Five years ago my daughter attended a week-long grief day camp offered by our local hospice. While my daughter said her favorite part was the food, they also did arts and crafts, visited a local horse farm, and played with support dogs. I’m certain that she benefited from meeting other kids who had lost a parent and knowing that she wasn’t alone. So this summer I decided to send her to a free, week-long grief sleepaway camp, Experience Camps, which was recommended to me by a friend. While she’s currently not thrilled about the prospect of going away for a week, I hope she will make a few friends and have a good time.

To help other widowed parents find grief camps for their kids, I recently published a list of 55 grief camps across the US for kids and teens who have lost a parent. The list now has more than 85 camps, and I will continue adding camps as I find them. For now, I’ve listed only those that take place during the summer, but will be adding those for the fall shortly. Most of the camps are free, but those that aren’t free typically will waive the fee for those in need. If you don’t see a local camp listed here, check with your local hospice center as some offer camps but don’t post details online. Please contact me if you know of any that I’ve missed.