“Camp in June, camp in June. If I only had a nickel for each time my son Joshua says that! Christmas and birthdays are special but nothing is bigger for us than Joshua’s annual week at Camp Friendship,” said Joshua’s mother.

That’s a feeling shared by our 3,000 children and adults with disabilities because Friendship Ventures has been the source of their happiest moments and most cherished memories for the past 42 years.

Your support, whether it has been time, talent or money, can be the most wonderful gift to children and adults with disabilities. It’s not a present that can be unwrapped, but in many ways it is much more meaningful. We thank you for all the gifts you have given us this year.

May you have a blessed and joy-filled holiday season. On behalf of our staff and volunteers, we wish you a year filled with hope, friendship and happy memories.

Georgann Rumsey
President/CEO
Friendship Ventures

You Can Help:

To give a gift to children and adults with disabilities, Click to access our secure, on-line giving site. Your support will make all the difference in the world.

Summer Camp Inspires Poetry

Camp has been known to inspire participants, as it certainly did Amber Pearson, 25. She enjoyed camp activities, meeting new people and participating in a theater-themed special session so much that she wrote a poem, For Camp New Hope.

“I had a blast,” Amber said, “and I wanted to let everybody know that they were doing a great job.”

Amber, who lives in the St. Paul suburb Maplewood, has participated in Friendship Ventures summer camp programs several times since suffering a traumatic brain injury in an accident. Camp allows her to meet new people and polish her social skills. “At camp you get to meet so many different people and it gives you a break from the everyday,” Amber noted.

Her mom Kari agrees. “Amber gains confidence in herself at camp,” she said. “It benefits her as she’s relearning how to interact with others.”

That Amber would express her joy through poetry is not surprising. She chose the Theater in the Woods camp session because she enjoys writing and the arts. She helped write the script for a Cinderella-like play and had the lead role when the theater group performed for the rest of camp. She also attends a day program at the Anodyne Artists Center every week.

Poetry allows Amber to communicate her feelings. Clearly summer camp was a happy time.

A POEM FOR CAMP NEW HOPE

By Amber Pearson

Camp is so much fun
We went swimming and fishing
And had water fights under the sun
The food was great
When it was time to go to the canteen
We could hardly wait!
The instructors are so nice
And you couldn’t price
The time we had
But it’s almost Friday
and we’ll have to go
We had fun
Soon I have to go home
I don’t want to though

One Family's Christmas Tradition Shares Love

For three years, members of one extended family have joined forces at Christmas to make a donation to a charity. Last year, they gave the donation to Friendship Ventures.

“We wanted to get back to the spirit of what Christmas is all about,” explained Sharon Jude, daughter of Ralph and Letitia Dick, and the family member who was responsible for choosing Friendship Ventures to receive the donation.

“We have a big family (30 in all), and we used to exchange names, but it got harder for everyone to buy gifts,” Sharon Jude said. “We take the money everyone donated instead, and we take turns deciding who to donate to.” Sharon chose Friendship Ventures for a number of reasons: her brother David Dick has attended programs, as has her husband Larry’s brother Dennis. Larry Jude and his extended family raised funds for and helped to build a cabin at Camp Friendship.

Thanks to Sharon Jude and the entire Dick family, Friendship Ventures received a significant contribution. With this Christmas tradition, the Dick family’s goal is to focus less on material items and more on sharing love for all people. Their gift allows Friendship Ventures to show more people with disabilities that they are loved.

To give a gift to children and adults with disabilities, Click to access our secure, on-line giving site.

Creative Giving Benefits Friendship Ventures

Hundreds of donors contribute to Friendship Ventures, often by sending a check or charging a donation online. We rely on those donations, and greatly appreciate each one. There are many other ways to help Friendship Ventures and our participants with disabilities. They include:

Vehicle Donations -You can donate your used car, truck, camper, van, motorcycle, ATV, snowmobile, jet ski, RV/Motor home, bus, boat or trailer. When you donate a vehicle, you receive a tax deduction. Even if Friendship Ventures is not able to use the vehicle for our programs, we will benefit from its cash value. Click to donate a vehicle.

BuyforCharity.com - You can shop online from more than 350 stores like Barnes & Noble, Gap, Office Max, 1-800-Flowers and Orbitz, and 3-9 percent of each purchase will benefit Friendship Ventures when you shop through BuyForCharity.com. Whenever you buy online, whether for gifts, airline tickets, flowers, clothing, music, or anything else, first log on to BuyForCharity.com. You’ll register, choose Friendship Ventures as your cause of choice, then click on the store to shop. The donation will be automatically made after your transaction is complete.

Company Matching - Last year, Friendship Ventures received $4,650 in matching funds when donors took advantage of their company’s matching gift program. Many corporations offer matching gifts programs to double the impact of an individual’s donation. If you are unsure whether your company matches gifts, check with the human resources department. The procedure is usually very simple; typically Friendship Ventures returns a completed form after receiving the individual’s donation.

Gifts from IRAs - The Pension Protection Act of 2006 was signed into law recently to help relieve the tax burden when older donors support a charity. According to information from the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means, donors over the age of 70 ½ can now transfer up to $100,000 a year from their Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) directly to a nonprofit without having to pay taxes on the gift.

Friendship in Action - Donors to Friendship Ventures often have a connection to our programs: a relative has been to or worked at one of our camp programs, our site is just down the road, a friend shared our story. Friendship Ventures works to widen our circle of friends through the Friendship in Action Initiative. Through this program, our friends and supporters invite their friends, colleagues, coworkers, relatives or neighbors to a luncheon presentation to learn about our programs and the impact they make on lives. Our new friends are invited to identify ways they can help us, and our circle is enlarged. Contact Verlyn Menning for more information at (952) 852-0109 or vmenning@friendshipventures.org.

Golf for Friendship - During the summer, several golf tournaments benefit Friendship Ventures programs. If you like to golf, consider joining us at a tournament. Knowing that your entry fee helps support our programs will make for a great day of golf.

For more information about helping Friendship Ventures in these or any other ways, contact us at fv@friendshipventures.org or 952-852-0101. Thanks for all the ways you give!

Countdown to Winter Camp

It’s just a few weeks until winter camp begins at Camp Friendship. It’s not too late to be a part of the fun; there are a few spots still open. Winter Camp sessions are Dec. 27 – 31, Jan. 2 – 5 or Jan. 2 – 7. Sessions are for all ages and ability levels, and include “All Kids Belong,” a session for kids with and without disabilities. Continue the fun with Winter Weekenders, offered every weekend in January at either Camp Friendship, Eden Wood Center or both sites.

For information on Winter Camp sessions and registration, click here or call 952-852-0101.

Ring in the New Year with Friendship Ventures

Friendship Ventures is hosting a New Year’s Dance, open to everyone! The dance is Saturday, Dec. 30, 7 to 8 p.m. at Camp Friendship. Join participants of winter camp and dance to the DJ’s tunes. Cost is $2 for staff and participants and reservations are required by Dec. 26. For more information or to register, contact Kristin Olson at 952-852-0110 or kolson@friendshipventures.org.

Thanks to Donors

Special thanks to these donors for their recent contributions to fund scholarships:

The Dan and Susan Miller Family Fund of the Central Minnesota Community Foundation, St. Cloud
CMGRP Incorporated, Minneapolis
Wooden Hearts, Incorporated, Cold Spring
Andersen Corporate Foundation, Bayport
RAO Manufacturing Company, Fridley
Hardenbergh Foundation, St. Paul
Life Time Fitness Foundation, Eden Prairie
The Harper Family Foundation, Omaha, Neb.
The Royce and Janice Sanner Fund of the St. Paul Foundation

And thanks to:

The White Bear Lake Lions Club, who donated a 10-passenger mini bus with a wheelchair lift.
Andersen Corporate Foundation, Bayport, for a second donation to the Eden Wood renovation project
The Royce and Janice Sanner Fund of the St. Paul Foundation for a second donation to support the Eden Wood renovation project

Thanks to all donors!

You Can Help:

To give a gift to children and adults with disabilities, Click to access our secure, on-line giving site. Your support will make all the difference in the world.

Friendship Ventures is a non-profit agency that creates unique educational, recreational and social opportunities for people of all ages with mental retardation and other developmental disabilities. We also offer conference and retreat services and professional team-building programs to the communities we serve. Friendship Ventures operates Camp Friendship near Annandale, MN, Eden Wood Center in Eden Prairie, MN and Camp New Hope near McGregor, MN.

Home · Conference/Retreat · Programs · Team Quest · Jobs · Lend a hand · About Us · Forms Library · Staff Alumni · Contact