NH Nonprofits Uniting for Good: Hearts for Kindness & Camp Starfish
This week, LeMay Family Goodworks had the pleasure of supporting TWO wonderful New Hampshire nonprofits! Concord-based Hearts for Kindness brought a need to our attention when a mom of two young kids needed support sending her kids to Camp Starfish. This summer camp specializes in supporting youth with social, emotional, behavioral, and learning challenges.
We are thrilled to sponsor both kids’ sessions at Camp Starfish and are grateful to Hearts for Kindness for sharing this immediate need of a family in our community! And we are so happy to have learned about Camp Starfish and hope to support them and their campers again in the future.
Read on to learn more about both nonprofits and their work’s direct impacts on our local families.
About Hearts for Kindness
Founded in 2014, Hearts for Kindness (H4K) promotes community and hope through:
Acts of Kindness: These bring people together within the community, from financial assistance requests of up to $250 to activities like knitting scarves to distribute in the community.
Limited Financial Assistance: H4K fulfills requests of up to $500 per individual/family for emergency expenses, like utilities, rent, car repairs, and medical needs.
Community Calls to Action: Sometimes, they ask the public for help via Facebook and email with fundraising or collecting items like new and gently used clothing for children, baby items for a new/expectant mother, home goods for a homeless family moving into an apartment, and items for Concord’s Homeless Resource Center. H4K also organizes projects for local kids to teach them about giving back to others.
All requests, no matter the amount, must be submitted by a third-party verifier (e.g., doctor, teacher, or social worker). Acts of Kindness (up to $250) are available to individuals and families throughout New Hampshire, while financial assistance (up to $500) is available to those in: Concord, Penacook, Boscawen, Webster, Loudon, Chichester, Epsom, Pembroke, Allenstown, Bow, Dunbarton, Hopkinton, and Contoocook.
H4K offers immediate support for certain items and issues that are often difficult to find financial assistance for, like vehicle repairs and utilities. They also fulfill specific needs, such as helping kids attend certain programs by supplementing their fees or purchasing equipment for people with medical/special needs.
If you know someone who could use a helping hand, please learn how to apply for assistance with H4K.
About Camp Starfish
Based in Rindge, NH, Camp Starfish is a year-round organization offering a unique environment and a one-to-one camper-to-counselor ratio—in fact, they’re one of the only camps to do so!
Camp Starfish counselors address campers’ current challenges and needs and guide them to where they need to be. This includes improving social skills, playing cooperatively on a team, and resolving conflicts verbally and peacefully. Every child is celebrated for being who they are and simultaneously given space and support to improve their skills and self-esteem.
These individualized summer and year-round programs are available for participants aged 6-22 experiencing social, emotional, behavioral, and learning challenges. With over 13 customized programs, Camp Starfish provides a supportive, challenging, fun, and rewarding experience for all ages, interests, and levels of support.
1:1 Programs
Camp Starfish’s signature 1:1 programs are the essence of its mission. Four programs are available, ranging in length from 5 to 14 days. These overnight residential camps are held on the main campgrounds. They embody the fun of a traditional camp experience with the support of a 1:1 staff-to-camper ratio. Each is tailored to specific age groups and needs, allowing for a customized experience.
Specialty & Respite Programs
Additionally, Camp Starfish hosts specialty and respite programs in their retreat and conference center-style Crescent Lodge. The lodge overlooks a swim/boating beach and houses up to 40 individuals in modern dorm-style accommodations with indoor bathrooms, electricity, and A/C.
Crescent Lodge is the “home base” for most short-term specialty camps during the summer and houses the respite programming throughout the year. The staff ratio and age groups vary within these programs, which also range widely in length of time and age group. Offerings include supporting young adults with transitional planning, getting teens outdoors and teaching them new skills, LARPing, sibling and family camps, and much more!
Check out all their specialty and respite programs.
Support Two New Hampshire Nonprofits
If the missions and work of Hearts for Kindness and Camp Starfish resonate with you, please consider supporting their causes!
You can donate to H4K easily via PayPal, or subscribe to their email list to keep up with their latest needs and volunteer opportunities—just head to their website to sign up!
Camp Starfish is always accepting donations to continue making its mission possible. Because of the intensive, therapeutic style and individualized support it provides, it costs over $5,000 for a child to attend. Most campers receive scholarships to lower this cost, so every donation helps! Make a gift today.
And be sure to follow both on Instagram at @hearts4kindness and @campstarfishrindge to keep up with their latest efforts!