Frontline Families Canada brought families together in Muskoka for a week focused on healing, support, and community connection.
The organization hosted its second annual retreat from Aug. 17 to Aug. 21 at Deerhurst Resort in Huntsville, bringing together 23 families from across the country, with just under 100 people attending.
The non-profit, which received charitable status in January 2026, provides support, resources, and programs for families of first responders who have tragically lost a loved one.
The organization was co-founded by president and CEO Mike Merko, who has spent 28 years working as a paramedic in Halton, Peel, and Middlesex-London. Following the death of his wife Julie, a flight paramedic, in 2018, Merko joined with a small group of other widowed spouses of first responders to create Frontline Families.
“We came together and noticed there was a real need to support all these families,” Merko said.
The organization covers the full cost of the retreat, allowing families from across Canada, even as far away as Alberta, to attend.
Merko said Deerhurst Resort provides an ideal setting for the retreat, and the charity hopes to continue hosting it there for the foreseeable future.
“This is an amazing facility, they have a ton of stuff,” he said. “Some of the families have never been on a beach before or been in the water. Yesterday, we had a family for the first time ever go in a canoe.”
Merko said the week is designed to consist of a healthy balance between therapeutic programming and fun activities, including ATV riding, high ropes, canoeing, and swimming.
“The kids actually get to be kids again,” he said. “They get to do the hard stuff but then they also get to have fun and be rewarded at the same time.”
A highlight of the retreat was First Responders Day on Aug. 20, which brought together local first responder teams, including the Huntsville Fire Department. Attendees had the opportunity to interact with fire trucks, police vehicles, K9 units, and marine unit boats.
Merko said the day provided an important connection between children and the work their lost parents once did.
“The kids reconnect with the first responder crew…they get to say, ‘Oh that’s what my dad used to do or that’s what my mom used to do.’ They get a little bit of pride, they get to show off to their new friends,” Merko said. “And some of these officers actually know what they’ve gone through so it’s therapeutic on their side as well…and they get to give back to the families.”
Merko says the charity and annual retreat is an opportunity for families of lost loved ones to stay connected with each other and the first responder community.
“After the funeral, they start to lose touch. There’s a bit of a gap there, and we have started to fill that,” Merko said. “We help them bond as a community. It’s probably the worst community you ever want to be involved with because it means you’ve lost somebody, but to be inside it, it’s super supportive and we share everything…from household chores to parenting.”
Looking ahead, the organization plans to continue to grow, expanding its reach across Canada and developing additional retreats, programs, conferences, and collaborations with other similar organizations.
For more information, or to donate, visit frontlinefamilies.ca
