Children experiencing a parent’s cancer are also commonly experiencing any or all of the following challenges: increased anxiety, emotional isolation, loss of social interest, or feelings of hopelessness. Kesem sees the importance of supporting these children—offering to counterbalance these challenges with free, fun-filled creative programs and a lasting community.

“Sandstorm” was nervous walking up to the Camp Kesem registration table for the first time. Like many first-year campers, there are a lot more questions than answers when learning of a parent’s cancer diagnosis. “I remember Googling ‘is magic real?’,” she recalls from the time. It was through the impact of Kesem’s community, specifically a quickly-found lifelong friend in “Fish,” that helped her answer her own question: Yes.

“Kesem led me to my best friend and it has also taught me how to be a friend. I learned how it felt to be loved for everything I was and for everything I wanted to be. At camp, I could love fully without holding back and it wouldn’t be too much. I was enough. This instilled a sense of confidence in me that I was able to bring to my community and use to step out of my comfort zone and become a leader.”

At Kesem, we are the only national organization committed to creating a world where Sandstorm, Fish, and every child who has a parent with a cancer diagnosis or has lost a parent to cancer is never alone.