Harley Braun - Senior Project

Oct. 5th - Oct. 9th

WEEK 3:

This has been a veryyyyy long and busy week for me. I have been working so hard to get organized and plan my event, which hasn't been so easy..though is definitely coming together.

Monday -  Over the weekend I had visited the field house at the Ross Lower School, to see how much space and room I had for my event. Today I was able to finish my Event Checklist for Peggy Weaver and I also completed the floor plan for my event. I layed everything out on paper so that it is clear to me where exactly I want the tables and chairs to be set up. I also typed up a very detailed outline of my actual event. I did all this because I realize how important it is to be organized. I cannot start making any plans or requests if I am not mentally prepared for what is coming next. With all of the little details and logistics that must be worked out, this project can get really overwhelming. It has already hit me how much I need to do between now and next month but as long as I keep making lists and more outlines, I think it will all work out the way its supposed to. Besides finishing the checklist, making an outline, and completing my floor plan, I was also able to get in contact with Ashley Riley, the Events Coordinator for camp sunshine, today. Although she seemed very busy and it was a brief phone conversation, she is so happy about my event and will be sending me a package this week with pamphlets and other information packets that I can give out. I will keep in touch with her and hopefully she will be at camp over Halloween weekend so I can meet her in person. 

Tuesday - Today I focused on my business letter and adding more information to the process folio. The business letter is an extremely important part of my process because the way I present my project and bring awareness to the organization, will determine the success I have in receiving any donations from different companies. Anyway, the business letter took up most of my time today but I think it turned out well. My dad has an FOP meeting tomorrow and he wants to show them my letter and see if they would be interested in donating/supporting me in any way! 

Wednesday - I just finished my three main flyers and emailed them, along with my business letter, to Diana Aceti for her approval. I think they came out well. The first flyer I created highlights the basic event information, while the second and third are more detailed advertisements that explain what camp sunshine is and how much their support would mean. I am also working on my rubric, which needs to be handed in by Friday. It is coming along well and I will be meeting with my mentor tomorrow to go over it.

Thursday - Found out such great news today!! The meeting that my dad attended last night turned out to go really well.. the FOP has decided to support this cause and make a generous donation to sponsor families to attend Camp Sunshine. Also, I talked with Chris Engel today and he told me that people involved with the Harvest Festival, Deidre Jowers and Kim Hovey, have decided to donate all of the games/booths, that will be at the Harvest Festival this sunday, to my event on Nov. 14th!!! I was SO happy to hear this news, I'm so excited!! I was originally planning on creating my own events and purchasing my own supplies for each table, but this contribution takes so much of that stress away and I am so thankful! I will be at the Harvest Festival this sunday to volunteer and see the different games. On top of all of this good news, I saw on my website that my sister, Ariel, has donated to Camp Sunshine through my fundraising site. I was so happy to see this.. my third donation all in one day! I feel like everything is finally coming together and I am really happy to get all of this great support.

Friday - This morning I decided to write up a personal invite to everyone I would really like to be at my event and help out in any way. I realize that I need to start asking friends to save the date of my event because November 14th will be here much sooner than I think. I want to spread the date around immediately to make sure people know and remember to not make other plans for that weekend. This carnival will not be able to take place without the help from friends and other volunteers.. I am so lucky to have such great friends that are willing to help me because I don't know how I would make this possible without them. That's why I felt it was important to write up these personal invites. I want everyone to know that their support would mean soooooo much to me. I will give these invitations out next week and after that I will figure out exactly who will be there and in what area they will be helping with.

OUTSIDE CONSULTANTS:

1.) Ashley Riley - Ariley@campsunshine.org

2.) Harry Redlitz - PLC@Hamptons.com

One Parent's Letter to Camp Sunshine

A Poem for Camp Sunshine

Sometimes God uses people,
That we don't even know
To completely change the way we think,
Or encourage us to grow.

Some are sent to inspire,
Others to lift up...
Others, still, we learn from,
Because their life is all "amuck".

Some just talk, some just listen 
Others simply smile, 
A gentle touch, a warm embrace, 
Emotions in a pile.

These people often never know 
The difference they have made. 
So wrapped up in day to day, 
Their blessings seem to fade. 
I've found a place where so many meet, 
And leave a piece behind. 
A place of peace and solitude... 
A different state of mind.

It's a place where families come together 
And share their deepest fears, 
Their nightmares of a chronic illness 
Spanning many years.

A place where "sick" kids come to play, 
All differences left behind. 
And learn that life isn't all that cruel... 
Many blessings you can find.

Camp Sunshine teaches all of us, 
We need others to help us grow. 
They give a week of worriless fun... 
With many volunteers in tow.

People who give freely of themselves 
For one entire week. 
Gently lifting each of us 
Until weve reached our peak.

Feeding, supporting, comforting us 
When things are at their worst 
Blessing us so abundantly 
We feel that we may burst.

Loving our children like their own... 
Looking beyond the scars. 
Healing them from the inside out 
And teaching them to go far.

I never dreamed in these five years 
Of surgeries, tubes, and meds; 
That people would come and understand it all... 
These feelings in my head.

And give my child a week of joy 
That "normal" kids have known. 
A week of comfort and of skills 
To take with her until shes grown. 
How can you begin to ever thank 
A place that does ALL this? 
Hoping more families can experience this gift... 
THAT'S my deepest wish.

As I sit upon a rock, 
Sun high above the lake. 
A gentle rain cries all my tears... 
A rainbow takes their place.

I'm reminded of all my blessings, 
Some are big and others small. 
And I thank God for giving Camp Sunshine, 
A place that understands it all.

By Christiane Osowiecki, mother of Gabrielle (a kidney transplant, age 5), and Joshua (a compassionate sibling, age 4).
All of us forever changed. Thank you. 
July 12, 2001.

SEPT. 28 - OCT. 2

"Camp Sunshine is truly special because it focuses on taking care of the whole family, after all, not a lot of people realize it, but when a child is critically ill, so is the whole family, figuratively speaking”
– The Tilton Family

WEEK THREE:

Monday - [no school] Added the summer reading reflection to my process folio, called Ashley Riley, the Event Coordinator at Camp Sunshine. I left a message on her voicemail, giving her the general overview of my thoughts for a fundraiser and what I hope to accomplish, and asked her to call me back when she has a chance.

Tuesday - Had a meeting with Peggy Weever, going over possible dates that I can set my fundraiser event for. We came up with November 6 or November 12th at the Lower School campus- I am going to the meeting to see if I can get that approved Friday morning. I had some really great ideas that I am going to discuss with her and my mentor tomorrow and see what they think.

Wednesday - Changed my date for the third time this week. I am now planning on having a carnival set up in the Field House at the Ross Lower School Campus. This will take place on Saturday, November 14th, from 1:00pm to 3:00/3:30pm. I will be at the Systems Meeting on Friday morning and will know by then if my event is approved or not.

Thursday - Met with my mentor.. discussed the details of the carnival. I am planning on different booths set up around the Field House but I need to think about exactly what games/activities will be going on / how  and where I can get the necessary materials.

Friday - My date has been approved! I'm so excited for it!! The Systems Meeting went really well and I have the time and space for the date I had requested. This weekend I will begin my pamphlets/flyers/posters so that I can get this event out in the public as soon as possible. Next week my focus will be on the details of the carnival as well as contacting many people to ask for donations. I don't have much time (only a month and two weeks away!) so I need to start planning everything and getting as much done as I can each day.

Camp Sunshine | Members

http://www.campsunshine.org/familysponsorship/members/member.php?mem_id=494 

^ MY FUNDRAISING PAGE ^

--please look at my fundraising website.. all donations go directly to Camp Sunshine, specifically to sponsor families to attend. Any / every donation would be appreciated and is for such an amazing cause.

VIDEO CLIPS FROM CAMP SUNSHINE

Download Large <----PLEASE WATCH. I combined short video clips I took at Camp Sunshine and made it into a short imovie. The young girl who is singing "The Climb" is Claudia... she will be singing at the fundraiser event!!

[ http://rossseniorproject.typepad.com/files/large.m4v ] 

Pictures: [ http://sunshine2009.shutterfly.com/ ]

SEPT. 21 - SEPT. 25

I feel that I have gotten a lot accomplished this week, though I know I definitely still have so much more to do. I have been mainly focusing on my process folio and filling up the pages.

TUESDAY - Went to Rite Aid and printed out all 208 pictures that I took at Camp Sunshine. Unfortunately, I didn't realize how many pictures I was actually printing and just clicked "select all". I was there for about 45 minutes to an hour waiting for all of them to come out. It was very frustrating but actually the waiting turned out to be worth it. As many people know, I love meeting new people I have never seen before, especially when they are so sweet as this women, around my mom's age, was to me. I felt so horrible about taking so long for my pictures to be ready, but she didn't mind at all. I can't remember how our conversation started but about 2 minutes into it, I was showing her pictures of camp sunshine and telling her all about my experience. She was so unbelievably nice and we had such a great talk about everything. She told me she has been wanting to do something like this program and has never heard of this camp before. She was definitely going to look into it and after showing her all of the pictures I have, she was so happy I introduced her to this camp. I felt so good when I left because I know there are so many people who have never heard of Camp Sunshine before and the more people that know how amazing this camp is, the more support the camp will have, which makes all the difference!

WEDNESDAY - Continued to fill my process folio with pictures and quotes from Camp Sunshine. I also emailed the event coordinator, Ashley Riley, to let her know about my project and goals. I will be calling her over the weekend so that I could talk to her more about this and see if she has any ideas/suggestions for me. I spoke to the Hernandez family (the family I became attached to at the camp) and everything is going well with them. I will be going to Williams football game in two weeks and I am SO excited.

THURSDAY - Wrote up my summer reading reflection and I will add it to the process folio later today. I read the novel, My Sister's Keeper, by Jodi Picoult, and it was the most emotional book I have ever read. I chose this book because it focuses on the reality of how a cancer diagnosis of a daughter/sibling has affected each member of the family in their own way. When someone in the family is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, it changes everything. I really recommend everyone read My Sister's Keeper because even though it was the saddest book ever, it made me think a lot about life and how there is no way of telling what will happen in the future, but the most important thing right now is to live in the moment and make the most of what we have.

----Had a meeting later today (Thurs.) with my mentor, Mr. Cooper, and Ms. Parkes. We discussed the fundraiser event and came up with the idea of having it at the lower school campus, rather than at my house. I think this is a much better idea because it will attract the children at lower school and hopefully they will be coming as well. I would love for my event to be filled with all ages but I think it is great to have young kids there. Camp Sunshine is about giving children an unforgettable experience with their families and I hope to have fun with this event, as well as raise as much awareness/support for this program as I possibly can.

My goal for this next week is.. 

1.) Email Peggy Weaver about possibly using the lower school campus (on Butter Lane) for my fundraiser event to take place

2.) Pick a date and time set for my event to take place (depending on what days are available to have this go on) and making sure it doesn't conflict with any other senior project events

3.) Call Ashley Riley (the event coordinator at camp sunshine) to talk about my project and see if she has any advice or is willing to help spread this event around in any way.

*There is definitely more I have to work on but once I figure out the time and place of the event, and after I get that approved, I will move forward and begin to plan out exactly what will go on at my event and make pamphlets, flyers, etc. for it.

*There is nothing I am having trouble with right now but I really hope I can have my event at the lower school, around the beginning of November. If this works out I think everything will be great-I am so excited for this!!! Also, I am going back to camp for Hematology Week at Camp Sunshine session Oct.29-Nov.1 and anyone who wants to can come with me! Apparently Halloween session is huge there and everyone gets really into it. I can't wait to be back there =).

http://sunshine2009.shutterfly.com/

CAMP SUNSHINE PICTURES

Spanish-speaking Oncology week

AUGUST 29TH - SEPTEMBER 3RD

sunshine2009

http://sunshine2009.shutterfly.com/

SENIOR PROJECT PRODUCT

CAMP SUNSHINE: A year-round retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses and their immediate family.

    Over this past summer, I volunteered at Camp Sunshine, in Casco, Maine. I signed up thinking I had some free time over the summer and would rather spend it volunteering than sitting at home. I was also looking forward to getting to know the children and having fun with them. I never expected my experience at the camp to be so incredible. I can definitely say that choosing this camp was the best decision I ever made. The minute I got to Camp Sunshine I immediately fell in love with the place. There is no way to explain how beautiful it is with words. By the second day, I knew all of the families and I'm sure they all knew me. It felt like home to me and if I had the choice, I would never have left.

    When a child finds out that he/she has been diagnosed with an illness that could potentially take their life, the heartbreaking news affects each member of the family differently. What makes Camp Sunshine so unique is that the mission is focused on bringing the families together to help rebuild relationships. The camp offers support, hope, and happiness to those patients and their families. While children play different activities and games all day, the parents have so much free time to take a nice walk along the lake, or just sit and meet other families in similar situations.

    I will go into more details about this amazing camp another time. What I will mention is that being at this camp made me think about my senior project and how raising money for this camp is so much more worth my time than anything else I could think of. My whole heart is in this project and I will do anything and everything to raise as much money and awareness to this camp as I possibly can. Camp Sunshine relies on donations and fundraising events to keep the programs going. 

This program is free of charge for all families and instead they get sponsored to be able to attend. My goal is to set up a  huge fundraising event to raise money specifically for sponsoring families. This is not just a senior project, but something I don't see myself ever stop doing. I plan to volunteer at this camp again October 29th- November 1st.dI 

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