May June

American Traffic Safety Services Association 30 The Foundation joins with Experience Camps to help children cope with loss Experience Camps Travel Scholarship program to cover round-trip travel expenses for eligible individuals In addition to its many other programs that support injured or fallen roadway workers and their families, The Founda- tion is continuing outreach efforts for its newest endeavor, the Experience Camps Travel Scholarship program. By joining with Experience Camps, a non- profit that was started in 2009, The Foun- dation is working to send children who have lost a parent, sibling, or caregiver in a roadway work zone to a week- long camp. The camps help children of varying ages to cope with grief caused by the loss of a loved one and build a support group of young individuals who are undergo- ing similar challenges. The Foundation will cover round-trip travel expenses for children to attend these free summer camps and, according to Foundation President Tom Wood, is currently seek- ing eligible children to send to any of the four locations across the United States. “The camps give children the opportuni- ty to share their experiences with oth- ers who have suffered a similar loss,” Wood said. “Foundation supporters and ATSSA members can be part of this too, by simply helping to identify a family who would benefit from such a healing, everlasting experience. We encourage eligible applicants to apply by the July first deadline and to reach out to us with any questions.” Experience Camps Chief Program Offi- cer Sam Green said in the time the non- profit has been around and continued to grow, its staff members have ex- panded their focus to becoming a con- tinual resource for campers and their families. “This program is more than an opportu- nity for kids to go to camp. The big take- aways are the confidence builders and the ability for kids to come out of that week understanding more about the grief process and how they want to work through that,” Green said. “It’s an expe- rience we really want to provide for not just the camper but the family. While we offer the one week of camp, we’re also available as a year-round resource. We provide referrals, and we are able to check in with our campers.” The Foundation