The Annie E. Casey Foundation believes that in order for children to do well, their families must do well, and families do well when they live in supportive communities. It also believes that in order to change the future for at-risk children, the present must be changed for their parents and that it is critical to connect parents and families to the resources, services and support that can help them succeed. With the help of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Camp Fire USA is rewarding local efforts to strengthen families by recognizing Camp Fire councils that excel at providing programs and services for vulnerable families.

“The Annie E. Casey Foundation is committed to improving the lives of families and children nationwide,” said Miriam Shark, senior associate, Annie E. Casey Foundation. “We are pleased to partner with Camp Fire USA and local councils to help increase opportunities for parents and children to succeed.”

The Annie E. Casey Foundation is a Baltimore-based national philanthropy dedicated to helping build better futures for disadvantaged children and families in the United States. It was established in 1948 by Jim Casey, one of the founders of United Parcel Service, and his siblings, who named the Foundation in honor of their mother. For more information, visit www.aecf.org.

The Family Strengthening agenda is critical to Camp Fire.  Our councils are working with families who look to us as a linkage for their children’s success, their connectedness to systems such as schools, banks and health care. 

Over the past four years, thirteen Camp Fire USA councils have received awards totaling $280,000 to recognize their successes with families. Initially, the Families Count: Family Strengthening Award was given to councils with Community Family Clubs that connected families to services, support, and resources to help families. In 2005, two levels of the award were developed, Exemplary Practice and Incentive. The award was then given to councils with programs that demonstrated multiple methods of strengthening families not limited to Community Family Clubs.

In the spring of 2007, a group of council executives and staff came together to identify how Camp Fire USA could deepen its commitment to family strengthening, thereby improving and expanding its ability to support the development of confident, caring youth and future leaders. The result was a strategic change in the award process. Beginning with the 2007 Families Count: Family Strengthening Awards competition, Camp Fire USA will shift its emphasis from rewarding specific programs to rewarding councils which demonstrate that they have integrated family strengthening strategies and practices throughout their council and program operations. Family strengthening practices are expected to be effective, replicable, and transferable, both within the organization, and across the Camp Fire USA system.

Family strengthening is not a single program. It is a philosophy or attitude about service delivery and organizational commitment. Councils that embrace a family strengthening approach go beyond serving individual youth to supporting, through services and resource connections, the quality of life for youth and their families. Family strengthening is an intentional approach to youth development and other human services, and involves the use of council resources to support families and family strengthening practices.

The Awards
In partnership with the Annie E. Casey Foundation, there will be two levels of awards.

• Three Family Strengthening Exemplary Practice Awards will be awarded to councils that demonstrate
  multiple strategies of strengthening families, as defined in this document. The award money is to be
  used for the purpose of continuing the council’s abilities to strengthen families.
• Three Family Strengthening Incentive Awards will be awarded to councils that successfully demonstrate
  work in at least one strategy in family strengthening.

The awards will now recognize Camp Fire USA councils that demonstrate their implementation of effective strategies to strengthen vulnerable families.

Winners Page

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