Meet Ben (not his real name). Ben has been diagnosed with ADHD, and is on the autism spectrum. His mom shared that he is consistently bullied in school, and that Ben doesn't feel understood or accepted. Ben needs the tools to learn how to approach his peers, how to read social cues, how to identify his feelings. Ben needs to know his worth!

There is a local family living in their car. Mom has given birth to newborn twins. A 5 year old, 7 year old, live in the car too. A local agency is helping to find emergency housing which will be temporary for sure. What kind of coping and communication skills are the children currently developing? How do you think they are faring in school? What do they think about each day as they return from school (when they can go) and go to sleep each night? Their brains are in survival mode searching for consistent safety:

"Will I get food today?" "Where will I sleep tomorrow?" "What do I do with the upset and powerlessness I feel?"

Our Ray of Hope Summer Camp is created for children experiencing trauma. Our Ray of Hope Day Camp children need and deserve a safe environment that is prepared for intense emotions originating from inconsistencies in their lives. This year, we have the audatious goal of offering our first Ray of Hope post-Covid. Our community's children need emotional and social learning now! Ray of Hope Day Camp is for children ages 5-10 who each have stories of suffering, and have intense emotions because their brains are on overload constantly searching for safety. We provide a small adult child ratio of 1/5 in order to provide safety, and small group social and emotional learning. We teach children how to identify their emotions, navigate them in peaceful ways, how to co-operate with peers, and how to determine what healthy and unhealthy friendships look like. Ray of Hope provides an electronic fee environment, with outdoor cooperative games, and trained volunteers and educators. We strive to create kind, empathetic kids!

Ray of Hope is not a camp of enrichment programs like piano lessons, or drama. Ray of Hope offers consistency when their lives are inconsistent, routines when their lives are unhinged, Ray of Hope offers just that....HOPE!

We need YOUR help in order to offer Ray of Hope this summer. Please give, encourage your friends to give, and strengthen our community by supporting our community's children.

Scholarship for Ray of Hope '24

By Rebound Families

Scholarship for Ray of Hope '24

BRINGING KINDNESS INTO OUR COMMUNITY 1 CHILD AT A TIME