Camp Changes Lives! Get In On The Action!

We’re halfway through the month of May and summer will be upon us soon enough! We are so ready to get our summer camp on and give the youth of the Coastal Bend memories that will last a lifetime! We really could not make these camps a reality without the generosity of our community partners! The Coastal Bend Community Foundation, HEB, Navy Army Community Credit Union, United Healthcare and Whataburger have all been amazing supporters of Youth Odyssey and are some of our biggest camp sponsors this year! We have also been blessed with several in-kind services/donations from Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program, Feeding America – Food Bank, Gourley Contracting, GROW Local South Texas and Majesty Outdoors. We are so thankful for all the charitableness we’ve been shown from our fellow South Texans. We’ve got a lot left to do before summer camps start and we’d love to add your name to our list of fabulous donors! Your donations really do make a difference in the lives of the youth in Corpus Christi.

Youth Odyssey is a local non-profit primarily funded by the community we serve. We are so grateful to the residents of the Coastal Bend and all the ways you’ve given back to Youth Odyssey. The goal of our youth development programs is to increase positive attitudes, confidence and resiliency while decreasing risk factors such as gang violence, drug abuse, and teen pregnancy through adventure challenges. The opportunity to attend a week long summer camp plays a big role in a developing youth’s life. Studies show that summer camps provide an environment that is ideal for youth to grow by providing opportunities to take risks and gain responsibility in a neutral location.

At summer camp, kids get to build new relationships, experience new things, gain confidence and find a sense of belonging amongst peers. We here at Youth Odyssey have a passion for fostering this type development and we selfishly love watching their progress along the way! By putting aside electronics, creating an environment of positive reinforcement and being a safe place to try new things we can encourage the best type of growth from our kids. We also believe it is our duty to provide services and programs regardless of the financial situation of the families we serve, and many of these kids who want to self-discover with us at summer camp will need a scholarship to attend. That’s where you come in!

There are so many ways to help send a kid to camp! First, you need to know that every dollar counts! We accept donations as big as thousands of dollars to as small as the leftover change in your pocket. Part of our job is to help you help us and the best place to start is by getting you involved in any capacity (or dollar amount). If you prefer a more personal touch, you can sponsor an individual child. For a local camp it’s $400 and for an East Texas camp, $500. Not only do you get warm fuzzies from this type of donation, you will receive a personalized letter from the camper who benefited from your generosity, which equals more warm fuzzies. You can also sponsor an entire camp for $5,000. In addition to a letter from a camper, your logo will be included on the back of our camp shirts and on our website. You’ll also get some special shout-outs on our social media pages and any press releases we may do. Title sponsorships are also available. Title sponsors get a personalized letter from a camper, their logo on the back of our camp T-Shirts and on our website, shout-outs on social media and press releases as well as up to 4 camp T-shirts to proudly wear around Corpus Christi (because who doesn’t love swag, right?).

This summer we have 6 week long overnight camps! We already have one camp that’s full. We are in for a busy summer and we are so grateful to have you supporting us along the way! Follow us on our official Facebook and Instagram pages to stay current on what we do everyday and to see how your donations directly impact the youth we work with!