Camp Druzy is an overnight summer camp in support of families with children who are grieving
the death or extended separation of a close family member.
We offer strengths- and evidence-based, personalized activities for the entire family that harness the power of nature, and
each camper's innate creativity, to improve resilience factors and overall well-being!
Since 2020, Camp Druzy has served nearly 150 campers of all ages - all at NO COST to families!
Read more about our history, the positive impact on children and adults, view photos from camp, and refer a family for July 2024 below!
Camp Druzy was named after our founder's late brother Andrew, lovingly known as "Drewsy", and also as a nod to druzy crystal. Druzy is a small geode formation with many crystal points shooting out of it, representing the unity of the collective. Launched in 2020, Camp Druzy is held annually at no cost for families with a lower income.
The mission of Camp Druzy is to empower grieving families with children to strengthen their resiliency and transform grief together in health-promoting ways. Camp Druzy participants report greater resiliency and overall well-being, and top satisfaction, after just three days - with some adults even scoring as "the best they have ever been"!
While Camp Druzy is for all ages, children and youth ages 5+ were asked to complete surveys before and after camp. For children and youth an avg. overall increase in self-reported resiliency scores was shown for all measures - especially for those related to academic achievement, positive coping skills, having role models, a greater feeling of fitting in with other kids, and more.
Older youth ages 10+ were asked additional self-reported measures of resiliency – average increases were also seen across measures reported for younger children, as well as for: “Now I know I can handle hard times”, “I can change important things in my life”, “I discovered I am stronger than I thought I was”, “I feel a sense of well-being from a connection with nature”, and more.
For adults, resiliency also increased across all dimensions – even with a small sample size, statistically significant increases were reported for the following measures: “I can change important things in my life”, “I have a greater sense of closeness with others”, “Now I know that I can handle hard times”, “I discovered that I am stronger than I thought I was”, and more.
On average, on a scale from 0-10,
all youth and adults reported top-notch scores with how happy they were with their experiences (average of 9.5+/10). Families and volunteers have also ranked CHARM as a top-rated/5-star nonprofit five times since our founding
from 2019-2023!
When assessing adult global/overall well-being (their overall sense of spiritual, social, mental, emotional, and physical well-being), participants report highly statistically significant increases in overall well-being after camp, with increases as high as
7x greater!!! Several report being
"the best they have ever been"!
CHARM is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization strengthening resiliency and wellbeing for grieving families with children through our Camp Druzy and Tapestry programs. We also support schools with SEL supports, training, and resources at no cost to them. Learn more on our Camp Druzy and Hub of Love pages, or read our impact report.