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The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically changed life for many of us, and nearly everyone is experiencing some form of loss this summer — loss that may continue into the foreseeable future. We recently sat down for a frank discussion about kids and grieving and how camps can offer support and compassion during this difficult time.

Discussion Participants

Vicki Jay, CEO of the National Alliance for Grieving Children

Each year, ACA’s Eleanor P. Eells Award for Program Excellence recognizes camps that epitomize the spirit of the award’s namesake through their efforts to provide sterling programming that effectively and innovatively addresses the needs of people and society through the camp experience. We applaud the 2020 recipients. They are all definitive proof of the right camp program’s capacity to equip campers of all abilities and backgrounds with the resiliency and conviction to build better futures for themselves and their communities.

In the summers of 2017 and 2018, the West Virginia 4-H camp program experienced multiple incidents where camps were locked down due to armed suspects in the area. In one incident, a man stole a truck and shot at a family’s home within a mile of a 4-H camp in session. In another incident, an armed suspect resurfaced near the camp facility area where he was ultimately captured.

Dear Colleagues,

I wish to express deep gratitude to all of ACA’s volunteers, leaders, donors, sponsors, partners, and members for your generous leadership and support over the past year and especially during this cataclysmic pandemic. Your generosity of wealth, time, and talent has helped ACA provide leadership and support in many ways to camps across the country facing precarious and unprecedented challenges.