2017 Annual Report

CASCO, MAINE 2017 ANNUAL REPORT WWW.CAMPSUNSHINE.ORG A RETREAT FOR CHILDREN WITH LIFE-THREATENING ILLNESSES AND THEIR FAMILIES 2017 ANNUAL REPORT 1-Reflecting on 2017 3-Mission 4-History 5-Family Letter 6-Camp Families 7-By the Numbers 9- The Power of Camp 10-Seasons of Hope 11-Positivity and Hope 12-Volunteers 17-Treasurer’s Report 18-Financials 19-New Board Members 20-Sunshine Society 21-2017 Donors 42-Staff/Board REFLECTING ON 2017 What an amazing year! Thanks to your kindness, generosity and support, our 33rd year in service was a tremendous success. It is difficult to capture everything that transpired and the whirlwind of events that took place during our 2017 campaign. In reflecting back over the year, we were fortunate to experience many achievements, receive a number of accolades and create special moments and cherished memories. Camp Sunshine offered 22 programs and served 637 families (2,505 family members) from 46 states and 5 countries. We enhanced our outreach by visiting hospitals, clinics and fairs across the country and by partnering with Tropical Smoothie Café, placing information about Camp Sunshine in each of their cafes. The highlight was the unveiling of the Sunshine Smoothie & Sunshine Cup. We also expanded our transportation assistance program to families in need, thanks to the generosity of Hands on Tzedakah, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Noyes Brain Tumor Foundation, SEALs for Sunshine, Windham Automotive (Ron Eby), John & Ann Ewalt, Tropical Smoothie Café, and Texas Roadhouse. In fact, you may have even seen our branded van or bus on the road during your travels. Our program continued to maintain its high standard of operations and service and once again achieved accreditation through the American Camp Association (ACA), maintained the honor of being a Gold Ribbon Camp with the Children’s Oncology Camping Association – International (COCA-I), and received the highest possible rating from GreatNonprofits. Most importantly, Camp Sunshine was awarded Charity Navigator’s top four-star rating for exhibiting sound fiscal management and transparency. It seemed like each week more people were stepping up to help Camp Sunshine however they could. There were numerous plungers taking the polar dip, people ran road races & marathons to raise money, there were concerts, live bands, golf tournaments, and more. We hosted our 15th Pumpkin Festival on the campus of L.L. Bean and introduced our first ever Watermelon Festival. More than twenty eager Navy SEALs and one Coast Guardsman completed a 10-mile, open water swim around Coronado Island, CA. to raise funds and awareness for Camp. Camp Sunshine was honored to receive the Newman’s Own / Fisher House Award 1 and was invited to the Hall of Heroes in the Pentagon to accept a grant to support military families with an ill child. Board member and longtime Camp Sunshine supporter Tim Porta, his wife Joan, and the entire Porta family along with Migis Lodge guests completed their Centennial Celebration by raising $250,000. Flip Flop Day, along with a variety of other initiatives hosted by Tropical Smoothie Café across the country, once again proved successful, raising $908,510. As if everyone connected to Camp Sunshine doesn’t already know…we have the best volunteers in the world! Collectively, they were recognized as 100 Everyday Amazing by Massachusetts General Cancer Center. Individuals shining through this year included Camp Sunshine supporter Denis Litalien as a WCSH 6 Who Care Award winner, volunteer Sara Brown received the Governor’s Award for Service and Volunteerism, Emily Dziedzic took home a 2017 “20 Women of the Year Award” presented by Coast 93.1, Board Member Dan Shaw was selected by Camden National Bank for the Leaders and Luminaries Award and Carol Lee Tonge was honored with the Daily Points of Light Award created by the administration of George H. W. Bush to recognize individuals making a meaningful change in communities across America. What a Group!! Along with our top-notch volunteers, there are others making a difference and we are fortunate and grateful to have expanded, developed and built relationships with national, regional and local corporate sponsors including: Tropical Smoothie Café, Texas Roadhouse, Day’s Jewelers, Stonewall Kitchen, Boston Bruins Foundation, L.L. Bean, Keller Williams Realty, Shaw Brothers Construction, New Balance, Migis Hotel Group, NAPA Auto Parts, Hancock Lumber, TD Bank, Laddawn, Dunkin’ Donuts, DCU, KOA Care Camps, Rite Aid, Sugarland Distillery, Martignetti Companies, Renys, Landry French Construction, Poland Spring, Maine Honda Dealers, Patriot Subaru and Whole Foods. We have further maintained and developed partnerships with various illness-related groups. These special and dedicated groups include: Bryan’s Dream Foundation, Diamond Blackfan Anemia Foundation, Dyskeratosis Congentia Outreach, Fanconi Anemia Research Fund, A Kids’ Brain Tumor Cure Foundation, Lauren’s First and Goal, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Love is Magic, Noyes Brain Tumor Foundation, and Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome Foundation. As you can see, it was another incredible year with many great moments, milestones and events! We could not do it without you! The upcoming year promises to be equally as exciting as we have already broken ground and begun construction of our new 2,300 sq. ft. Tropical Smoothie Café Sports Center. It should be ready for the families to enjoy this spring. Each year, every day and during the precious moments we share with our very special Camp families we are extremely grateful to all our donors, partners, volunteers, board members and staff who allow us to continue to build and strengthen our Camp Sunshine community. With your help and support, we will strive to serve more children with life-threatening illnesses and their families and spread awareness across the country and around the world. THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO “SPREAD THE SUNSHINE”! MICHAEL KATZ ANNA GOULD EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOUNDER, BOARD CHAIR 2 OUR MISSION Camp Sunshine provides retreats combining respite, recreation and support, while enabling hope and promoting joy, for children with life- threatening illnesses and their families through the various stages of a child’s illness. Camp Sunshine is offered year-round with the distinction of having been designed to serve the entire family in a retreat model. The program is free of charge to families and includes on-site medical and psychosocial support. Bereavement sessions are also offered for families who have experienced the death of a child from a supported illness. 3 PROGRAM HISTORY Founded in 1984, Camp Sunshine is nestled in the tranquil natural beauty of Sebago Lake in Casco, Maine. For seventeen years, Anna Gould and Dr. Larry Gould donated the facilities and personnel of Point Sebago Resort and hosted camp sessions for thousands of children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. Dr. Gould retired as Chairman and CEO of M/A-Com, Inc., a Fortune 500 company, in 1983. After watching a television program about a summer camp for children with cancer, he and Anna decided to offer a similar program at their resort. Discussions with the chief of pediatric oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston resulted in Anna and Larry offering a pilot family camp for 43 children with cancer and their families in June 1984. At the end of the first session, when fathers thanked Anna and Larry for the week while crying and hugging them, they knew that this was a very special program. They continued to offer the program, at no charge to families, expanding to four weeks a year, two weeks in early June and two weeks in late September. Through the years, the program became highly regarded, with increasing numbers of referrals from multiple medical centers. Demand for services far exceeded capacity, and it soon became apparent that Camp Sunshine had to have a permanent home where the program could expand to meet the growing need. In 2001, Camp Sunshine opened the doors of its own year-round facility on 24 acres donated by Anna and Larry. Before 2001, Camp Sunshine was offering 4-6 sessions during the spring and autumn months, serving roughly 180 families (720 family members) each year. With the opening of the new campus and the addition of winter, spring, and other year-round programming, and thanks to the support of many generous donors and volunteers, Camp Sunshine’s program has grown dramatically. More than 23 sessions are now offered annually, serving as many as 700 families (2,800 family members) per year. Since Camp Sunshine’s inception in 1984, it has served over 50,000 family members from 50 states and 27 different countries. Throughout this period of growth, Camp Sunshine has made significant enhancements to its program and campus. Camp Sunshine now serves families of children diagnosed with cancer, hematologic conditions, kidney disease, systemic lupus erythematosus, and those who have undergone solid organ transplantation. Bereavement programming for families who have experienced the death of a child from a supported illness began in 2002 and is hosted in the spring and fall. In addition to expanding its program, Camp Sunshine has continued to enhance its campus in various ways. Most notably, in 2008 the Shaw Brothers Second Floor was added to the Viterbi Family Activities Center, and the addition of the Orokawa Foundation Family-Volunteer Center was completed in 2011. 45 LETTER FROM A CAMP FAMILY Dear Texas Roadhouse, Today is our last day at Camp. As we write you this letter, I have tears coming down my face and tears of joy in my heart. I have one child with Sickle Cell Anemia. I just wanted to come to camp to meet with other women who had kids with Sickle Cell so that we could relate to each other about this illness. My daughter is six years old and coming to Camp Sunshine makes a great impact in her life.

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