There's no room for religion at the hockey rink, but what about summer camp?

The 13 and 14 year old boys joshing and jostling outside the arena change rooms before hockey practice seem oblivious to their differences in race, religion and culture.

But at the summer camp that many of these players attend, one important difference stands out.

One of these boys is not Jewish. Therefore, he is not welcome.

His fellow Jewish campers and their parents milling about the hockey arena seem okay with him attending the camps run by Canadian Young Judaea, and the Richmond Hill youth himself has enjoyed several camping summers as a Gentile among Jews.

But according to the camp director, those days are over.

When Andrew Weir attempted recently to register his son to attend the camp, he was told Tyler was not allowed.

"The director said that he didn't belong and that he would feel out of place and it would be very awkward for him," Weir says.

That's despite the fact that most of Tyler's school and neighbourhood friends are Jewish and they have all spent summers together attending camps, such as Walden and Shalom, which are also predominantly Jewish.

Many of those friends play hockey together and as the kids prepare for practice, their parents share their dismay at the decision.

Like many of the parents gathered at the rink, Tyler's assistant coach, Kevin Rotenberg, also attended a predominantly Jewish camp growing up and recalls a small percentage of non-Jewish campers.

"It wasn't disruptive at all," Rotenberg says. "I think it's unfair and I don't like to be associated with things that are unfair."

"Most of the kids he hangs out with are Jewish," adds Mark Waxman, another dad who attended Solelim's "feeder camp" Shalom as a child. "They all get along, no one ever plays down religion, says we're better. It's not about that, it's about a bunch of kids who've grown up together, who've gone to the same school, who happen to live in the same area, who share the same interests, get along together, and become great friends."

"They've all known each other, been to school together since JK, live on the same streets, same neighbourhood, hanging out for years," Tyler's dad says.

"I don't know how many bar mitzvahs and bat mitzvahs he's been to over the years . He's made a lot of good friends at those camps. I just can't imagine someone saying he can't go now. It's just so frustrating."

Weir says he was told by the national director, "Look, he doesn't belong. I don't know what you're going to accomplish here".

"She said there are parents who pay a lot of money for their kids to be going to camp with other Jewish kids who would have the opportunity to marry each other and get together as Jews and don't want other white Canadians mixing in with them. I was like, what? This is April Fools, right?"

But camp director Risa Epstein said in an email that Camp Solelim, one of Canadian Young Judaea's seven summer camps, must adhere to its mandate.

Solelim is a Jewish non-profit camp for 14 to 15-year-olds located near Sudbury.

Its "singular mission" is to develop future leaders of the Jewish community - nurturing Jewish identity and values and fostering a sense of pride and knowledge in Israel, she said.

"This mission statement is foremost in our summer training and educational programming. For this mission to be accomplished, it is essential that our campers be Jewish."

Epstein admits that Tyler had been allowed to attend Shalom, the Canadian Young Judaea's camp for 7 to 13-year-olds, but this was the result of an oversight.

"We understand why the child would be disappointed and we are empathetic toward the family," she said.

Tyler is disappointed, and a bit confused." I think it's 'cause they were afraid of me dating a Jewish girl. They don't want mixing of the religion."

He overheard this message on speaker phone, when his father spoke with the camp director.

"I was kind of upset," he says. "I always felt like we were all together, never really felt different from them, just a bunch of brothers, kind of."

He says he has learned a lot about the Jewish religion from his friends in Richmond Hill and Thornhill, taking part in Seders with their families and at camp celebrating the religious holidays.

"On Friday, it's Shabbat, the big dinner, I put on a kippa. It's a religious hat that they wear for special occasions, and you wear nice clothing, white shirt and blue jeans, and we're all supposed to go down to the shul and then to do dinner."

It doesn't feel strange, he says.

"You get used to it."

Tyler's friend Ethan Kula is also confused.

"I've had him over for Seders, for Passover before, and my whole family just welcomes him, it's no big deal. I think it's pretty stupid, because they let him go the year before."

Ethan's dad, Dr. Joel Kula, who also attended Jewish camps as a child, is bothered by the camp's decision.

"Ethan and Tyler known each other since the day they were babies - born the same day, same year, live two houses apart, they are 'bordering on inseparable'.

"He's had wide exposure to Judaism."

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Lisa Ashley, another parent on the hockey team, said she is disappointed with the camp her children both attended.

Sean will attend Camp Solelim this summer and his older brother, who is 20 now, also attended.

They learned the camp's mantra was "be the best you can be, and be accepting of others", she says.

"My older son found it such a positive, wonderful experience, just to accept people's differences and celebrate their differences. Part of getting along is getting to understand different cultures and accepting other people. OK so he's not Jewish, so what? If my son wanted to go to a Christian camp, he shouldn't be allowed to go because he's Jewish?

"Jewish people throughout our history have been excluded and discriminated against and you'd think we would go out of our way not to allow this to happen."

Epstein said in her email that Young Judaea believes in inter-faith dialogue "and the necessity for the Jewish community to build and sustain relationships with other faith groups. We are fortunate the Jewish community has numerous organizations that are focused on this vital work."

However, Camp Solelim, whose logo says "A Touch of Israel in Ontario's North", has a very specific mission, she said, "and we must adhere to it", she said.

But the Weir family's Jewish friends question that.

"Israel is not just Jewish people," Ashley says. "Many different types of people are in Israel as well."

"Israel has become an inclusive society," adds another father, Mark, who asked that his last name not be used.

Mark's son is attends Jewish camps and he, too, attended Jewish camps as a child.

"This isn't a religious camp. I could sooner understand it if the core element of this camp was about religious practice and belief. But it's not. It's a Zionist camp, which means they support the state of Israel and the parents and the camper have made a decision that they're OK with that. So why does it have to be an issue?"

Why, he wonders, is it OK for the many Jewish youth in his Richmond Hill neighbourhood to attend Catholic high schools?

"When you look at what's going on in the Middle East, with all the hate and people bludgeoning each other because they're a different religion. The kid hasn't done anything wrong, really, what's the problem? He just wants to have a good summer with his buddies."

"It's not like non-Jews are breaking down the walls to get in," Dr. Kula adds. The camps do play a role in strengthening Jewish identification, he says, "but these camps are more or less secular. There's no trace of indoctrination. I could see if it were a religious camp and they're immersed in it ... but from my own experiences, knowing what these kids were like as a kid, I don't see where this exception would make a difference . Surely they can bend the rules a little.

"I've always felt if we want to reduce xenophobia and racism, then we should raise our kids to be label-blind."

Tyler, being exposed to Judaea for so many years, is more likely to be "label-blind" than most kids, he added.

What really hit home, really bothered Andrew Weir, was his son's response when he told him he was involving the media to see if the camp would change its mind.

He worried if those at camp would react negatively.

"Dad, what if they try to hurt me?" he asked. "I don't think they'll accept me as a regular person."

Weir shakes his head at the lessons this experience is teaching Tyler and his friends.

"But he's still got the attitude if they let him go, he wants to go. He'll give it a shot. That's what broke my heart on this. It's totally wrong on so many levels."