people. We provide Environmental Education to all who attend our camps.

The following are the primary camp programs:

• Water sports - water trampoline, canoeing, kayaking, swimming
• Wilderness camps – mountain biking, environmental exploration, archery
• ACAP environmental education program – recycling relays, hiking forest trails, fish capture, trail through marsh, underwater camera on a cable, climate change and plant days.

Programs being offered this fall:

• Canoe/Kayaking for ages 8 to 14 , providing a 2 days course to learn, be active and have fun, on Saturday starting on September 26th from 9am to 10:30am ($10/session)
• Outdoor ½ Day Adventures for ages 8 to 14, providing a 2 days course to learn, be active and have fun, on Saturday starting on September 26th from 1pm to 4 pm. ($20/session)
• Archery for ages 8 to 14 on Saturdays starting September 26th from 11am to 12:30pm. $10/session

The primary mandate of the Glenn Carpenter Centre is to deliver enriching programs designed to develop life skills in young people and to be open to all. Glenn Carpenter left a legacy to purchase the property on Ashburn Lake in order to fulfill his vision of "helping to prepare today’s youth to be tomorrow’s leaders".

Location

The property is located in the north central part of Saint John, occupying 220 acres, including 40 acres of water, a short distance west of the Saint John Throughway, and north of Rockwood Park. The site is also a 5 minute drive from the Regional Hospital and the Saint John Campus of the University of New Brunswick. The Ashburn Lake property contains a variety of forest and habitat types, including marshes, wetlands, young deciduous forest, coniferous forests (cedar, spruce/cedar), mixed deciduous/coniferous, and cleared areas, some of which were farmed in the past.

• Constructed about 1934 as a private recreational lodge (75 years old), 29 foot cathedral ceilings.
• Custom built log and wood frame structure with a full basement
• Comfortably fits 60 people seated and 100 people standing

The Lodge is a two-story heritage building boasting a 29-foot cathedral ceiling complimented by a large stone fireplace and a sunroom with large sliding glass panels overlooking the lake. With 1800 square feet of usable dining and/or meeting space, the lodge can easily be tailored to accommodate the needs of any group, from picnics to board meetings.

Caretaker’s residence

• built in and around 1940’s
• log built wood frame structure with a full basement, one storey with partial 2nd storey; designed for seasonal use

Picnic shelter

• built in 2002, currently used as programming space and rentals.
• accommodates 50 people inside. And up to 100 people in surrounding outdoor area.

Rentals

The Glenn Carpenter Centre is available to business, family, and social groups for all types of gatherings; family reunions, school reunions, business meetings, seminars, retreats and staff picnics. All events can be catered by the Y’s Men. The Centre is open for rentals from the end of April to end of October.

We offer competitive rates during the week andon the weekends and holidays. You can rent the entire facility or just the lodge. We offer swimming, catering, barbeques, boating, anything to make your event a success. Please click here for more information regarding our Facility Rentals.

The Y through its strong kids program and on-site rentals subsidize underprivileged children, children who never had an opportunity to go to camp and probably never had a chance to swim boat and have fun in a lake. Over 400 kids attended summer camp this year which included two overnight outdoor camping. We have about 50-60 children per week at our Day camps.

To come….

• We are planning another open house to May to allow people the opportunity to experience the Glenn Carpenter Centre, to walk the newly developed hiking trail, to try out the mountain biking trails, to go for a kayak or canoe around the lake, or to simple enjoy the picturesque view.
• More integration with the land to provide opportunities for children to explore, learn and plain have fun.
• We have received a grant from Wal-Mart and Ever Green to help us to expand our outdoor programs at this site in order further help inner city youth and further develop a greater understanding and respect for the environment. The grant we will help the Y develop an interpretive nature trail loop, in the most environmentally sound way, in order for campers, agencies, school groups and the greater community to access and appreciate the beauty of this site. To do this we have partnered with Green Snake Trail development a company that specializes in the construction and design of sustainable recreational and interpretive trails.