Every year LifeMoves provides a fully immersive Summer Adventure Camp to the children staying at our sites. The experience of becoming homeless is traumatic, especially for kids, so the spirited events and activities help provide a sense of normalcy and bring joy to both campers and staff.
After a challenging year, we were thrilled to resume in-person camp sessions (and virtual options), hosting games, activities, getaways, and more. The dedicated summer camp staff and interns spent weeks planning and preparing, and it paid off. The first week’s theme was adventure, and campers jumped in head-first! Their creativity, excitement, and overwhelming joy was incredibly rewarding for the LifeMoves staff - we are all gearing up for a summer of fun, unforgettable memories, and friendship.
Children at LifeMoves | First Step for Families prepared for the adventures ahead by creating their own passports. They drew pictures, answered questions about themselves, and added stickers they earned for completing activities such as "guess the object." This tricky game was no match for the brave kiddos who stuck their hands into a box to identify a mystery object by touch. They also honed their building skills creating elaborate towers using marshmallows and toothpicks. Judging by how the towers held up, this group might have some engineers in the making!
The team at LifeMoves | Family Crossroads transported campers to Italy (from the comforts of their camp session). The artists-in-training learned about Italian art and culture, channeling famous painters in their depictions of renowned destinations. They even created their own mini pizza shops out of cardboard and stickers (KiwiCo crates provided by the Education team)!
If there's anything kids love as much as arts and crafts, it's a day at the park! Campers at LifeMoves | Motel Voucher Program ventured out to a neighborhood park where they enjoyed the warm weather and cooled down with a water balloon fight. They had a blast playing outside with games like sharks and minnows, as well as a cup stacking competition – with record-shattering stacking speeds, worthy of an Olympic gold.
Nothing says “summertime” quite like gardening! Campers at our brand-new site, LifeMoves Mountain View, turned their creative energy towards decorating clay pots and planting sunflower and cilantro seeds. As the summer progresses, the kids will see their plants grow and flourish under their careful watch. They also enjoyed competitive rounds of four square and swinging to their hearts desire at a local park.
At LifeMoves | Redwood Family House, kids donned their thinking caps for STEM-related activities like creating hydraulic claws. With guidance from staff, they learned through hands-on building experience how hydraulic-powered devices are built and operated. They also happily got their hands dirty, perfecting their recipes for the ideal slime. We would love to share the recipe, but this top- secret information stays between campers. We wouldn’t want it to turn into a slime scene investigation.
With the first week behind us, we can’t wait to treat campers to six more weeks of summer fun. Summer Adventure Camp is made possible by generous donations from our community. You can help ensure the success of our program by donating today:
P.S. Be sure to subscribe (above) to our blog for next week’s update on our campers!
