Kindred Matters Sibling Camp
Suttle Lake Camp, 29551 Southwest Suttle Lake Loop, Sisters, OR 97759
About
Kindred Matters Sibling Camp offers overnight camp experiences where siblings take part in activities such as an all-camp birthday party, campfires, arts and crafts, swimming, boating, and archery. Sibling Camp programs are overnight camp experiences designed specifically to provide siblings with opportunities to make positive childhood memories together despite living separately. Sibling Camp is described as an overnight camp program designed to strengthen the bonds of separated siblings.
• Ages: 6–18 years old
• Schedule: Session 1 runs June 26–28, 2026 as a two-night session, and Session 2 runs August 10–14, 2026 as a four-night overnight camp session.
Sibling Camp programs are specifically designed for siblings who live apart from at least one sibling and want to attend camp together. Sibling Camp programs are designed to bring together siblings who live separately due to circumstances out of their control, including foster care, adoption, and family separation. At the start of Session 1, all siblings attending must be between the ages of 6–26, and at the start of Session 2, all siblings attending must be between the ages of 8–26. In Session 1, campers stay overnight in cabins with their siblings and Sibling Camp volunteers and move through the day’s activities with their sibling group. Session 1 has increased staff-to-camper ratios, smaller group and overall camp size, and more built-in choice in the schedule, and it is described as an excellent fit for younger campers or campers who have not been to an overnight camp program before, as well as young people who are more successful with additional support, including behavior, emotional, physical, or medical support. Session 1 will be a self-transport event.
In Session 2, campers move through their day at camp in “Family Groups,” which are made up of their sibling group, 2–3 other sibling groups, and volunteer counselors. Overnight in Session 2, campers stay in “Cabin Groups.” For Session 2, campers can request to stay in a cabin with people who identify as the same gender they do (including siblings of the same gender), an all-gender cabin, or a cabin with their sibling group, and the team will do their best to accommodate requests in alliance with staffing ratios. Session 2 will have bus transportation from Salem and Hillsboro.
To attend Kindred Matters Sibling Camp, each camper must have an application submitted on their behalf by a caregiver, provider, caseworker, CASA, or similar adult, and each sibling who would also be attending must have a separate application submitted on their behalf. A selection committee reviews all applications to ensure the team can safely and successfully serve the sibling group. Recent research has shown that Sibling Camp is a powerful intervention for siblings living separately. In 2017, 97% of campers reported making positive memories with their siblings at camp, and 85% reported that attending camp strengthened their sibling relationship. In the same year, 92% of campers reported that their time at camp made them more hopeful about their futures.
Kindred Matters strives to create positive outcomes for Northwest children by shaping strong family relationships in the absence of a traditional family environment. The organization that would become Kindred Matters was founded in 2006, and Kindred Matters has served more than 3,000 young people since Sibling Camp was introduced to the Pacific Northwest in 2006. Volunteers are described as the heart of the organization, and without the support of new and returning volunteers, Kindred Matters could not have served the more than 3,000 young people and 300 families it has over the last two decades. Now serving primarily Oregon youth, Kindred Matters hosts two sessions of Sibling Camp each summer, and its Family Camp programs provide Oregon resource and foster, kinship, guardianship, and adoptive families with avenues for continued education and community building. Kindred Matters does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, disability, marital status, or sexual orientation in any of its activities or operations, and it states a commitment to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all participants, volunteers, and staff members.
Last updated June 12, 2026.
• Ages: 6–18 years old
• Schedule: Session 1 runs June 26–28, 2026 as a two-night session, and Session 2 runs August 10–14, 2026 as a four-night overnight camp session.
Sibling Camp programs are specifically designed for siblings who live apart from at least one sibling and want to attend camp together. Sibling Camp programs are designed to bring together siblings who live separately due to circumstances out of their control, including foster care, adoption, and family separation. At the start of Session 1, all siblings attending must be between the ages of 6–26, and at the start of Session 2, all siblings attending must be between the ages of 8–26. In Session 1, campers stay overnight in cabins with their siblings and Sibling Camp volunteers and move through the day’s activities with their sibling group. Session 1 has increased staff-to-camper ratios, smaller group and overall camp size, and more built-in choice in the schedule, and it is described as an excellent fit for younger campers or campers who have not been to an overnight camp program before, as well as young people who are more successful with additional support, including behavior, emotional, physical, or medical support. Session 1 will be a self-transport event.
In Session 2, campers move through their day at camp in “Family Groups,” which are made up of their sibling group, 2–3 other sibling groups, and volunteer counselors. Overnight in Session 2, campers stay in “Cabin Groups.” For Session 2, campers can request to stay in a cabin with people who identify as the same gender they do (including siblings of the same gender), an all-gender cabin, or a cabin with their sibling group, and the team will do their best to accommodate requests in alliance with staffing ratios. Session 2 will have bus transportation from Salem and Hillsboro.
To attend Kindred Matters Sibling Camp, each camper must have an application submitted on their behalf by a caregiver, provider, caseworker, CASA, or similar adult, and each sibling who would also be attending must have a separate application submitted on their behalf. A selection committee reviews all applications to ensure the team can safely and successfully serve the sibling group. Recent research has shown that Sibling Camp is a powerful intervention for siblings living separately. In 2017, 97% of campers reported making positive memories with their siblings at camp, and 85% reported that attending camp strengthened their sibling relationship. In the same year, 92% of campers reported that their time at camp made them more hopeful about their futures.
Kindred Matters strives to create positive outcomes for Northwest children by shaping strong family relationships in the absence of a traditional family environment. The organization that would become Kindred Matters was founded in 2006, and Kindred Matters has served more than 3,000 young people since Sibling Camp was introduced to the Pacific Northwest in 2006. Volunteers are described as the heart of the organization, and without the support of new and returning volunteers, Kindred Matters could not have served the more than 3,000 young people and 300 families it has over the last two decades. Now serving primarily Oregon youth, Kindred Matters hosts two sessions of Sibling Camp each summer, and its Family Camp programs provide Oregon resource and foster, kinship, guardianship, and adoptive families with avenues for continued education and community building. Kindred Matters does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, disability, marital status, or sexual orientation in any of its activities or operations, and it states a commitment to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all participants, volunteers, and staff members.
Last updated June 12, 2026.
Is this your business? There is no cost, but you will be asked to sign up or log in.