With the help and generosity of the entire Grand County community the Shining Stars Foundation will be welcoming over 50 children with cancer or other life-threatening illnesses and their family members to the county for a week of activities in the mountains. On July 27 through July 31 the families will be able to embrace almost everything the mountains have to offer in the summer. Activities for the five-day overnight camp include a day at Winter Park Resort, a day in Grand Lake, boating, fishing, canoeing, hiking, horseback riding, white water rafting, a rodeo, concerts, Recreation Center activities, a therapy dog presentation, summer tubing and museum visit. The camp’s headquarters will be at Beaver Village Lodge. However, families are staying throughout the Winter Park community.

Not only does this camp give the families a week of exploration in the mountains, but it also allows them the opportunity to let go of some of the struggles they deal with daily while connecting with others who have faced similar challenges. This camp provides every member of the family with people that they can relate to. During the five-day camp the families develop life-long friendships that will help them throughout the course of their long battle.

The Shining Stars Foundation transforms lives through year-round recreational and social programs for children and their families challenged with pediatric cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. All programs are provided at no cost to the children or their families. The Foundation is a local charity and has provided services to 7,968 clients last year including children, families, medical support teams, volunteers, and supporters. Over 95 percent of every dollar spent goes directly to fund the Foundation’s programs placing it in the top 1 percent nationally for non-profit spending.