Even if your camp is not an official site of Operation Purple® [1] , there are many other ways your camp can support military kids and families!
- Host a military kid session. At Operation Purple Camps, military kids participate in camp with other military kids. This idea can be modified at any camp by providing a military kids session or simply housing a smaller group of military kids together as cabin mates.
- Orchestrate a military kid’s week or special military kid friendly event. Many Operation Purple camp locations support their local military community year round by bringing camp to military-concentrated communities or supporting events put on for military youth. Try connecting with a guard or reserve unit to see how you can help them create an event or activity that gives military families a chance to connect with each other and learn more about your camp.
- Incorporate a military kid scholarship in to your annual fund raising campaign. Like most families, military families are budget conscious right now. Adding a military kid scholarship to your annual fundraising efforts not only opens the doors to families that can’t financially provide their kids with a camp experience, but also provides your camp with new donor opportunities.
[1]Connect. Contact information for many on-installation military support services are public knowledge. Get connected with local military families where they are, by knowing the resources [2] that are available to them.
- Don’t forget military families in outreach campaigns. No matter where your camp is, you have military families in your community. The military community is great at passing resources by word-of-mouth. Use this to your advantage and become an involved and trusted military community resource.
Operation Purple’s® [1] specially designed programs serve military families in three different phases of military life – deployment, reintegration, and coming together after an injury. For more information about Operation Purple visit www.MilitaryFamily.org/OP [3].