Camp Sunshine Awarded $35,000 Grant from Wal-Mart Foundation to Support More Families

CASCO, Maine – The Wal-Mart Foundation has awarded Camp Sunshine a $35,000 grant, Matt Hoidal, executive director of Camp Sunshine, announced today. The newly-created Wal-Mart Family Sponsorship Fund will help sponsor additional families at Camp Sunshine each year.

“This is a great day for Camp Sunshine,” Hoidal said. “To have the support and confidence from a company as philanthropic and successful as Wal-Mart is a tremendous source of pride for us. This gift to our endowment will go a long way towards securing the future of our program.”
The grant brings the total raised to more than $8 million in Camp Sunshine’s $14.5 million endowment campaign launched in May of 2006 to help expand the camp programs year-round. Other major contributors have been the New Balance Foundation, TD Charitable Foundation, Shaw Brothers Construction, the Hannaford Charitable Foundation and Hancock Lumber.

"Wal-Mart and Sam's Clubs of Maine are proud to provide this grant to Camp Sunshine, which for years has been providing incredibly positive services for ill children and their families," said David Murray, Market Manager for Region 11, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Camp Sunshine, located in Maine’s Sebago Lake region, provides a camp vacation at no charge to children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. The camp offers one of the only programs in the nation whose mission is to address the impact of a life-threatening illness on every member of the immediate family. While attending the various week-long camps, families are able to rebuild relationships together and meet other families facing similar challenges.

Founded in 1984, Camp Sunshine was the first and remains one of the only camps in the nation whose sole focus is on serving the entire family, not just the sick child. The program is free of charge to all families, and includes 24-hour onsite medical and psychosocial support. Bereavement groups also are offered for families who have lost a child to an illness.

For more information about Camp Sunshine’s programs, which now take place year-round, and to learn more about volunteering or making a donation, visit the camp’s website at www.campsunshine.org or call (207) 655-3800.

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Photo cutline: The Wal-Mart Foundation presented a $35,000 donation to Camp Sunshine during an event recently at the Wal-Mart in Windham. From left, David Murray, Wal-Mart Market Manager; Marty Grossman, Camp Sunshine Board Member; Matt Hoidal, Camp Sunshine Executive Director; Donna Leith, Camp Sunshine Development Associate; Dot Gonyea, Camp Sunshine Volunteer; and Stewart McAllister, Scarborough Sam’s Club.