Camp Korey Programs
Summer Camp
Camp Korey offers seven 5-day summer camps each year. These programs provide therapeutic recreation adapted to the individual needs of each child. Activities are designed so that campers succeed regardless of their medical condition, and benefit from both individual attention and positive team support. Camp activities include a universally-accessible ropes course (one of a handful in the country), equestrian program, climbing wall, boating and fishing, music, theater activities, campfires, swimming, arts and crafts, camp-wide festivals, pet therapy, and special guests. Campers are fully supported by a team of allied health providers and well-trained staff, and are cared for in a 1:2 ratio. Our location on a historic organic farm gives campers unique outdoor education opportunities & farm-to-table nutrition and gardening education.
Family Camps and Weekend Retreats
During Family Weekends at Camp Korey, children battling life-limiting conditions and their parents and siblings experience the joy, empowerment, education and community which make our programs so unique. We offer activities like arts & crafts, fishing, theater, music, dancing, and more. During these weekends families have the rare opportunity to spend time together, connect with others who are facing similar life-challenges, and receive round-the-clock support from medical staff. As one parent told us after our Skeletal Dysplasia Family Weekend, “So often our son T.J. feels ‘different’ because of his size. Here at Camp Korey he is celebrated at we love it! This weekend has been a stress-free, wonderful time for all of us. T.J.’s siblings have also felt so valued here.” These moving words hint at the challenges that families often face when one of their children suffers from a life-altering medical condition. At Camp Korey, families are able to bond, build their children’s self-confidence, and alleviate some of the stress and loneliness that parents and siblings so often endure. Family Weekends are a new addition to the Camp Korey program repertoire and in 2012-13 we will be offering a total of 9 such events.
Hospital Outreach Programs
Through a partnerships with over 6 Northwest Hospitals, Camp Korey brings the spirit of Camp to children during their hospital stays. We are currently running our Hospital Outreach Programs (HOP) at Seattle Children's, Children's Country Home, Haarborview Medical Center, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Mary Bridge Hospital in Tacoma, and Dorenbecher Children's Hospital in Portland. By offering unique, creative and developmentally appropriate activities and interactions, we restore joy and laughter in times that are heavy with fear, stress and uncertainty. The benefit of HOP to pediatric patients is immediately obvious when you step into the room during outreach activities: this is camp in action, with all the requisite joy, comfort and laughter.
Recent Successes and Current Challenges
2012-13 Achievements
- Doubled the capacity of all our programs--we can now serve up to 64 children per camp.
- Added new activities for children, families and community members—including our farm-to-table garden and nutrition program, which allows us to merge our identity as a camp for children with serious illnesses and our identity as a working organic farm.
- Our Hospital Outreach Program is extending its services to more hospitals than ever before. We are now offering HOP programs in both Washington and Oregon.
- We made significant capital improvements to our campus—including the construction of a new commercial kitchen, the addition of a pharmacy in our medical center, and the repair of our Great Barn, which is the oldest and largest barn in King County.
- The SeriousFun Network, Founded by Paul Newman (formally known as the Association of Hole in the Wall Camps) accepted Camp Korey as a full member of this international Network! Individuals,
- Foundations and Corporations have all rallied together to help us serve more children, enhance our facilities, and extend our services. We cannot thank the community enough for their support!
Our Needs
As our reputation for providing high-quality, safe and life-changing programs grow, we face a significantly higher demand for our services. We are receiving record numbers of camper applications, and many of these youth present higher medical needs than children we’ve served in the past. Our hope for the future is to serve more children in the Northwest and continue to offer ground-breaking camps for children with conditions that are vastly underserved due to a lack of programming for their population in our region. For example, we offer the only summer camps for children with craniofacial difference, skeletal dysplasia, and mitochondrial disease in the region.
The generosity of individual donors, foundations and organizations, such as The Seattle Foundation, enables us to build new partnerships, broaden our base of funding and continue providing year-round transformative programs for children and families who are in need of our services. As one camper exclaimed, "Just one week at camp taught me that I can accomplish anything I want as long as I put my mind to it—no matter what my limitations are!"