Project:Camp's 2023 In Review
2023 was a year of growth and evolution for Project:Camp. We’ve quickly left the days of scrappy startup nonprofit behind us and transformed into an outfit capable of popping up trauma-informed camps anywhere in the U.S. in 48 hours.
We saw the fruits of this evolution on full display during our response to the Maui wildfires, where we were able to show up to the most isolated state in the nation and open camp while fires still smoldered and much of the island’s west side was still evacuated.
Two years ago, this response would have been nearly inconceivable for Project:Camp, and the work to get to this point has required major overhauls to both our internal and external operations. For our response team, that has meant implementing a robust incident monitoring system, building out a roster of seasonal and on-call camp directors, and adapting our programming model to fit the particular needs of impacted communities.
We’ve seen similar transformations in our preparedness work, expanding our community organizing across California and into Florida, Oregon and Hawaii. This year we signed agreements in multiple jurisdictions to help create emergency operations plans that specifically address the needs of children and families during disasters, and invited a diverse group of local government agencies and youth-facing organizations to help create those plans.
To support our response and preparedness efforts, we embarked on a massive overhaul of our internal operations in 2023. From back-end accounting to onboarding new staff to communication structures, we are putting in place processes and procedures that ensure quality and consistency as we continue to grow.
If you'd like to learn more about our work last year, you can access our 2023 Annual Report here.
With gratitude,
Mikey
Bulletin Board:
In you'd like to hear even more about our work in 2023 and get to engage with the Project:Camp team, our Executive Director Mikey Latner is hosting our inaugural Annual Review Webinar on Feb. 7 at 10am PST. We'll be discussing our response in Maui, talking about our preparedness work across the country, and generally getting into the nitty gritty of what it takes to support children and families in times of disaster. You can register for the session here.
Looking for a quick way to help Project:Camp? In pursuit of understanding how to better serve children and families impacted by disasters and improving our programs, Project:Camp is participating in a long term study with professors from California State University, Chico, Louisiana State University, and University of Montana. They are kicking off their research with a survey about the role that Project:Camp and similar organizations play in the lives of families, volunteers, communities, and the larger disaster management system, and are looking for others to weigh in. Families, volunteers, donors, social media followers, and anyone else who knows about or is affiliated with Project:Camp and is 18 or older can participate. If you’re interested, click here to take their survey (it should only take about 15 minutes). All data will be collected and kept confidential by the professors – Project:Camp will only see anonymized data.
