Camp Kindle
Central United States, 28245 Avenue Crocker Ste 104, Santa Clarita, CA 91355-1201
About
Camp Kindle offers camp activities that include recreation, camp songs, arts and crafts, science experiments, games, and educational components. Campers take part in Math, Science, Music, and Art programs, and they also have lunch together during the camp day. Participants sing, talk about mental and physical wellness, and share stories as part of the program.
• Ages: 5–15 years old
• Schedule: Day camp is held for one week from 9am–3pm; additional one-day Camp2U sessions and Monday night “Kindle Nights” Zoom calls are also offered
• Price: Camp Kindle Midwest and Camp Kindle West residential week-long programs and the one-week day camp are cost-free; the one-week day camp focused on Math, Science, Music, and Art is 100 percent cost free to participants
Camp Kindle Midwest and Camp Kindle West each serve children ages 7–15 infected with or affected by HIV/AIDS with cost-free residential week-long programs. Camp Kindle Day Camp focuses on programming for children ages 7–12 with any medical complication or life challenge, including youth receiving Behavioral Intervention. Past participants have included children on the autism spectrum, with ADHD, visual impairments, cerebral palsy, and mental health challenges. Because of the high needs of many participating campers, most are paired with a counselor, forming a 1:1 camper-to-staff ratio.
Camp Kindle Day Camp is held in June each year, and Camp2U offers one-day camp sessions in various locations so that participants can still connect in the summer. Camp2U brings typical camp programming and volunteer staff to nonprofit groups and to children who cannot attend a traditional day camp or residential camp program. Camp2U sessions are held in hospitals, parks, clubhouses, or family backyards. Camp Kindle’s “Kindle Nights” are Monday night Zoom calls where participants play games, sing, talk about mental and physical wellness, share stories, and connect within a safe loving community.
Camp Kindle was established in August 1998 and began as a one-week summer camp for children impacted by HIV/AIDS. In July 1999, it held its first camp session in Hordville, Nebraska, serving 50 campers. Camp Kindle West was established in 2005, and Camp Kindle Day Camp and Camp2U were both established in 2012. The organization notes that its 22nd annual Camp Kindle session, offered online and in person, is taking place this summer. Over more than two decades, Camp Kindle’s camp programs have served over 4,500 children, and other program information notes that the organization has served over 5,000 campers and educated over 24,000 students.
Project Kindle’s primary purpose is to serve those with serious illnesses, special needs, and other life challenges by providing cost-free camping programs, year-round support, advocacy, and peer-based HIV/AIDS education for young people ages 12–24. The purpose of Camp Kindle is to enhance the overall well-being of children and young people living with a chronic or life-threatening illness, disability, or other life challenge. Camp Kindle’s primary mechanism for achieving this purpose is through camping events held in Nebraska and California, along with year-round support designed to offer encouragement and education. Camp Kindle has evolved to include health strategies that incorporate the promotion of mindfulness and wholehearted living through human connections.
The organization’s Founder and President, Eva Payne, has been an advocate for people impacted by HIV and AIDS since the mid-1990s and has an extensive background in youth camping programs. Mandy Nickolite, Vice President and Camp Director, joined in January 1999 with a strong background in mental health and was working on her master’s in counseling at Doane University in Nebraska at that time. All Camp Kindle Day Camp staff are volunteers, and campers are usually paired 1:1 with a volunteer camp counselor.
Camp2U is looking to expand by working with college students across the country to help them establish Camp2U chapters. The camp is held in June each year through funding from local foundations, companies, and individuals, and the programs are supported by the generosity of thousands of individuals, corporations, and organizations. The organization states that its programs offer a safe, nurturing, supportive space for each participant to be themselves wholeheartedly, and that for many participants this is the first or only time of the year when they can be open with no secrets, no shame, and no stigma. The stated vision is to offer young people a chance to build a stronger future in which they believe in themselves and have the leadership and character to make a difference in their own lives and in the lives of others.
Last updated March 10, 2026.
• Ages: 5–15 years old
• Schedule: Day camp is held for one week from 9am–3pm; additional one-day Camp2U sessions and Monday night “Kindle Nights” Zoom calls are also offered
• Price: Camp Kindle Midwest and Camp Kindle West residential week-long programs and the one-week day camp are cost-free; the one-week day camp focused on Math, Science, Music, and Art is 100 percent cost free to participants
Camp Kindle Midwest and Camp Kindle West each serve children ages 7–15 infected with or affected by HIV/AIDS with cost-free residential week-long programs. Camp Kindle Day Camp focuses on programming for children ages 7–12 with any medical complication or life challenge, including youth receiving Behavioral Intervention. Past participants have included children on the autism spectrum, with ADHD, visual impairments, cerebral palsy, and mental health challenges. Because of the high needs of many participating campers, most are paired with a counselor, forming a 1:1 camper-to-staff ratio.
Camp Kindle Day Camp is held in June each year, and Camp2U offers one-day camp sessions in various locations so that participants can still connect in the summer. Camp2U brings typical camp programming and volunteer staff to nonprofit groups and to children who cannot attend a traditional day camp or residential camp program. Camp2U sessions are held in hospitals, parks, clubhouses, or family backyards. Camp Kindle’s “Kindle Nights” are Monday night Zoom calls where participants play games, sing, talk about mental and physical wellness, share stories, and connect within a safe loving community.
Camp Kindle was established in August 1998 and began as a one-week summer camp for children impacted by HIV/AIDS. In July 1999, it held its first camp session in Hordville, Nebraska, serving 50 campers. Camp Kindle West was established in 2005, and Camp Kindle Day Camp and Camp2U were both established in 2012. The organization notes that its 22nd annual Camp Kindle session, offered online and in person, is taking place this summer. Over more than two decades, Camp Kindle’s camp programs have served over 4,500 children, and other program information notes that the organization has served over 5,000 campers and educated over 24,000 students.
Project Kindle’s primary purpose is to serve those with serious illnesses, special needs, and other life challenges by providing cost-free camping programs, year-round support, advocacy, and peer-based HIV/AIDS education for young people ages 12–24. The purpose of Camp Kindle is to enhance the overall well-being of children and young people living with a chronic or life-threatening illness, disability, or other life challenge. Camp Kindle’s primary mechanism for achieving this purpose is through camping events held in Nebraska and California, along with year-round support designed to offer encouragement and education. Camp Kindle has evolved to include health strategies that incorporate the promotion of mindfulness and wholehearted living through human connections.
The organization’s Founder and President, Eva Payne, has been an advocate for people impacted by HIV and AIDS since the mid-1990s and has an extensive background in youth camping programs. Mandy Nickolite, Vice President and Camp Director, joined in January 1999 with a strong background in mental health and was working on her master’s in counseling at Doane University in Nebraska at that time. All Camp Kindle Day Camp staff are volunteers, and campers are usually paired 1:1 with a volunteer camp counselor.
Camp2U is looking to expand by working with college students across the country to help them establish Camp2U chapters. The camp is held in June each year through funding from local foundations, companies, and individuals, and the programs are supported by the generosity of thousands of individuals, corporations, and organizations. The organization states that its programs offer a safe, nurturing, supportive space for each participant to be themselves wholeheartedly, and that for many participants this is the first or only time of the year when they can be open with no secrets, no shame, and no stigma. The stated vision is to offer young people a chance to build a stronger future in which they believe in themselves and have the leadership and character to make a difference in their own lives and in the lives of others.
Last updated March 10, 2026.
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