Camp Kesem UC Berkeley
Mission Statement
- To provide kids whose parents have or had cancer with a summer camp experience that gives them a chance to be kids.
- To allow college students to channel their passion for making a difference, while developing critical leadership skills for long-term social impact.
The first Camp Kesem started at Stanford University in 2000. The project was started by a group of students who wanted to create a magical summer camp experience for children with parents who have cancer. It is now a national organization that serves hundreds of children in need all over the country. Children who have or had a parent with cancer are neither physically ill nor visibly distinct from other children. As a result, their situation at home is often unknown to peers and teachers and their emotional needs often go unnoticed. In addition, it is challenging for these children to find peers with whom they can relate, and they are often left feeling completely alone when coping with the fear, anger, guilt, and sadness associated with having a parent who has cancer or has died from cancer. Camp Kesem gives these children a place to be where they no longer feel alone---every child at Camp Kesem can understand what their fellow campers are going through. Many children at Camp Kesem programs develop friendships with peers to whom they cantruly relate for the first time in their lives. Camp Kesem Berkeley started in 2006 and recently held its fourth camp in 2010. This past summer, we were able to share a magical week of summer camp with 55 campers.