Camp Kesem

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Camp Kesem is an active community throughout the United States, driven by college students, supporting children through and beyond their parent's cancer with free year-round services. Camp Kesem's main program is a week-long sleepaway summer camp for kids whose parents have or have had cancer. Camp Kesem's programs are completely free to the children and put on by college students at each local chapter, who fundraise and plan year-round, with support and training from a national staff.^[1] Since 2000, when it was founded at Stanford University, Camp Kesem has expanded to over 100 chapters in 42 states. The University of Wisconsin-Madison chapter is currently the largest chapter.

History[]

The first Camp Kesem project was founded at Stanford University in 2000 as a project of Hillel at Stanford, a nonprofit serving Jewish students at the University. The project was developed by founder Iris Rave Wedeking, and a group of student leaders who sought to create a summer camp experience for children in need for little to no cost for the families.

After assessing the needs of the community, the students found that children who have, or have had, a parent with cancer comprised an under-served population who could benefit from a summer camp experience with peers who faced similar challenges.

The Camp Kesem project at Stanford hosted its first summer session in June 2001, free of charge to 37 campers. Since then, the project has continued and has grown each year to engage more student volunteers and serve more children across the country.

Based on the success of Camp Kesem at Stanford, Iris Rave founded Camp Kesem National in August 2002 to share the project's model with college campuses across the nation.

National staff[]

• Richard Segal Chief Executive Officer [1]

Alumni, Brand & Marketing:

• Jess Ryan, Director of Alumni Relations
• Kim Porter, Manager of Brand & Web
• Carrie Clemens, Engagement Coordinator

Development:

• Maureen Haller, Chief Development Officer
• Colleen Klages, Development Director of Events
• Cristin O'Leary Jones, Development Director
• Elle Ullum, Development Director of Corporate Relations
• Kristin Elfering, Events Coordinator
• Rebecca Enriquez, Development Coordinator
• Bree Turner, Development Associate

Finance & Administration:

• Abby O'Leary, Senior Director of Finance & Administration
• Erin Morgan, Accountant
• Kelsey Wrightwood, Systems Administrator
• Richard Robey, Staff Assistant

Operations:

• Alicia Kabir, Chief Operations Officer
• Alexandra Baldwin, Senior Manager of Camp Operations
• Liz Firestone, Senior Manager of Programs
• Tracey Landstorm, Senior Manager of Operations
• Ciara Lepanto, Training Manager
• Marge Lobeck, Manager of Programs
• Jenna Means, Manager of University Relations
• Laura Redmond, Manager of Programs
• Cody Ferrantino, Operations Coordinator
• Kendall McKee, Senior Regional Program Director
• Abi Yates, Senior Regional Program Director
• Dionna Arimes, Regional Program Director
• Lauren Borrill, Regional Program Director
• Keandra Bryson, Regional Program Director
• Lily Daigle, Regional Program Director
• Brittani Hammer, Regional Program Director
• Meiko McDaniel, Regional Program Director
• Kirsten Olivarez, Regional Program Director
• Annalisa Provenzano, Regional Program Director
• Jean-Luc Rivera, Regional Program Director
• Chelsea Saurer, Regional Program Director
• Zach Snelling, Regional Program Director
• Mackenzie Sullivan, Regional Program Director

Board of Directors[]

• Bob Bartell
• Neha Biggs
• John K. Bradburn Jr.
• Emily M. Brakebill
• Thom Brown
• Ben Cornwell
• David Cronin
• Becky Crowe
• Keith Dierkx
• Ron Glickman
• Jerry Katz
• Darren Macioce
• Betsy Morton
• Mark Luck Olson
• Robert Plotkowski
• Carlyn Solomon
• Jay Stillwell
• Sudarsan Thattai
• Iris Rave Wedeking

Collegiate Chapters[]

• Camp Kesem at University of Alabama
• Camp Kesem at University of Arizona
• Camp Kesem at Arizona State University
• Camp Kesem at University of Arkansas
• Camp Kesem at Atlanta University Center
• Camp Kesem at Augustana College
• Camp Kesem at Ball State University
• Camp Kesem at Berkeley
• Camp Kesem at Boston University
• Camp Kesem at Bradley University
• Camp Kesem at Brown University
• Camp Kesem at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
• Camp Kesem at California State University, Northridge
• Camp Kesem at Carnegie Mellon University
• Camp Kesem at Case Western Reserve University
• Camp Kesem at Central PA
• Camp Kesem at Chapman University
• Camp Kesem at Chestnut Hill
• Camp Kesem at University of Chicago
• Camp Kesem at University of Cincinnati
• Camp Kesem at The Claremont Colleges
• Camp Kesem at Clemson
• Camp Kesem at University of Colorado Boulder
• Camp Kesem at Colorado State University
• Camp Kesem at Columbia University
• Camp Kesem at Cornell University
• Camp Kesem at Dartmouth College
• Camp Kesem at DePaul University
• Camp Kesem at Denison University
• Camp Kesem at Dixie State University
• Camp Kesem at Duke University
• Camp Kesem at East Atlanta
• Camp Kesem at the University of Florida
• Camp Kesem at Florida Gulf Coast University
• Camp Kesem at Florida State University
• Camp Kesem at Fresno State
• Camp Kesem at George Mason University
• Camp Kesem at George Washington University
• Camp Kesem at the University of Georgia
• Camp Kesem at Grand Valley State University
• Camp Kesem at Hamline University
• Camp Kesem at Harvard
• Camp Kesem at University of Houston
• Camp Kesem at University of Illinois
• Camp Kesem at Indiana University
• Camp Kesem at Indiana State University
• Camp Kesem at Iowa
• Camp Kesem at James Madison University
• Camp Kesem at Johns Hopkins University
• Camp Kesem at University of Kansas
• Camp Kesem at University of Kentucky
• Camp Kesem at Long Beach State
• Camp Kesem at Louisiana State University
• Camp Kesem at Loyola Marymount University
• Camp Kesem at University of Maine
• Camp Kesem at Marquette University
• Camp Kesem at University of Maryland
• Camp Kesem at the University of Miami
• Camp Kesem at The University of Michigan
• Camp Kesem at Michigan State University
• Camp Kesem at University of Minnesota
• Camp Kesem at MIT
• Camp Kesem at Mizzou
• Camp Kesem at University of Nebraska
• Camp Kesem at University of Nevada, Las Vegas
• Camp Kesem at New Mexico State University
• Camp Kesem at New York University
• Camp Kesem at North Carolina State University
• Camp Kesem at Northern Arizona University
• Camp Kesem at Northern Illinois University
• Camp Kesem at Northwestern University
• Camp Kesem at Notre Dame
• Camp Kesem at Nova Southeastern University
• Camp Kesem at The Ohio State University
• Camp Kesem at University of Oklahoma
• Camp Kesem at University of Oregon
• Camp Kesem at University of Pennsylvania
• Camp Kesem at Pepperdine University
• Camp Kesem at University of Pittsburgh
• Camp Kesem at Princeton
• Camp Kesem at Rice
• Camp Kesem at University of Richmond
• Camp Kesem at Rowan University
• Camp Kesem at Saint Louis University
• Camp Kesem at San Diego State University
• Camp Kesem at San Francisco
• Camp Kesem at Santa Clara University
• Camp Kesem at Seattle University
• Camp Kesem at the University of South Alabama
• Camp Kesem at University of South Florida
• Camp Kesem at University of Southern California
• Camp Kesem at Southern Utah University
• Camp Kesem at Stanford
• Camp Kesem at Stony Brook University
• Camp Kesem at Syracuse University
• Camp Kesem at Temple University
• Camp Kesem at Teton Valley
• Camp Kesem at Texas A&M University
• Camp Kesem at University of Texas–Austin
• Camp Kesem at University of Texas–Dallas
• Camp Kesem at UC Davis
• Camp Kesem at UC Irvine
• Camp Kesem at UC San Diego
• Camp Kesem at UC Santa Barbara
• Camp Kesem at UC Santa Cruz
• Camp Kesem at UCLA
• Camp Kesem at UNC-Chapel Hill
• Camp Kesem at UNC–Greensboro
• Camp Kesem at Utah Valley
• Camp Kesem at Vanderbilt University
• Camp Kesem at University of Vermont
• Camp Kesem at the University of Virginia
• Camp Kesem at Virginia Commonwealth University
• Camp Kesem at University of Washington
• Camp Kesem at Washington University
• Camp Kesem at West Virginia University
• Camp Kesem at William & Mary
• Camp Kesem at University of Wisconsin–Madison
• Camp Kesem at Yale University

Impact[]

In 2014, Camp Kesem served nearly 4,000 children affected by a parent's cancer and empowered more than 2,000 student leaders from across the country. Since 2000, Camp Kesem has shared its "magic" with over 11,300 children and provided unparalleled leadership opportunities for nearly 7,000 student leaders.

• 99 percent of parents surveyed believe that Camp Kesem has had a positive impact on their family .
• After camp, parents report a marked increase in their child's self-esteem, confidence and network of support.
• 98 percent of parents surveyed would recommend Camp Kesem to another family affected by cancer.

Daily routine[]

An average day at Camp Kesem consists of waking up, then going to breakfast. There are many events arranged for the children including, but not limited to: Messy Olympics, Color Wars, Fireworks Show, and many others. Often campers transition through rotations that can include arts and crafts, sports, or nature themed activities. Some camps have a yearly theme where each child may wear themed clothing to match the theme for the year. Each day is different, but most days have a trip to the swimming pool and a midday rest time. On one specific day, the campers share their stories about their parent's cancer. There is a "closing circle" activity where songs are sung, and some nights, the campers can socialize.

References[]