PRESS RELEASE

Tell Kids How Absolutely Incredible They Are!

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 09 , 2008

TELL KIDS HOW ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE THEY ARE;
Celebrate Camp Fire USA's
Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® March 20, 2008

[Kansas City, Mo.] – March 20, 2008, marks Camp Fire USA's 12th annual Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®. This annual letter-writing campaign to honor children has been deemed an overwhelming success by child care experts, educators, celebrities, leaders, parents and kids everywhere.

Research shows that simple words of encouragement and compassion can make a difference in a child's life. Putting those words into a letter allows the recipient to hang onto those encouraging words, and return to them for inspiration and guidance, often for years to come.

This is the cornerstone of Camp Fire USA's Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®: communicating to America's most precious resource – our youth – how valuable and absolutely incredible they are.

Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®, celebrated annually on the third Thursday in March – March 20, 2008 – is Camp Fire USA's national call to action asking adults to write letters of love and support to youth – sons and daughters, nieces and nephews, neighbors, even kids they don't know. This national campaign to honor children has been recognized as an event to inspire adult-to-child interaction.

Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® has touched more than 600 million people in the 10 years since its inception. Its supporters include national figures such as President George W. Bush and former President William J. Clinton; American hero, John Glenn; family authority, Sylvia Rimm, Ph.D.; and sports heroes Jerry Rice and Jeff Gordon. Read celebrity letters.

Throughout the country, Camp Fire USA councils will celebrate Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® locally with a variety of unique events, including the Adopt-a-School project, fundraisers and delivery of bibs to newborns. To get involved with Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® in your community, contact your nearest Camp Fire USA council.

Nationally, the goal of Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® is for every child to receive a letter. It can be left on a pillow, mailed, stuck in a lunch box, e-mailed, read over the phone or read in person. Camp Fire USA wants parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, neighbors, educators, mentors and all adults to participate.

Help Camp Fire USA celebrate America's children by writing a letter to the kids in your life. It's a simple gesture whose impact can last a lifetime.

Camp Fire USA is one of the nation's leading not-for-profit youth development organizations, serving 750,000 participants annually. Camp Fire, with national headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri, since 1977, provides all-inclusive, coeducational programs in hundreds of communities across the United States. Camp Fire USA's mission is to build caring, confident youth and future leaders. By design, Camp Fire's programs, including small group experiences, after school programs, camping and environmental education, child care and service learning, build confidence in younger children and provide hands-on, youth-driven leadership experiences for older youth. For more information, visit www.campfireusa.org.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®?

• It’s an annual call to action for adults to write letters of love and support to America’s children, created by Camp Fire USA, one of the nation’s leading youth development organizations.
  
  

When is Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®?

• March 20, 2008 — and annually on the third Thursday of each March.
  
  

Why is Camp Fire USA sponsoring this event?

• Camp Fire USA wants to honor the hundreds of thousands of children involved in Camp Fire, as well as those not involved in our programs.
  
  
• Adults sometimes forget to stop and tell a child how important he or she is. Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® is a reminder to do just that.
  
  
• Camp Fire USA is an expert in adult-to-child communication, and Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® strengthens the important bond between kids and adults.
  

What’s so special about a letter?

• A letter is personal, tangible and something a person can hold onto for years to come. Through written words, people can express emotions they may hold back in conversation. And during the often-challenging times of adolescence, children may be more open to reading a letter than having a talk that may “embarrass” them.
  
  

Does writing a letter really make a difference?

• Children need positive reinforcement in their lives. The right words of encouragement can come at just the time a child needs them most – helping the child make better decisions, build self-esteem, and even be more compassionate and successful.

What is your goal for Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®?

• We want every child to receive a letter. Just imagine the impact of loving letters in lunch boxes, on pillows or tucked in backpacks.

How can I find out more about Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®?

• If you want to join Camp Fire USA in showing America’s children how valued they are, contact Camp Fire USA National Headquarters by e-mailing kidday@campfireusa.org or calling 888 2 KID DAY.