For the past few years the Firefighters Burn Institute has held a very unique and one of a kind camp for little burn survivors ages 3 to 6 years old. The Little Heroes Preschool Burn Camp is held at Camp Arroyo
in Livermore, CA. This camp is not a typical “burn camp”. Little Heroes differs from our Firefighters Kids Camp because it’s not only for the young burn survivor, but is also for their entire family!
Families, especially the parents of young children, typically do not have any help for themselves when their little one suffers a horrible injury such as a burn. Parents tend to be so consumed with helping their child that their needs, especially their emotional needs, are neglected. This one-of-a-kind 3-day program helps children along with their families to understand and cope with the physical and emotional challenges associated with burn recovery.
Our Little Heroes adult program assists parents and caregivers by providing the support and education necessary to nurture a child who has suffered a severe burn. Our preschool children’s program focuses on healthy emotional and physical recovery with an emphasis on providing the children the opportunity to socialize with other burn survivors.
Due to the demographics of our camp and specifically the age of our little burn survivors, it is sometimes difficult to recruit enough campers to hold camp. In the next few months I will be hitting the road to educate other burn foundations and burn hospitals about Little Heroes. Essentially, I will be on a recruiting mission to get enough campers for this year’s camp, which is tentatively scheduled for November. It is my number one priority to get enough campers to hold a successful Little Heroes Preschool Burn Camp in 2014!
Please continue to support the Firefighters Burn Institute and the programs and services we provide for burn survivors! If you know any young child that has suffered the tragedy of a serious burn injury, and you think that they and their family may be a good candidate for Little Heroes, please refer them to our office. There is no charge to attend Little Heroes Preschool Burn Camp.
Sincerely,
Jim Doucette
Executive Director, Firefighters Burn Institute
Retired Captain, Sacramento Fire Department
