Spots are limited and filled in the order families complete enrolment.

The Program Director brings 20+ years of business development and entrepreneurial experience, a decade of teaching experience, and specialized education in teen development and mental health.

Throughout the year, Wayfinders also brings in guest entrepreneurs, creatives, artists, and other accomplished professionals whose real-life experiences can expose teens to careers, possibilities, and perspectives they may not encounter at school.

The goal is to give teens access to adults who can teach them, challenge their thinking, guide their work, and expand their view of what's possible.

Q: What if my child isn't interested in starting a business?

A: The Wayfinders youth entrepreneurship program is designed to help young people develop real-world business skills through hands-on experience. Participants can:

• start their own business;
• grow an existing business if they've already launched one; or
• take part in our community fundraising and social enterprise projects.

Our community projects give teens the opportunity to work as a team while developing entrepreneurial, leadership, and collaboration skills. Everyone contributes based on their strengths, interests, and personality—no prior business experience is required.

Examples of community projects include:

• Fall Session: organizing a youth-run sports tournament (there are many roles within the project, from marketing and event planning to sponsorships, finance, and operations, so everyone can participate);
• Winter Session: the Toronto Kidpreneur Magazine; and
• Spring Session: a weekend community Carnival event in a Toronto park.

Q: What if my teen doesn't raise enough for the trip?

A: We track earning progress every week and catch struggling teens early. Mentors help them find new opportunities and adapt their plan. The goal is always to get every teen to the trip — we build the program around that outcome.

Kindraza may provide a travel grant of up to one-third of the cost of a planned group trip.

To ensure the trip remains accessible and achievable regardless of fundraising outcomes, we prepare multiple destination options together:

Plan A: The dream trip — usually the most costly and ambitious option.

Plan B: A more affordable 1–3 day trip or a day trip.

And a plan C, just in case :) - A local outdoor or camping experience.

Ultimately, it all depends on what the group chooses and how much money they earn during the session, with everyone pitching ideas and voting on the destination.

Q: What if my teen doesn't want to go on the trip?

A: Through their businesses and group-led fundraising events, participants earn funds that are tracked throughout the program. When a participant works on one of the Wayfinders projects, the earnings are shared according to the program’s funding model.

At the end of each session, participants will have three options for how to use their earned funds:

• Use them toward the group trip: Apply their earned funds toward the travel experience chosen by the group.
• Carry them forward: Save their funds for a future session to accumulate a larger amount for a “dream trip” or a more expensive personal purchase.
• Use them toward personal goals: Put their funds toward other personal goals, such as investing in their business or supporting their education.

The purpose of Wayfinders is not simply to fund a trip—it is to help young people learn how to create opportunities, generate value, and make informed decisions about the resources they earn.

Q: Where does the trip go?

A: The destination is chosen and researched by the teens themselves, guided by their fundraising and earning results. It can be a one-day adventure or a multi-day trip—the journey of choosing it together, saving for it, and planning it is part of the experience and learning process.

Destinations could range from a local camping trip to a multi-day dream trip—such as visiting Banff, Quebec City, or Ottawa, surfing in Tofino, or whale watching in Nova Scotia. The destination will depend on the budget, how much each participant earns during the program, and what the group decides together.

For a more affordable and realistic option, teens might choose a day trip to Niagara Falls, skiing at Blue Mountain, tent camping, or even a trip to an amusement park.

Regardless of the destination, the goal is to provide teens with a positive, meaningful, memorable, and well-earned group travel experience within a community of like-minded peers.

Q: How can my teen get the travel scholarship?

A: Your teen can earn a Kindraza travel scholarship of up to one-third of the trip cost by consistently demonstrating strong commitment throughout the Wayfinders program. Scholarships are awarded to a limited number of participants based on:

• Leadership and initiative

• Teamwork

• Attendance

• Community involvement

• Contribution to the fundrazing efforts

Scholarships are awarded at Kindraza’s discretion and are not guaranteed for all participants. The final decision is based on your teen’s overall performance, commitment, and the availability of organizational funding resources. If Kindraza secures additional sponsorship or funding, more scholarship opportunities may become available.

Teens who do not receive funding support will be responsible for covering the full cost of their trip. We strive to provide all teens with equal opportunities to participate in the program, including the travel/adventure experiences, and we are committed to ensuring that hard work and dedication are recognized and supported whenever possible.

Q: How do I know my teen will stay motivated?

A: Honestly, motivation comes and goes — that's part of what the program teaches. We engineer early wins, make progress visible every week, and build a peer community strong enough to carry teens through the harder stretches. And when motivation dips, the mentors help teens find their way back.

Q: How much time commitment is realistic?

A: Two hours every Thursday is the core of the program. Add occasional group outings, field trips, and events, plus whatever time your teen chooses to put into their personal business activity. Motivated teens who want to earn more can choose to do more—the program is flexible and grows with their effort. We recommend keeping the time spent on a business or project to no more than 6 hours per week.

Q: Is this right for my teen specifically?

A: Wayfinders works best for teens who are ready to be challenged — not necessarily confident, not necessarily high-achieving, but willing to show up and do something real. The program meets teens where they are and builds from there.

Q: Can my teen only participate in one session?

A: Absolutely! Your teen can participate in one or more sessions. We offer three sessions within one school year, and each session features different projects through which teens develop entrepreneurship skills and build meaningful connections.

If your teen is launching or growing their own business, any of the sessions will be beneficial to them. Wayfinders is not a traditional class or lecture-based program. Instead, it is built around experiential learning, live mentorship, and a supportive community of like-minded young people who share one thing: an entrepreneurial drive.

We cap enrolment at 15 teens to protect the quality and community of the program.

Spots are filled in the order families complete enrolment.