Making a Difference in Washington with the National Down Syndrome Society

The National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) has always been a big fan of Camp PALS. Our program is just one of the many endeavors the NDSS supports to improve the lives of individuals with Down syndrome. In case you are interested, we wanted to alert you about their upcoming program in Washington D.C.

-Josh

Join the National Down Syndrome Society for the Buddy Walk^® on Washington
February 24th and 25th, 2010

Government Affairs Committee (GAC) leaders, affiliate leaders in government relations, seasoned self-advocates and others will come together to "walk" right into the offices of their elected officials! Click here to learn more.

Preliminary Conference Schedule:
Wednesday, February 24

2:00 p.m.-4:30 p.m.
Interactive advocacy training to unite and prepare for visits on the Hill

6:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m.
Buddy Walk on Washington Reception and Award Ceremony

Thursday, February 25

8:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m.
Legislative Breakfast on the Hill

9:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
Meetings with Elected Officials

To register for the Buddy Walk^® on Washington, call Vanessa Quick at 800-221-4602. The fee for registration, which includes a ticket to the Reception and Award Ceremony, is $25. The deadline for registration is January 28^th. All registrants will receive online training, information and resources before the conference to facilitate preparations for meetings with elected officials.

To arrange your stay, contact the conference hotel, the Washington Plaza Hotel at www.washingtonplazahotel.com or 1-800-424-1140. The hotel is located in close proximity to the offices on Capitol Hill. Please let the reservation agent know you will be attending the Buddy Walk on Washington to receive the special conference rate.

2010 Camper Application Now Available

The application for Camp PALS 2010 is now available on the Camp PALS website. You can access the application here.

Camp PALS 2010 is scheduled for June 20-26 at Cabrini College in Radnor, PA. Accepted campers will be paired one-to-one with a volunteer counselor for the week. For the full list of requirements to attend, please see the application.

Counselor Application Information

The first round of counselor applications will be closing on Sunday, January 17th. (You may still apply after this date, but you will be in the second round.) After a phone interview, we will let you know our decisions by mid-February. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me at abby@camppals.org. Apply now!

Camper applications will be available starting January 1.

Best,
Abby Kolker

2010 Fundraising Campaign

Dear counselors, campers, and extended Camp PALS family,

As many of you have heard, we recently kicked off our 2010 fundraising campaign. This year, we're inviting everyone who loves Camp PALS to create a personal fundraising page via Active Giving. We will be giving prizes to everyone who raises funds and anyone who raises at least $1 will be invited to celebratory party.

In just 5 days, with your help, we've had over 40 donations totaling $3,400-- but we're still a far way from our goal of raising $40,000. If you're reading this and would like to make a donation of your own, you can do so at http://www.active.com/donate/pals2010.

Working together, we can raise the funds necessary to ensure that Camp PALS continues to be the greatest summer camp in the world!

Jason

Camp PALS Expansion UPDATE

Dear Camp PALS Family,

I am excited to tell you that after months of work the directors have finally put together the Camp PALS Start-Up Kit. This Kit provides an inside view of what makes Camp PALS a success, including details on facilities, technology, trips, t-shirts, and of course, campers and counselors.

You can find the Kit online at http://kit.camppals.org. Please feel free to email directors@camppals.org if you have any questions or suggestions; we will continue to make edits and revisions to the Kit as we see fit.

With your help and support, I know the Camp PALS model can grow to serve more and more people throughout the world.

All my best,

Jenni, on behalf of the Camp PALS Directors

P.S. I am still collecting information on financial aid sources for Camp PALS tuition. If you have not done so already, please take the time to fill out this short survey here. I will be reporting back on this information by the end of the year.

Reunion at Philadelphia's Academy of Science

[As part of an introductory class on Management, 10 University of Pennsylvania students organized and ran a reunion for Camp PALS campers and counselors. They have guest-authored the blog post below.]

On the 22nd of November Team Guardians held the annual Camp PALS reunion at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. This year 17 past campers, 7 counselors, and 14 student volunteers partook in a scavenger hunt that allowed us to explore exhibits from the skeletons of dinosaur hall to the inventions of George Washington Carver. The day ended with souvenirs from the gift shop, certificates of attendance, and a wealth of new memories.