When wildfires strike, these camps give kids a safe place to recover
Providers like Project:Camp offer emergency education and care to families as climate change brings more destructive weather
TL;DR
- Wildfires in eastern Washington forced 60,000 people to evacuate and destroyed approximately 920 structures.
- Spokane public schools, in collaboration with nonprofits and local churches, established free day camps for children affected by the fires.
- Project:Camp, a nonprofit, specializes in setting up free day camps in disaster-stricken areas to support children's recovery.
- The "education in emergencies" approach focuses on creating predictable routines and structures to help young people process traumatic events.
- These camps offer childcare, meals, and activities such as games, arts and crafts, and interactions with characters like Abby Cadabby, alongside therapy dogs and other engaging experiences.
- The initiative addresses not only children directly impacted by home loss but also those indirectly affected by the trauma of witnessing devastation or experiencing evacuation.
- The camps aim to reestablish a sense of safety, normalcy, and routine for children, drawing on principles of "adverse childhood experiences" (ACEs) research.
- The efforts are crucial as climate change increases the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events affecting communities.