Brigadoon brings it Annapolis Valley campfire spirit to Halifax with new fundraiser

Brigadoon Village is bringing the spirit of its Annapolis Valley camp to Halifax on Oct. 29 with a new fundraiser featuring live music, camp-inspired food and a taste of the community built around its campfires.

Campfire Songs, taking place at the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, will feature Nova Scotia musicians Kim Dunn, Heather Rankin, Terra Spencer and Charlie A’Court, while raising money to help children and youth access Brigadoon’s programs.

For families who have experienced Brigadoon, gathering around a campfire can mean much more than songs and stories.

The event is designed to give people who may never have visited Brigadoon’s facility on Aylesford Lake a glimpse of the connection and sense of belonging found at camp, said Krista Ballem, CEO of Brigadoon Village.

“We often say that to truly understand Brigadoon, you have to experience Camp for yourself,” Ballem said.

Since not everyone can visit during Brigadoon’s eight weeks of summer camp, she said the organization wanted to recreate some of that experience in Halifax through music, camp-inspired food and stories about its impact on children, youth and families across Atlantic Canada.

The campfire was a natural theme.

Many days at Brigadoon end with campers, volunteers, health-care team members and counsellors gathering to sing, laugh, share stories and spend time together.

“Those campfire moments represent so much of what Brigadoon is about: belonging, friendship, and community,” Ballem said.

For Lisa Bugden, a Brigadoon Village board member and camper parent, that sense of belonging is something her family has experienced firsthand.

Bugden said her family’s connection with Brigadoon stretches back almost 20 years. Her daughter, Abigail Sinclair, was diagnosed with leukemia when she was three and a half.

Around that time, Bugden’s partner, Roger Sinclair, met Brigadoon founder David McKegg, who spoke with him about plans to create a place where children facing health conditions and other challenges could experience camp while receiving the support they needed.

Bugden said children whose lives involve medication or treatment schedules can sometimes miss experiences other children take for granted.

Brigadoon eventually gave Abigail a place where her family felt confident she would receive the medical, nutritional and other support she needed while also having the independence to explore, make friends and build confidence.

For children facing health challenges, isolation can be particularly difficult, Bugden said.

“At Brigadoon, one of the most important aspects of camp is that kids meet other children that are experiencing similar circumstances, and they realize that they’re not alone,” she said.

Abigail developed strong connections with other campers that continued after camp, Bugden said, while the experience also nurtured her creativity and helped build her confidence.

Those experiences eventually helped motivate Bugden to remain involved with Brigadoon as a volunteer and board member. She is one of three camper mothers on the board, which also includes medical experts and other community representatives.

Bugden said having camper parents involved helps keep decisions focused on children and their camp experience.

That includes the need to raise money.

Brigadoon operates on a pay-what-you-can model, intended to ensure a family’s financial circumstances do not prevent a child from attending.

One week of medically supported summer camp costs approximately $1,800 per camper to provide, and more than 85 per cent of families require some form of financial assistance, according to Brigadoon.

During the 2026 summer season, nearly 800 campers attended. The organization also offers programming throughout the year, including fall and family retreats and leadership programs.

Funds raised through Campfire Songs will help cover the gap between what families can afford and the cost of providing camp, including health-care support, trained staff, food services, specialized equipment and accessible programming.

Brigadoon is not publicly setting a specific fundraising target for the event.

For singer-songwriter Terra Spencer, who has roots in the Windsor area not far from Brigadoon, joining the fundraiser was an easy decision after her friend and fellow performer Kim Dunn suggested her.

Spencer said she was also aware of the impact Brigadoon can have on families. Around the time she was approached about the event, the teenage son of her family’s dentist died following a lengthy illness, and the family had spoken about the support they received from Brigadoon.

As both a parent and former camp counsellor, Spencer said she could imagine what that experience meant to them.

The stripped-down nature of campfire music also appeals to her as a songwriter.

Spencer said guests can expect more than musicians simply taking turns performing.

“It is the impromptu collaboration, spontaneous jokes, and participation of the audience that makes a show like this so special,” she said. “Everyone should come ready to sing along.”

Fellow performer Charlie A’Court brings another local connection to the event.

A touring and recording artist whose musical roots are tied to Truro, A’Court worked as a music columnist for the Truro Daily News for about two years as a young adult before moving to Halifax.

His early musical experiences in Truro included performing in the CEC Dance Band in high school and appearing with his father during local television telethons.

“I’m a Bluenoser, through and through,” A’Court said.

He said his time in Truro helped him understand the importance of networking and fostering community, something that continues to influence his career.

Having lived in Nova Scotia all his life, A’Court said he was already familiar with Brigadoon’s work when he was invited to perform.

“When they called and asked if I’d be available, I couldn’t say yes fast enough,” he said.

For A’Court, sitting beside a campfire offers a chance to reflect, while gathering there with friends can create a feeling of connection through jokes, stories and conversation.

He hopes Campfire Songs can offer guests something similar.

Ultimately, he said, the evening is an opportunity to recognize the determination of children and families facing serious health challenges and the work Brigadoon does to support them.

Bugden hopes the event will also give people who have never experienced Brigadoon a sense of what camp can offer.

Campfire Songs, she said, provides a glimpse of what it is like to gather around a campfire, sing, relax and simply spend time together.

For families such as hers, that experience can carry well beyond the campfire.