Katherine's Camp

Children touch our lives in so many different ways: a smile, a laugh, a hug.  We admire their playful spirit as they laugh with friends, swing on the monkey bars and even color outside of the lines.  It’s often easy for us to overlook the pain that some children face through the loss of a loved one. 

A child's pain can sometimes be masked through laughter and play.  We recognize that children grieve in many different ways. They desire support from their peers and want to know that there are others with similar challenges.  For these reasons, we developed Katherine’s Camp, a safe, caring environment in which children can express their feelings and connect with others going through similar experiences.

The camp was named in memory of Katherine who was diagnosed with leukemia and passed away in January 2000 at the age of four.  Katherine is survived by her mom, dad and her sisters, Caroline and Michaela.

As a way to meet the needs of grieving siblings and children, Katherine's Camp was developed in the Spring of 2006.   

The first Katherine’s Camp was held in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Since that time Katherine’s Camp has grown to serve many children and families across the state.  This outreach continues to grow as a day camp, a teen overnight camp and a family camp weekend retreat.

Katherine’s Camp is sponsored by Hospice Care of South Carolina in partnership with The Hospice and Palliative Care Foundation . The goal for Katherine’s camp is to provide a safe environment that will allow children, teens, and families to be surrounded by others who are experiencing similar grief.  We provide outlets to laugh again, play hard, and develop friendships with others going through similar experiences.  In all that we do, our goal is to support Katherine’s memory in a way that honors her young life by serving other children.

 For more information contact Jennifer Pooley jenniferp@hospicecare.net

Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much. -Helen Keller