Many campgrounds and RV resorts offer more than just a place to stay, inviting guests to join them in “giving back” through charitable efforts.
By Jeff Crider
April 2019
Every year about this time, Kris and Katie Oneida survey the cleanup work they’ll have to do at Wishon Village RV Resort, their family-owned campground in the town of Shaver Lake, on the west slope of California’s Sierra Nevada.
Young volunteers with Youth For Christ California spend a spring-cleanup day at Wishon Village RV Resort. In return, the RV park makes a donation to the organization, which assists troubled teens.
“We shut down for the winter months, and after the snow melts, we have a lot to do to get opened back up,” Kris Oneida said. “Pine needles, pinecones, fallen branches, you name it. It’s all over the place.”
But instead of clearing 20 acres of fallen forest debris on their own, the Oneidas partner with Youth for Christ, which brings in a couple dozen troubled inner-city children and young adults to spend a day cleaning up the campground to get it ready for the summer camping season.
“This day isn’t about us. It’s about the kids,” Mr. Oneida said of the group. “They get to be in nature and the outdoors. Many of them have never been out of the city, let alone up in the mountains. But they work hard all day, raking and picking up piles of debris, and they get to see the fruits of their labor.” The Oneidas furnish lunch, and when the workday ends, they give the organization a check for $3,000.
The program has been so successful that some youth return later in the season to help repaint the campground’s picnic tables and buildings.
Wishon Village isn’t alone in such outreach efforts. Across North America, many campground and RV park operators create special activities and events to support nonprofit organizations and charities that make a difference in people’s lives.
Campgrounds in Wisconsin, for example, host a variety of special events throughout the year to generate funds for the Gilbert Brown Foundation, the nonprofit established by the former Green Bay Packers football player nicknamed “The Gravedigger.”
Champions Riverside Resort in Galesville, Wisconsin, regularly hosts fundraising events for the Gilbert Brown Foundation. Here, former Green Bay Packer Eugene Robinson spends time with a young guest.
The foundation’s many initiatives include providing school supplies, organizing a free football camp for Wisconsin’s inner-city youth, hosting a turkey giveaway, and supplying coats and toys for children during the holidays. The foundation also provides gas cards to families of kids with cancer and breast cancer patients.
Lori Severson, executive director of the Wisconsin Association of Campground Owners, said that Mr. Brown, as well as other current and former Packer players, frequently visit Wisconsin campgrounds to take part in fundraising events.
Cancer is a big focus of fundraising activities within the campground industry. The largest involves Kampgrounds of America, C456, an FMCA commercial member. KOA’s affiliated campgrounds and corporate office have raised in excess of $14 million for more than 125 cancer camps across North America, including 17 in Canada, during the past 35 years, according to KOA Care Camps, the nonprofit organization that coordinates these events.
In 2019 the biggest Care Camps event takes place the second weekend of May at participating KOA campgrounds. Campers will pay the regular price for their first night’s stay on Friday and $20 for the second night on Saturday. The full $20 will go directly to the KOA Care Camps Trust.
Individual KOAs hold fundraising events throughout the camping season as well. These involve everything from raffles and fun runs to ice cream socials, according to Anita Perry, a secretary for the KOA Care Camps board, who co-owns the Chautauqua Lake KOA Holiday, C12637, in Dewittville, New York.
Campgrounds affiliated with the Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resort network also support numerous local charities involving cancer camps, cancer research, autism, and other worthwhile causes.
O’Connell’s Yogi Bear Jellystone Park in Amboy, Illinois, sponsors a “Relay for Life” team that raises money for the American Cancer Society.
Gina Lenhard, who co-owns and operates the Adirondack Jellystone Park Camp Resort in North Hudson, New York, with her husband, Mike, said they started supporting the Upstate New York Autism Alliance after becoming close friends with a family who were seasonal guests in their campground.
“They had a son who had autism. So we wanted to do something to help,” Ms. Lenhard said.
“Color Run” races hosted by campgrounds in the Jellystone and KOA networks are fun ways to raise much-needed funds for cancer research.
The couple has since broadened their efforts to include hosting annual Color Run races to raise funds for breast cancer research. “Every family has someone in their family or knows of someone who has suffered from autism or cancer,” Ms. Lenhard said.
Other campgrounds focus their humanitarian efforts on helping children and adults with disabilities.
Myrtle Beach Travel Park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, provides facilities and fundraising support for Special Olympics South Carolina, which furnishes special-needs children and adults with free medical attention and training for sports and athletic competitions.
The campground’s Polar Bear Pre-Plunge gives guests an opportunity to raise money and support each other in “freezing for a reason,” said Taylor N. Cook, the park’s recreation director. “We host silent auctions, a raffle, and an on-site grill serving a variety of food specials. We end the afternoon with our brave plungers taking a dip in the ocean.” During the Polar Bear Pre-Plunge this past January, Myrtle Beach Travel Park raised more than $4,500 for Special Olympics South Carolina.
Santa makes a special appearance at Pismo Coast Village RV Resort in Pismo Beach, California.
Pismo Coast Village RV Resort, C7699, in Pismo Beach, California, hosts an annual Christmas celebration for mentally and physically challenged children from San Luis Obispo County elementary schools. Resort guests volunteer at the event, which treats the children to crafts, lunch, presents, and visits from Santa and Smokey Bear.
Many campgrounds hold fundraisers to help veterans also. One is Lone Star Jellystone, in Waller, Texas, which hosts a cook-off every February called Chili When It’s Chilly. The event raises money for the Boot Campaign, which helps veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries.
Still other campgrounds and their guests work to provide clothing, toys, and food to those in need.
Guests at VIP-La Feria RV Park in La Feria, Texas, gather weekly to knit, crochet, and quilt handmade items for local charitable organizations.
VIP-La Feria RV Park in La Feria, Texas, near the Mexican border, donates year-round to the food bank at First Baptist Church in La Feria. “There is a real need in this area for food and clothing for the less fortunate,” noted manager Ruth Dearinger. “Most of our residents contribute nonperishable food items from time to time for this project. We also have a meal in the spring where in order to attend the event, you must donate at least one food item per person.” Many residents donate multiple items or even cases of food, she said.
VIP-La Feria also collects new or slightly used stuffed animals and toys for donation to the La Feria police and fire departments, whose officers give them to children in crisis situations. The RV park collects toys for those departments to distribute at Christmastime as well.
A quilting group meets weekly at VIP-La Feria. Their handmade quilts, pillowcases, caps, and slippers are donated to various causes, including an orphanage in Harlingen, Texas.
Snowbirds and retirees are involved in numerous outreach efforts at RV parks and resorts across the Sunbelt. Guests at Monte Vista RV Resort in Mesa, Arizona, raise funds and volunteer for Arizona Brainfood. This local organization provides sacks of food for elementary school students who don’t receive regular weekend meals, said Emily DeLarm, communications specialist for Equity LifeStyle Properties, which owns the resort. Resort volunteers assemble the food at a warehouse in Mesa and deliver it to various schools.
Guests at Pioneer River Resort in Bandera, Texas, hold fundraising events throughout the year to support two local programs. One is Meals on Wheels, which provides a hot meal and daily contact for seniors living alone without transportation. Judy Pace, resort manager, noted that some of the resort’s winter guests volunteer to drive a route for the program. The second organization, Arms of Hope, provides “housing, food, education, and guidance to mothers and their children, as well as orphaned children and those who have been removed by the state from a troubled home,” she said.
Each winter, Habitat for Humanity volunteers based at Rincon Country West RV Resort build homes around Tucson.
Snowbirds constitute a formidable Habitat for Humanity effort at Rincon Country West RV Resort, C2739, in Tucson, Arizona. Every winter, at least two dozen Habitat for Humanity volunteers based at the park fan out across the city to build houses that are sold to low-income families who could never qualify for conventional financing. The volunteers typically build six to 10 new homes each year and rehab others, according to Carolyn Keener, who leads the Rincon Country-based Habitat volunteers with her husband, Gerry.
Volunteering can be very empowering for snowbirds in this group. The Keeners pair experienced builders and painters with less practiced workers so the latter can learn new skills. Projects involve everything from framing to caulking and painting.
Ms. Keener said some snowbirds specifically stay at Rincon Country each winter so they can join the resort’s Habitat for Humanity team. “We want to be part of the community and not just stay confined behind the security gate,” she said. “This is our way of giving back to the community.”
The 1,100-site Rincon Country West RV Resort and its 460-site sister park, Rincon Country East RV Resort, C13399, are also engaged in a major effort to fight hunger in the Tucson area.
George O’Leary, an 88-year-old Irish immigrant who built both parks, said he was inspired to raise funds to combat hunger in 1997, the 150th anniversary of the Irish famine. That year he challenged guests at both parks to contribute to a fund benefitting the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, and he vowed to match their contributions. To date, Mr. O’Leary and his guests have donated more than $320,000 to the food bank fund.
“It is my intention and wish to make this a $1 million fund so that long after I’m dead and gone, some less fortunate man, woman, or child won’t have to go to bed hungry one night,” he said.
A Sampling Of Charitable Events
April 27
Pints-N-Pups: Mystic Quarry Resort, Canyon Lake, Texas. Live music, local craft beers, vendors, dog contests, and playtime with shelter dogs. Proceeds benefit the Canyon Lake Animal Shelter Society. www.mysticquarry.com
May 10-11
KOA Care Camps’ Big Weekend. Stay Friday night at a participating KOA campground and pay just $20 for Saturday night. Proceeds from the second night help support more than 125 medically equipped cancer camps across North America. https://koa.com/national-events/care-camps-big-weekend/
May 10-12
Mother’s Day Breakfast: Dogwood Acres Campground, Newville, Pennsylvania. Moms eat free; donations are encouraged for everyone else. Proceeds benefit the Ronald McDonald House in Hershey, which provides free housing, food, and support to families with children in treatment at a nearby hospital. A similar fundraising event will be held over Father’s Day weekend, June 14-16. https://dogwoodcamping.com
June 1-3
Tag Sale Weekend: Lone Oak Campsites, East Canaan, Connecticut. Campground guests can sell their treasures or donate items to a fundraising table; proceeds go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. This campground holds other fundraising events for various charities throughout the summer and fall. https://loneoakcampsites.com
June 15
10th Annual Gilbert Brown Foundation Custom & Classic Car Show and Benefit: Wilderness Campground, Montello, Wisconsin. A $10 donation is requested to enter a car. Campers mingle with former Green Bay Packer Gilbert Brown while helping to raise money for his foundation, which supports Camp Sunshine cancer camp, Brown’s All Pro Football Camp for kids, and other initiatives. www.wildernesscampground.com
June 21-23
Color Run: Jellystone Park, North Hudson, New York. Proceeds go to the Upstate NY Autism Alliance Chapter. Between August 2 and September 2, other park events benefit the Mollie Wilmot Radiation Oncology Center at Saratoga Hospital. https://www.adirondacksjellystone.com
August 2-4
Kids Carnival: Door County Jellystone Park, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. Carnival games, raffles, and activities. Campers are asked to bring school supplies or nonperishable food items. Donations, including event proceeds, benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Door County. https://www.doorcountyjellystone.com
August 3
Wish Upon A Butterfly Weekend: Meadville KOA, Meadville, Pennsylvania. Campers sponsor monarch butterflies ($11 each), which they set free; donations go to KOA Care Camps. Butterflies must be reserved by June 16. https://meadvillekoa.com
December 12
Christmas Celebration: Pismo Coast RV Village, Pismo Beach, California. The resort and its guests host a special Christmas meal and gift-giving event for mentally and physically challenged children from local elementary schools. www.pismocoastvillage.com
International service. Some campground operators volunteer on humanitarian missions overseas. Steve Stafford, general manager of North Texas Jellystone Park in Burleson, recently spent time with Africa Mission Services in Kenya, where he cleaned instruments in a dental clinic. Mr. Stafford and other employees volunteer with Meals on Wheels each week in the Burleson area. “Unselfish service improves my staff’s leadership influence and encourages their personal growth,” he said.