Camp Up with People’s program strives to to impact and inspire the community through service and song. This impact doesn’t happen overnight, or even in the course of our 3-week program! We start the journey with our campers through local community service projects and workshops on topics like leadership, inclusion, and individuality. Campers leave inspired and prepared to continue effecting change in their own communities.

“Hi, I am Braeden, and I have been a camper for three years in casts: A’17, A’18, B’18, and A’19. Although all my years at camp have been special, this year stood out among the others because of what it has driven me to do outside of camp.  This year at camp we learned about different ways to live our “dash” (our lives) and what we want to be remembered for. This workshop struck me on many levels and I feel like I really connected with this idea. We then started brainstorming ideas for problems we wanted to help fix in our communities.

I chose to try to help with mental health. This was important for me because many close friends, family members, and myself have struggled with anxiety and/or other mental health issues.  I decided I wanted to build an inspirational Facebook page. The day I got home from camp I set up the page “InspirationDailyA19″. This is a page to try to help people who are in a dark place. I post one inspirational quote every day in the hopes of helping people get through their day, lift their spirits, and make a positive difference in their lives.  My goal was to get 50 followers in one month. My family and friends blew me away by reaching my goal by the end of the first week!  The page currently has 61 followers and it’s a little over a month and a half old. I’m trying to spread this out across the state, country, and the world so it can get to the people that really need an inspirational quote, feel alone, or just need to message from someone when they need to talk about something.

I am really grateful for my Camp Up with People experience, and for the inspiration to create this wonderful page.  I can’t wait to go back next summer!

Thank you!”

-Braeden – A’17, A’18, B’18, A’19