Kampgrounds of America’s (KOA’s) annual Care Camps Big Weekend set a new camper attendance record May 12-13, drawing about four percent more camping families than last year, earning nearly $118,000 for its KOA Care Camps. In 2016, the care camps trust raised nearly $1.4 million through the year.
The Care Camps Big Weekend is in its 14th year and is a major fundraising event for the charity that supports a network of 128 specialized, weeklong summer camps for children battling cancer.
Campers who stayed as paying guests at the 400 participating KOAs on Friday (May 12) received a night of camping on Saturday for just $10. KOA Care Camps receives all of the fees collected on Saturday. The funds help provide the Care Camps experience free to deserving children battling cancer.
About 11,800 camping families stayed at participating KOAs during the May 12-13 event this year, compared to the previous record of 11,040 families in 2016.
The cost to send each child to a Care Camp is nearly $2,000, so KOA and its campground owners raise funds year-round through charity auctions, barbecues and pancake breakfasts. “The need never stops, and neither do our great KOA owners and their staffs,” said KOA President and CEO Pat Hittmeier. “It is a wonderful charity and a great cause.”
Learn more about KOA Care Camps, or make a donation at https://www.koacarecamps.org.
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