The Foundation For Dreams Inc.

The Mission of Foundation for Dreams, Inc. is to offer an exceptional camping experience for children with special needs and chronic illnesses ages 7-17. Our unique programs focus on each child s abilities, and are specifically designed to strengthen their social skills, self-esteem and independence in a safe, barrier-free environment.

Over the last 15 years, thousands of children from all over Florida have shared the experience of our Dream Oaks Camp program. The Foundation for Dreams is unique in that we are the only camp in the Southwest Region of Florida providing year round weekend, spring break and summer residential camp sessions for children with varying ability levels and chronic/terminal medical conditions. Our primary goals are to provide a special place for children with varying exceptionalities and chronic illnesses the opportunity to bond with others, build steps toward self-confidence, strengthen activities of daily living and life skills, while providing the a greater parents and/or caregivers some respite time from the daily responsibilities of caring for a child with special needs or chronic illnesses. The ARCH Respite Network reports that kind of respite has been shown to help sustain overall family caregiver health and well being, as well as avoid or delay out-of-home placements.
For children with disabilities, Dream Oaks Camp provides the opportunity for children to learn valuable social and daily living skills. Our program creates the chance for children to recognize others as individuals, not by their disabilities. Every camp session has a theme and activities that are specialized to meet the needs of each child we serve, enabling children to enhance their skills both physically and emotionally in a safe environment while interacting with other children and supervisors. We plan each activity with the mindset that each child will participate, learn new skills and take on many new challenges.
We provide a variety of camp activities that include, but are not limited to: arts and crafts, music and drama, yoga, scavenger hunts, aquatic programs (swimming and canoeing), boat rides, sports and games, nature studies, therapeutic horseback riding and many other fun camping activities and experiences. These activities give immediate health benefits (such as improved cardiovascular fitness) and recreational options that can carry over into adult life.