Exciting news from Camp K!!!
For the first time in History, Camp K, in partnership with the University of Utah, will be offering Residential (overnight) Camps for children without disabilities ages 9-14 years old! These camps will be called All Inclusive Adventure Camps!
Part of our mission here at Camp K is to support the inclusion of our participants with disabilities into our community. This new program will help us to further achieve our goal. Please help us to spread the word to siblings and friends to come experience the exciting opportunities we have here at camp!
All Inclusive Adventure Camps are a one of a kind summer camp experience designed to opening doors, launching lives and cultivating productive citizens of passion and purpose! This is a five day overnight Residential Camp where campers will get to engage in new adventures and learn new skills. During their stay at Camp K in Emigration Canyon campers will get to experience the outdoors and participate in canoeing, fishing, horseback riding, ropes course/climbing wall and other amazing activities. On a daily basis campers will participate in inclusive activities interacting with individuals with disabilities. Inclusive talent shows with drama, singing, and dancing, themed parties, and other unique experiences will promote self-expression, independence, and practical life skills. Through this inclusive interaction they will also learn about building trust, empathy, compassion and understanding, patience, and other valuable skills for success in today’s world. Our staff are carefully selected role models from all over the world making this a cultural and educational experience!
Not only we will be offering this new overnight program, but our Day Programs as well! Partners include the University of Utah, Natural History Museum of Utah, Red Butte Garden, This is the Place Heritage Park, and Utah’s Hogle Zoo.
Most of Partner Camps provide a 2-in-1 camping experience for children without disabilities. The campers will spend half of each day at our partner’s facilities, learning about many exciting subjects, such as art, science, veterinary medicine, leadership, etc. Then, they will spend the other half of the day at Camp K, where they will participate in outdoor learning activities and nature education, swimming, engaging with horses, traverse our high and low ropes courses, fish, hike, play water games, make s’mores near a campfire, and much more!
One extremely unique Partner Camp is the Ultimate Camp Experience. In this camp, campers are lucky enough to have a 5-in-1 camping experience!
If you can only attend one camp this summer, make it this one! Join us for a week of signature camp activities where each day finds campers at a different location with new exciting experiences. While at Camp Kostopulos students will participate in swimming, fishing, climbing wall activities, and experience an introduction to horses and learning about their care. At Red Butte Garden, campers will have a plethora of garden adventures while exploring everything from plants to insects. While at This Is The Place, we’ll discover Utah’s pioneering history through train rides, panning for gold and other hands-on activities. Campers will also spend a day exploring Utah’s Hogle Zoo, watching animal demos while learning about the animals that call the Zoo home. And, at the Natural History Museum of Utah, explore the Museum and our collections while participating in hands-on science. One week has never been so exciting!
Camp K is grateful to our Partners for helping us provide these amazing experiences for our campers.
Through these opportunities at Camp K, everyone has fun, feels included, and just get to be kids!
Learn more about specifics, and register for our Partner Camps visit: www.campk.org/partner-camps
Please click the image below to view the news story aired on ABC4Utah:
March was a huge success for Camp K activities! We finished up our international cuisine program with food from America, China, India, and Hawaii! The participants enjoyed experiencing different cultures and eating delicious food! We went on many adventures out in the community including the Natural History Museum of Utah where they got to see the dinosaur exhibits, the Jazz game where they got to be on the court at halftime and high five the players, the planetarium to learn about space exploration, and the Murray Firestation where they met firefighters and took a tour of the facilities!
The highlight of the month was the St. Patrick’s Day Party! The participants ate snacks, went on a scavenger hunt, and were serenaded by a bagpiper! The night finished off with a live performance of professional Irish dancers, followed by our very own dance lesson! We will finish off our Community-Based season in April with some exciting things! We are planning on enjoying the spring weather with a trip to the zoo, and a bonfire night! We are also gearing up for a special night at our Enchanted Forest Prom! April will end with our annual End of Season Barbeque where we will say goodbye until next season!
As spring passes us by, we are in full swing with summer camp preparations! We are preparing our cabins for over 50 counselors and support staff to join us from all over the world! Campsites have been booked for all of our Travel Trips, and new activities are in the works for Residential and Day Camp! Registrations continue to come in every day and weeks are filling up! We are so excited to have the best summer ever!
Videos of the events:
February was exciting for Camp K students, as they embarked on some exciting adventures out in the community! The month started off with a bang at a Magic Show, held at the Utah Children’s Theatre, where we saw amazing magic tricks, thrilling stunts, and hilarious jokes performed by magician Elias “Lefty” Caress. Things heated up as we cheered on some of our favorite sports teams throughout the month, including the University of Utah Gymnastics, and the Grizzlies Hockey. It wouldn’t be Camp K without a party -and this month did not disappoint! We celebrated with a Valentine’s Day Party, complete with cookie decorating, card making, and of course, a dance party! The highlight of the month was our Star Wars themed Mini-Camp! It was a weekend full of Storm Troopers, lightsabers, and Jedi’s. We even had an appearance by Kids Heroes Foundation, which included a Jedi master, Sith Lord, and a Tie-Fighter pilot!
We couldn’t be more thrilled with the way our specialty program, International Cuisine, has been going! During February, we explored and learned about different cultures and food from around the world. We “traveled” to Italy, Mexico, Greece, and the USA! Because of our generous donors, we were able to try delicious food from each of these locations. A special thanks to The Old Spaghetti Factory, Sugar House BBQ, La Puente, International Pantry, Spitz, and Ruth’s Diner. We look forward to “traveling” to China, India, and Hawaii in March!
With two months left in this season’s Community Based Program, we are gearing up for some exciting things in March, including a visit to the Natural History Museum of Utah, Disney on Ice, a tour of the Murray Fire Station, and our annual St. Patrick’s Day Party.
Our students have been working hard in our Vocational Rehabilitation program. We are having a great time learning about public transportation, communication, and professional development. In March, we will be diving into finance and learning about saving, spending, and budgeting. Don’t let these boring words fool you – our lessons, games, and activities are not only educational, but fun as well!
The volunteers at Camp K continue to influence and inspire our programs to be the best they can. We had over 50 hours of service time volunteered at our various programs in February. Some notable volunteers this last month were Bill and Saundie Stone, who dedicated many hours prepping our monthly flyers, assembling file cabinets, and addressing letters for our upcoming Gala.
More fun and events are coming soon!
This year, we will celebrate our 50th Anniversary with the best summer yet! We have added some new and exciting activities to the schedule this year, and we can’t wait for you to join us! We will kick off the summer with our annual Family Fun Day, on June 3rd. We want everyone to experience the Magic of Camp K! All of our activities will be open, including horseback riding/interaction, ropes course, swimming, fishing, field games, BBQ lunch, and more! This event is free for families with kids who have disabilities.
Summer Camp officially begins on May 29th, and runs through August 4th. We have weeks available for all ages, from 7-99!
Residential and Day Campers will enjoy a new, giant outdoor pavilion, where we can eat our meals altogether out in the fresh air! They will also enjoy the traditional Camp K activities, including horseback riding, swimming, fishing, canoeing, ropes course, campfires, and much more. They will also enjoy some exciting new activities, including new games and group sing-a-longs.
Trip Campers includes a new trip to St. George, where they will explore the red rocks and visit Tuacahn Center for the Arts. We will also continue the campers favorite trips to Park City, Zion, Yellowstone, Bear Lake, and Jackson Hole. Trip campers will stay in campsites, where we will enjoy the great outdoors through hikes, exploring the parks, and cooking meals around the campfire.
For those who love horses, we will have 3 weeks of Horse Camp – where the campers will get to spend extra time with their favorite animals every day, in addition to experiencing the other activities at Camp K.!
Partner camp has some exciting things in the works, including camps focused on 21st Century Skills, science, art, and some collaboration with Microsoft and the University of Utah! We are also continuing our Partner Camps with great organizations, such as the Natural History Museum of Utah, Bad Dog Arts, Red Butte Gardens, Tracy Aviary, This is the Place, and Hogle Zoo.
All campers will have the pleasure of meeting our counselors and staff from all over the world – including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, England, and Poland!! We are also excited to welcome some part-time junior counselors and staff as part of our Summer Work Exploration Experience and Training Program (SWEET) during Summer Camp. These students/staff completed our Vocational Rehabilitation Program.
If you have not yet signed up for summer camp, we still have spots available – so send in your registrations today! More information is available at:
We have a few new sponsors and would like to publicly recognize them. Their support is helping Camp K provide services for amazing people!. Please, reach out and thank them or show support by liking and sharing this.
Sponsorships are still available. Click here for more information.
Camp K wishes everyone a joyous Holiday Season! May your house be filled with love, blessings, hope, and the true spirit of the season!
Camp K is grateful and thankful to Ivory Homes for hosting the Ivory Home’s 7th Annual Gingerbread Festival, to benefit Camp K’s mission and programs. We are honored to be the beneficiaries of this wonderful event, especially as we are celebrating our 50th anniversary of making a difference in our community. We are grateful to everyone who has supported Camp K through the years and helped us achieve this amazing milestone.
Our students who attended the gingerbread festival had a wonderful time!
We appreciate everyone who made this possible! We would like to thank the Sponsors of this event: Pro-Build, BMC – Building Materials & Construction Solutions, Lennox, Metro Ready Mix, VLCM, Veritas Funding Midvale, Smart Move Advantage, Utah Design Center, Focus, Jack B Parson Companies, Burbridge Concrete Pumping, Hadco Construction, ABC4 Utah – Good4Utah, Craythorne Construction, KIRTON McCONKIE, Weyerhaeuser, KOHLER, Sherwin-Williams, and USI
Camp K was highlighted in the November 1, 2016, edition of Utah Stories. Utah Stories is about promoting and protecting the power of the individual. They believe that The Internet can become a means for individual voices to be heard through all of the clutter, spin and noise in the current media setting. Their mission to promote and highlight individuality in a world becoming more homogeneous. They highlight individual success stories and promote the home grown culture found in Utah.
Camp K is grateful to Utah Stories for sharing our story!
Click on the image below to read the full story.
Here at Camp K, it feels like we just finished summer camp yesterday. However the cold air outside and the beautiful change of colors in Emigration Canyon tells us a different story. Fall is here, winter is on its way.
Please join Camp K from Friday October 7th thru Sunday October 9th, for a very special display – The Christmas Tree Village at the Deseret News Home Show, and get into the spirit of holidays and feel the joy of giving! The event is at the South Towne Expo Center, in Sandy, Utah.
Camp K, along with 9 other local charities, have decorated a Christmas tree for this event. We know that it is a little early for Christmas – however, we have put our love, passion and dedication into creating a very unique Christmas Tree – “Camp K’s Tree of Hope”. We hope that your home is filled with the spirit of the season – and your heart is filled with magic, love, joy, hope, peace, and harmony.
Each tree will be available to purchase, in a silent auction. The auction closes at 3:00 pm on Sunday, the winners notified, and the trees can be taken home Sunday evening. There will also be a donation box next to each tree. All donations go directly to the charities of choice. The charity that collects most donations also has a chance to win “best in show”.
The Camp K’s “Tree of Hope” represents the magical experiences that happen at Camp K – experiences that have brought so much hope, joy, love and smiles to so many, for the last 50 years. Some of the decorations were created by our participants, using natural elements found at on our beautiful campus, including acorns, leaves, and pine needles. Some decorations symbolize the activities at Camp K. Other decorations were designed to honor our participant’s courage, bravery, resilience, selflessness, honesty, kindness, humility, and pure joy. Join us as we celebrate inclusion and empowerment!
Camp K is grateful to ABC4 Utah – Good4Utah, Marketplace Events (the producers of the Fall Home Show), Deseret News, The Home Depot(Christmas tree donor), and all the other parties for including us in this wonderful fundraiser. We are also grateful to Paula Sanders, our staff, and participants for helping us create and decorate the “Camp K Tree of Hope”. Please come to the Fall Home Show, and be sure to visit our tree in support of Camp K!
Click here to see more:
Camp K will be celebrating our 50th anniversary in 2017, and we are starting the celebration of our amazing history of serving our community with an incredible event:
Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives, Greg Hughes, and Heavyweight Champion, Riddick “Big Daddy” Bowe, will Face Off in a Charity Boxing Match for Camp K. This is an event to be remembered! It is also an opportunity to promote inclusion, empowerment, and support for people of all abilities around the world.
Please join us for our #KO4CAMPK (Knockout for Camp K) on Tuesday, November 29th, 2016, at the Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek.
We rely on support of our community so that we can provide our services to everyone, regardless of income. Caring for and treating family members with disabilities affects the socioeconomic status of the entire family. As a result, the majority of our participants live at or below the poverty level, and may otherwise not be able to participate in programs such as ours. Camp Kostopulos has been providing services in our community for nearly 50 years, and the success of our programs is due to the generosity of our community, and businesses such as yours. We appreciate the continued support we receive, which benefits the people with disabilities and special needs.
There are several ways that you can provide support:
Your gift, in any amount, will make a meaningful difference to our participants!
We expect to see 500 attendees at the event, including some of Utah’s community leaders. All proceeds from this event will directly benefit our year-round education programs and activities for youth and adults with physical and cognitive disabilities, and children with special medical needs.
Please join us in what will be an evening full of fun, fulfillment, and charity.
For questions, please contact Mircea Divricean at mdivricean@campk.org, or 801-582-0700 x103.
Click on the story below to view the TV news video. There are 4 separate interviews – be sure to view all 4!
Click on the story below to view the TV news video.
Click on the story below to view the TV news video.
On Friday, June 10, Camp K hosted a VIP Dinner and Concert! The evening started with a delicious meal, catered by Red Rock Brewery. Yelp provided popcorn for everyone. Then, Alex Boyé took the stage. Alex is an Ambassador for Camp K, and supports our mission to help people of all abilities. Alex shared his story and inspiration, and involved the crowd in his high-energy performance. He encouraged people to dance with him, highlighted grandmothers (and got them to dance), started a drum-off, and put smiles on everyone’s faces.
We would like to thank everyone who made this event possible: Alex Boyé, RedRock Brewery, ABC 4 Utah, Don Hudson, Key Bank, and Yelp!
Click here to see photos from the event.
Click on the story below to view the TV news video.
Nicea Degering, of ABC 4 Utah, interviewed Alex Boyé and Mircea Divricean about the upcoming VIP Dinner and Concert at Camp K.
Click on the story below to view the TV news video.
