Inspired
by her mother, who was separated from her sisters and
put into foster care at the age of 9, Mary proudly
serves as the spokesperson for CAMP TO BELONG, which
reunites brothers and sisters placed in different foster
homes for events of emotional empowerment,
sibling connection, and old-fashioned fun.
CAMP TO BELONG, an international non-profit organization, has
been actively reuniting brothers and sisters placed in separate foster,
adoptive or kinship homes through camp programs and reunions since
1995. Our primary goal is to provide a sense of belonging to
youth as individuals, and as siblings, giving them opportunities to
share childhood memories together and among other youth in the same
situations. Best known for our summer camp sessions, Camp To Belong
recently completed our tenth summer camp season reuniting over 1,500
separated siblings across the United States and Canada to date.
Camp To Belong has a year-round commitment to educate the world about
the significance of the sibling bond as the longest relationship in
life. We encourage foster, adoptive, kinship and agency care providers
to consider the sibling bond in all temporary and permanent placements.
If placement together is not in the best interest of the youth, we
strive for accountable visitation plans. Through education, advocacy
and mentoring, we seek to inspire youth to take control of their destinies
to ensure a happy and successful adult life with childhood memories
of their siblings.
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DID
YOU KNOW? |
There are over
580,000 children
in foster care
across the United
States.
65% - 85% of
children entering
the foster care
system have at
least one sibling.
30% of children
in foster care
have four siblings
or more.
75% of siblings
end up apart
when they enter
foster care.
THREE OUT OF
FOUR CHILDREN
PLACED IN FOSTER
CARE ARE SEPARATED
FROM AT LEAST
ONE SIBLING!
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Camp
To Belong was founded by Lynn Price. Lynn's childhood experience
in foster care separated from her older sister, Andi Andree, inspired
her to create the organization. CAMP TO BELONG and Lynn have received
numerous accolades including the Points
of Light President's Service Award, CBS
Morning Show American Hero, L'eggs Hosiery Women Who Shape Our World
honor, Oprah Winfrey's Angel Network Use Your Life Award, Redbook
Magazine’s Mother
and Shaker of the Year honor.
Because the organization consists almost entirely of volunteers
and is funded through donations, Camp To Belong welcomes ongoing support
and assistance to help continue the mission to reunite siblings and
to provide expert assistance about sibling separation through the
foster care system and other out-of-home care.
CAMP
TO BELONG is not about finding a brother or sister. It is about
reuniting siblings that may live in the same town, maybe even go
to the same school, but live in separate homes. Siblings may not
have the opportunity to read bedtime stories together at night,
have breakfast together, argue about who is going to sit where in
the car, cheer for each other at school functions or share precious
holidays – all
the things that typical siblings get to
do each day. Siblings are often taken
for granted. Yet, the sibling relationship can be our longest relationship
in life.
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