Photo by: Jose Luis Avelino
“Each family fills out a scholarship application and based off what their family income is and the number of people they have to feed, from that I put their information into a sliding scale and we figure out what, you know, they can actually afford to pay. Some families pay $20, some pay $100, and some don’t pay anything. It’s whatever they can afford to pay that’s not going to hurt them,” Usher says.
Usher is proud of Holiday Home Camp’s return rate. About 45 percent of campers return for a second year, showing the camp’s magnetism. Campers attest that the experience of summer camp at Holiday Home can be life-changing. Kids learn responsibility and independence, all while finding friends and having fun. Once the summer season has ended, the campers love to share what their experience personally means to them.
“To me, camp means change because I have changed for the better and found myself through camp,” writes an older camper. “Things can happen at camp that can’t happen anywhere else. At camp not only do you share food and a living space, but you share stories, friendship and life.”
The identities of these children must be kept confidential because of the partnerships formed between Holiday Home and foster homes, but overall the kids share the same message of passion and gratitude.
A Day at Holiday Home Camp
From the moment the kids arrive at Holiday Home Camp, they follow a daily schedule with an array of cabin activities, blazing campfires with marshmallows, catchy camp songs and special activities such as skit night. Holiday Home also prides itself on its educational programming, which teaches campers about life skills such as nutrition, service dogs, tobacco use and farming. Most of these children never get a chance in everyday life to learn just how important these issues are, so the programming allows them to gather insight on the world around them. One of the greatest parts of the day includes a trip to the waterfront, where the children get to splash, canoe, kayak, fish and jump on the water trampoline.
The camp’s nature center is one of its most interesting features, where kids gather to learn about wild animals in a safe environment. In addition, the campers enjoy the quest to locate and identify Wisconsin wildlife, which can be anything from a red fox to a turkey.
“It’s interesting when you have kids come up from the city, and they see a turkey and are like, ‘What is that?’ They have no idea. But then with a turkey, you trace your hand and you color the feathers. But up until that time they have no idea what they actually look like in real life,” Usher says.
Holiday Home Camp receives funds every year from private donors, grants and scholarships from the government and “camperships” from outside organizations such as Title XX and SCOPE Midwest to help make camp a reality. Private donors help provide 60 percent of all contributions to the camp, but “camperships” provided by SCOPE Midwest have been an annual success.
