Published on August 28, 2026

A Place To Belong

For one weekend in August, 73 grieving children and teens came together at Alive’s Camp Forget-Me-Not for adventure, remembrance, and connection. Throughout the weekend, one message surfaced again and again:

“I am not alone.”

An Unforgettable Weekend

The weekend was filled with the energy and excitement that makes summer camp so memorable. Campers soared down the zip line, challenged themselves on the climbing wall and made leaps of courage on the giant swing. They cooled off in the pool, explored the lake, shared meals, played games, and made sure their camp counselors earned a well-deserved nap by Sunday afternoon.

Alongside all of the fun, there was space to slow down and tend to their grief. Through carefully crafted small groups and specialty workshops, campers found creative ways to express emotions, tell their stories, and remember those they’ve lost.

This year also brought two exciting opportunities to expand the camp experience. We piloted a Friday evening program exclusively for high school campers and introduced the Caterpillar Program for children ages 4-7, giving our youngest grievers age-appropriate opportunities to join in the camp experience.

A Place Where Grief and Joy Can Coexist

Every camp activity is thoughtfully planned with purpose. Whether it’s creating space for laughter, building confidence, fostering connection, or helping campers express their grief in healthy ways, each part of the camp experience is designed to support growth, healing, and resilience.

Yet the real magic of camp often happens in the moments we can’t plan. It happens while waiting in line for the zip line, sitting together at lunch, encouraging a friend on a long walk, or cheering someone on as they try something new. In these ordinary, unscripted moments, campers discover something extraordinary.

They learn that they can share memories of their person freely and they can talk about their loss without having to explain it. That it’s okay to cry when they need to and laugh a moment later. They find a community where they are understood, accepted, and supported exactly where they are in their grief journey. And in that community, they begin to understand a powerful truth: joy and grief are not opposites. They can exist side by side.

A Reminder That Lasts Beyond Camp

As families arrived to pick up their campers, children and teens headed home carrying more than duffel bags and dirty laundry. They carried new friendships, new memories, new coping skills, and the reassurance that they are not walking this path alone.

For a grieving child or teenager, knowing they are not alone can make all the difference.

Thank You

Camp Forget-Me-Not is made possible by an incredible community of people who give their time, talents, hearts, and resources to grieving children and teens.

To Our Campers

Thank you for letting your courage shine brightly throughout the weekend. We were inspired by the way you showed up for one another with kindness, compassion, and understanding. The friendships you built and the love you shared helped create a camp community that was both meaningful and unforgettable.

To Our Staff and Volunteers

We are deeply grateful to our staff, volunteers, and guest facilitators who helped bring camp to life. Whether facilitating groups, supporting cabins, leading activities, coordinating logistics, sharing their talents, or offering a listening ear when it was needed most, each person played a role in creating the safe, compassionate, and joyful environment that makes Camp Forget-Me-Not so special.

To the Guest Facilitators

We were fortunate to have several talented guest facilitators who enriched the camp experience through meaningful specialty workshops. A special thank you goes out to Rebekah Near, expressive arts therapist at Alive, for leading an expressive arts workshop that invited campers to explore coping with grief through creativity and self-expression; Tonia Nadeau, of Alive, for facilitating a Kali Connection Therapy workshop that encouraged movement, regulation, and connection; Kyshona Armstrong of Your Song, for guiding campers through a songwriting workshop that helped them express their stories and emotions through music; and Allison Inman of the Belcourt Theatre, for leading a film workshop that sparked reflection, discussion, and creative exploration.

To our Sponsors and Community Partners

Camp would not be possible without the generosity of the sponsors and community partners that make this weekend accessible to every camper. Thanks to your support, every camper attended free of charge and was able to experience a weekend of adventure, remembrance, connection, and healing.

Special thanks to:

Ingram Industries
James Joseph Ford Foundation
Murfreesboro Breakfast Rotary Club
Nashville Predators Foundation
Temple Ohabai Sholom
The Marlene and Spencer Hays Foundation
United Way of Greater Nashville
United Way of South Central Tennessee
Walmart Store #272
Walmart Store #671
Walmart Store #8257
Texas Roadhouse, Antioch, TN

To the Care that Sustained Camp

We are also grateful to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and Hattie B’s, whose generous meal donations helped keep campers, volunteers, and staff nourished throughout the weekend.

A special thank you to Asher’s Animals, whose donation of a stuffed animal for every camper provided a tangible source of comfort that many children carried home with them.

To Individual Donors

Finally, we extend our heartfelt appreciation to the many individual donors whose generosity often happens quietly behind the scenes. While not all are named here, your gifts ensure that Camp Forget-Me-Not remains accessible to every camper who needs it.

Together, you help create a place where grieving children and teens can remember the people they love, connect with others who understand, develop tools for coping, and discover that joy and grief can exist side by side.

Thank you for helping ensure that no child grieves alone.

Camp Forget-Me-Not 2026