Our Vision
Since our inception in the 2000, Camp Sunfish has been dedicated to enriching the lives of children in the children protection system by providing no-cost opportunities for them to experience outdoor recreational adventure. Our vision is to "plant seeds of joy" in each child's heart that they can later recall whenever they need a boost, some hope, or just simply a smile. Additionally, we are committed to on-going participation and leadership in advocacy efforts for abused and neglected children in Minnesota.
Children in the child protection system are removed from their homes because their parents cannot safely care for them. They are placed in out-of-home care for a variety of reasons including abuse, neglect, inadequate housing, abandonment, incarceration, substance abuse, inability to cope, or the children's own behavior or mental health issues. Research shows that children who have been abused or neglected are far more likely to perform poorly in school, far more likely to become involved in criminal activities, and more likely to abuse or neglect their own children.
In 2004, almost 14,400 children in Minnesota were living in emergency shelters, foster homes, residential treatment shelters, or group homes. Over 45% of these children remained in out-of-home care for over 6 months. Almost 23% of children who entered out-of-home care in 2004 were previously in care during the prior year. Many children are placed in a shelter, returned home, only to be removed again less than a year later.
Camp Sunfish works directly with the emergency shelters, group homes, treatment centers, and county foster care programs to provide these children with a feel of what it would be like to spend a day on a lake with a loving family. During our fun and adventure filled days, we seek to build self-esteem, foster respect for nature and others, and most importantly instill a sense of hope for brighter days ahead.
Our camping programs are offered to children at absolutely no cost. Neither the children, nor the shelters are charged a fee to attend Camp Sunfish. Instead, we rely entirely on the generosity of our committed donors and corporate sponsors. Their generosity helps secure the future of Camp Sunfish while enabling us to remain fully committed to our mission.
Camp Sunfish is operated and managed 100% by volunteers who take time off from their jobs to help us bait fishing hooks, drive boats, create this web site, write grant applications, balance the books, find donors, make s'mores and everything else it takes to keep Camp Sunfish running. To date, we have provided more than 800 children with their own truly memorable Camp Sunfish experience.
Camp Sunfish, Inc is Minnesota non-profit corporation and federal 501(c)(3) charity.
