This Year's Project: The Fireside Escape
About Our Organization
Camp High Hopes provides fun, safe, and adaptive recreational experiences for children, teens, and adults with disabilities, chronic illnesses, and special needs. The camp is a one-of-a-kind facility in the Siouxland region and serves more than 500 campers each year. Campers can't wait to attend life-changing week, weekend, or day sessions at camp to experience adaptive activities and unique opportunities in an extremely caring environment. Camp High Hopes believes in a challenge-by-choice atmosphere, encouraging campers to push themselves and their perceived limitations to learn about themselves, build self-confidence and self-esteem, and to try new things. The camp is located on 90-acres on the eastern edge of Sioux City, Iowa. It attracts campers from across the Siouxland area and beyond. Recreational and social outlets can be extremely limited for people with disabilities, but Camp High Hopes fulfills this need in the area by offering year-round camp programs for all ages! It's also a respite provider, offering services for families and caregivers that need a break. Many of our campers call Camp High Hopes their second home and can't wait to sign up for sessions each season.
Current Project: The Fireside Escape
The Fireside Escape - It's S'more Than a Campfire
The Fireside Escape will profoundly impact our campers' social and emotional well-being. We want to cultivate a sense of community and belonging that will carry beyond camp life by creating a dedicated space for them to interact with other campers and their counselors. This fire pit area with swings and chairs will be a safe and comfortable place to relax, socialize, share campfire stories, and gaze up at the stars.
We remain steadfast in our commitment to ensure that this project is inclusive, safe, and accessible to all our campers with disabilities. We will work closely with our staff and volunteers to ensure that the fire pit area is designed with their needs in mind and that all safety measures are followed.
The Fireside Escape has incredible potential and will be a valuable addition to our camp program. We ask for your support in collaborating with our team to bring this vision to life and provide our campers with a space to connect, socialize, and forge enduring memories.
The Hammock Hangout
Project Details
The Hammock Hangout will be a place where kids, teens, and adults will gather to talk, sing, and unwind after a busy day of camp activities. Campers and counselors can rest and relax, look up at the trees and clouds, and watch the moon and stars light up the night sky! This hangout area will be unique, a place of reflection and growth where everyone can be themselves. Creating smiles is what we do here at Camp High Hopes, and this addition will surely put smiles on the faces of anyone who uses it!
Camp High Hopes...Where Smiles Happen
Enclosed Trailer
Project Details
We need an enclosed trailer!
We do a lot of moving things around from one location to another and we are always borrowing trailers, trucks, and wagons. It's way past time that we had our own. This trailer will save us money, time, and effort!
We have found the one we need! The cost for the trailer would be $5295. This is for a 12 foot – single axle trailer, 6’ wide and 6’ tall. Enough space to fit all of our stuff!
We need an enclosed trailer for several reasons. It would allow us to accept larger donations that people have offered us in the past, but we have had to refuse because we had no way of getting items to camp. Also, with our special events and fundraisers, it takes a lot of stuff to move in and out. It takes dozens of trips with staff members' cars to go back and forth while setting up events. An enclosed trailer would also allow us to haul equipment and supplies for various projects around camp and the community.
Will you help us fulfill this much-needed item for camp?!?!
Monkey Tree Improvements and Upgrades
Project Details
This year for the Siouxland Big Give, Camp High Hopes is raising money for Monkey Tree improvements! Our goal is $7,000 and that will include adding sturdier, more permanent steps, a permanent anchor system at the top, yearly inspection costs, and upgraded helmets, ropes, harnesses, and slings! These improvements are going to increase safety and functionality for our campers and staff. These improvements will make it easier for staff to set up each summer and make it better for our campers to climb to the top and ring the bell! The Monkey Tree is a beloved activity at camp and it's for all ages and abilities. It's completely adaptable for everyone!
Your donation to our Monkey Tree improvement project during the Siouxland Big Give on Tuesday, October 6th will directly touch the lives of our campers of all ages with disabilities, special needs, and chronic illnesses. Please make your gift today so camp can continue to offer this fun and unique activity at camp!
Snowplow Attachment and Fittings
Project Details
Camp High Hopes has 90 acres of beautiful land on the eastern edge of Sioux City. We also have a lot of trails, roads, parking lots, and sidewalks to clear of snow when the winter comes! We are looking to save money on the cost of snow removal that we incur every year. We want to do it ourselves. We need to purchase a blade and get it fitted to the camp truck. We are excited about this project because it will be well-used and will save us money every year! The plow to fit our camp truck costs $4600 and the parts and installation will cost $650, for a total of $5250 for the snowplow.
Spring Camp Sessions
Project Details
Camp High Hopes offers programs year-round, but the camp kicks off each year with Spring Camp Sessions. Spring Camp Sessions start early February and run through late April. Campers arrive Friday evening and stay until Sunday evening. Campers are provided adaptive activities, healthy meals, caring camp counselors, and modern facilities while they are at camp. Activities during Spring Camp Sessions depend upon the weather, but may include sledding, snowshoeing, camp fires, fishing, archery, adaptive sports & games, arts & crafts, boating, climbing, among others. The camp breaks out camps sessions by age group, disability, and care level. Doing so helps makes the campers feel more comfortable, creates an atmosphere for them to make new friends easily, and ensures campers needs are met.
What's awesome about all of our programs is that they are designed and adapted to each camper. They get to try and do things they've never thought possible before! They can hit a bulls eye in archery, climb to the top of our Monkey Tree, or canoe across our beautiful lake! Every activity we plan is adapted to the needs of our campers. This helps them grow, develop, and challenge themselves. Through this, they are able to build self-confidence and self-esteem, make new friends, and achieve personal growth! Now that's exciting!