By Melissa Silva, Summer Camp Cabin Life Director
Camper in a 2016 Crossroads Shirt!
For a second imagine if you or your son or daughter had never had the opportunity to experience Camp Mason, as a camper or staff member? How would their lives be different? I recently had the opportunity to talk to different staff members, many who had been campers themselves, about this question and the responses were over whelming. Some spoke of this place as a home away from home where they’ve turned to in times of need. Other spoke of the confidence in themselves that developed because of how loved and empowered they felt here. It was clear, Mason was home and without it they would not be who they are today. Now instead imagine if any family, regardless of financial status was able to provide this life altering experience to their son or daughter? This is the hope of Camp Mason’s initiative, Project Crossroads.
On average, 1 out of every 8 campers at Mason receive financial assistance to help make the summer of their lives possible. Project Crossroads is just one of the many ways that summer staff, campers and families help make that a reality. For summer 2016, our goal is to help send 117 children to camp, to mark the 117th summer of Camp Mason. Our staff have already begun raising money through our yearly staff auction. Because of their generosity we were able to raise $2758 dollars! You can help too! At the trading post, campers can buy our camper designed Crossroads t-shirt. For every shirt sold, $8 goes to Project Crossroads. A new addition to Camp Mason this year, Crossroads Cards not only help make our staff feel like celebrities but the proceeds also go entirely to Project Crossroads. With all of these things combined, it is truly amazing to see an entire community rally behind a single cause: Making Mason possible for every child.
A crossroad. We have all been there before. When we reach a point in our lives where we are faced with an important decision. In order to make this decision we reflect on the past and look to the future. Camp Mason is this special place, the crossroad for many of our young people. It is a safe environment not only where they can grow as individuals but also where they are given the tools to meet any obstacle they may face. A walk through our camp on any given day will reveal the smell of campfires, the chuckle of children’s laughter, but must importantly the countless stories, new and old, of how Mason has changed their lives. Let’s help spread this Mason legacy to every child through Project Crossroads!
Click here to make a donation to Project Crossroads.
