Reflecting and Rebuilding
Last month’s wildfire crisis in Los Angeles was a stress test for Project:Camp. The scale of the disaster was difficult to comprehend, and figuring out how to serve the hundreds of thousands of people impacted by the fires was an unprecedented challenge.
While there were new hurdles to clear, the core identity of who we are as an organization withstood the test. We were able to provide more than 10,000 hours of free, trauma-informed care to nearly 1,000 children affected by the Palisades and Eaton fires. We helped run camps at nine different sites in and around Los Angeles, ensuring that families evacuated as far away as Santa Barbara were able to access programming to help kids process their experiences and provide space for parents to navigate the disaster.
The response also was also a reminder about what a special place – and a special community – camp is.
The network of camps and individuals from the camp community that showed up to provide these incredible spaces for children dealing with the unimaginable was stunning. We had dozens of camp directors descend on LA to help run the programs, jumping into a new environment with unbridled enthusiasm. All the miracles that it takes to put on a full camp program in a matter of hours were made possible through this unbelievably supportive community.
And this community support allowed for the magic of camp to transform a massive number of families' lives. We saw kids hugging friends they had been separated from, we heard them processing together about losing homes and schools, and we felt the healing begin to take place for the impacted communities.
There’s a long road ahead for Los Angeles as it rebuilds from these devastating wildfires, and we are working to make sure children and families’ needs are centered – both during the rebuilding process of this disaster, and during future disasters.
Bulletin Board
Our Executive Director Mikey Latner and Board Chair Lorraine Schneider had the opportunity to attend two events earlier this month honoring Project:Camp. The Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce and the Century City Chamber of Commerce held a reception where Mikey spoke. And they also attended an event hosted by Sirius XM where Project:Camp was one of the featured charities.
Project:Camp was featured in a CBS Evening News story, showing how our programs have helped children and families rebuild in the wake of the fires. You can watch the piece on their website here.
