Jacey knew from a young age that she wanted to be involved with True Friends.
“My bother has Down Syndrome, so he actually went to Camp Eden Wood years and years ago. I went with to pick him up one day and I just loved the atmosphere, and he had such a fun time, and I just thought that’s where I wanted to be someday. When I was finally old enough, I decided to volunteer at Camp Friendship,” Jacey explained.
Seeing how Camp impacted her brother motivated her to get involved and help provide that 
experience for other individuals. When talking about her brother’s experience with True Friends Camp, she shared, “It was just an environment that just created inclusion, and he was able to do things at summer camp that he isn’t able to typically do.”
Jacey is now an integral part of the True Friends community. She has volunteered with us since 2018, and she has dedicated weeks out of her summer breaks to support our Camp program. Some of her favorite things about volunteering is simply being able to make connections with the campers. “Yesterday I was playing Jenga with one of my campers and she was leaning on me and not wanting to go. She was nervous that she was going to make it fall and I was helping her a little bit, and yea just seeing her smile and laugh was so great. We were having a lot of fun,” Jacey recalled, smiling.
When we asked why Jacey keeps coming back, she shared that each summer provides her with a sense of fulfillment and purpose. “It’s definitely made me a better person, being able to help people, even in little ways. Even just making sure all the campers can have a great experience at camp that they wouldn’t find other places. It just warms my heart a little bit.”
Learn more about you can volunteer here.
