Camp Cranium received a $5,000 First Federal Charitable Foundation grant in 2023 it planned to use to fund a summer camp, including providing the organization the ability to offer six scholarships to the camp.
Camp Cranium, which celebrated its 16th anniversary in 2023, is dedicated to providing children ages 6-18 with brain injuries a one-of-a-kind experience. The week-long camp is held in Millville and gives children who have had a traumatic brain injury or acquired brain injury the unique opportunity to meet other children with brain injuries in a safe, supportive, and fun environment. In the winter, children have the opportunity to engage in an all-abilities Adaptive Teen Ski Retreat at Jack Frost Ski Resort in Carbon County.
During their summer camp, Camp Cranium's community of volunteers serve as camp counselors and help approximately 30-60 children living with a brain injury to enjoy a fun-filled week of activities. The camp is purposefully designed to provide an inclusive, all-abilities experience for these children.
Camp Cranium Executive Director Alexis Campbell said, “We are thankful for the vision of the First Federal Charitable Foundation in empowering nonprofit organizations that support worthwhile community causes and effectively serve the underserved and those in need from our communities in Pennsylvania. Camp Cranium serves as a starting point for children with brain injuries and their families to welcome them into a lifelong community of support benefiting both the children and their families through relationships with other campers and families experiencing similar challenges. Through the camp, the campers form lasting friendships, improve their self-confidence and independence, and achieve goals they did not believe were possible.”
Campbell added that she was grateful for the support from the First Federal Charitable Foundation because it allows the organization to keep the camp affordable for the children and their families.
“We aim to fund our programs through a combination of affordable camper tuition and fundraising support. When financially able, our campers' families pay $300 of the $830 actual cost of summer camp per camper. We fundraise to cover the remaining expense and make the experience of camp possible for all children and their families,” she said. “We meet a distinctive need by providing programming to support the emotional, social, physical, and mental well-being of children and a life experience that would otherwise be unavailable for neurodivergent kids. There are no other programs like Camp Cranium in Pennsylvania, and what we offer is something that has the potential to grow and be replicated to impact kids with ABI/TBI nationwide.”
Megan Kennedy, executive director of the First Federal Charitable Foundation said “Camp Cranium provides these children with the opportunity to spend a week enjoying the outdoors while making new friends. We also salute the staff and volunteers who help to make that week memorable.”
The First Federal Charitable Foundation was established to support worthwhile community causes. It strives to nurture nonprofit institutions and programs that will effectively serve those in need from the community, empower nonprofit institutions and programs that will expand their presence in and services to the area, and promote opportunities for new nonprofit institutions and programs that will serve the unserved.
Nonprofit organizations with a 501(c)(3) IRS designation located in Luzerne, Schuylkill, Carbon and Columbia counties are eligible to apply. Any organization whose headquarters is in another county but services either Luzerne, Schuylkill, Carbon or Columbia counties may apply for a grant to be used in one of those counties.
For more information on the foundation or to obtain a grant application, visit www.1stfederalcharitable.org or email