Camp Kesem Vanderbilt

Mission Statement

Our mission is two-fold:

• To provide children affected by a parent’s cancer with a supportive, lifelong camp community that recognizes and understands their unique needs.
• To empower college students to make a difference and build invaluable leadership skills by developing and managing every aspect of their Camp Kesem chapter.

Our Purpose

Camp Kesem empowers college student leaders nationwide to create free, life-changing summer camps for children affected by a parent’s cancer.

The Need

There are 1.7 million cancer cases a year in the United States that affect individuals and their families. The support is there for grown-ups; but the special emotional needs of children of adult cancer patients have been overlooked. Simply put: kids are often left to deal with these personal tragedies on their own; and if parents themselves are struggling with illness, their sons and daughters frequently miss the simple joys of childhood.