How a Los Angeles camp made space to let kids be kids after the wildfires

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR Not lengthy after the Eaton fireplace displaced her household from their Los Angeles residence, 10-year-old Emory Stumme broke down. The tears got here throughout a household dinner, and she or he struggled to catch her breath.

"You simply have been like, 'I can not choose up this fork, it is too heavy,' " Emory's mom, Becca, instructed her, recounting the episode. "You began crying and laughing and crying, after which heaving. I used to be like, 'Oh my God, she's actually having a psychological break.' "

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F71%2Fc5%2F97f4211b4483be7acc03f626a7b4%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-52.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F71%2Fc5%2F97f4211b4483be7acc03f626a7b4%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-52.jpg" class="img" alt="The Stumme Family poses for a portrait in their backyard of their new home in La Crescenta-Montrose." loading="lazy"/> The Stumme household poses for a portrait of their yard of their new residence in La Crescenta-Montrose. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR Becca Stumme, her husband and their two children misplaced their Altadena residence within the fireplace. Emory and her 3-year-old brother's colleges hit pause till they may relocate. When the Eaton and Palisades fires sparked in January — respectively the second- and third-most damaging in California historical past — familiarity, pal teams and routines have been upset for Emory and plenty of of her friends.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F01%2Fc8%2F8688934b4ef796aeef42cde715b5%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-6.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F01%2Fc8%2F8688934b4ef796aeef42cde715b5%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-6.jpg" class="img" alt="The Stummes' former home in Altadena, Calif." loading="lazy"/> The Stumme household's former residence in Altadena, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR So, when Becca heard a few free day camp that had popped up in northeast LA to assist out households displaced by the fires, she signed up her daughter. It was a part of a sequence of free day camps in Southern California organized by Mission:Camp, which goals to offer some normalcy for youngsters displaced by catastrophe.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fad%2Fce%2F490d60614ee18b1b23b8d123d978%2F202501129-campproject-ml-2.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fad%2Fce%2F490d60614ee18b1b23b8d123d978%2F202501129-campproject-ml-2.jpg" class="img" alt="Photo by Morgan Lieberman © 2025 All Rights Reserved" loading="lazy"/> Counselors and youngsters be a part of collectively on the soccer subject because the Mission:Camp day begins at Camp Bob Waldorf in Glendale, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR Mikey Latner based Mission:Camp in 2018, impressed by what he noticed as a necessity to assist children address their stress when their routines are disrupted. The thought sprung from his work in Houston the yr prior with children displaced by Hurricane Harvey. He stated camp counselors are uniquely outfitted to care for youngsters within the wake of pure disasters. The camp's method, Latner stated, is rooted in analysis displaying that hostile childhood experiences are linked to lifelong bodily and psychological well being issues.

"By offering that sense of security and normalcy at camp, we may help to decrease their stress ranges, return them to a routine, and solely then can they begin to create a story round what has occurred … in order that they perceive that one thing has occurred and that they are protected now — to finish that uncertainty and worry," Latner stated.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F43%2F76%2F07e67e4141108765ddd926890856%2F202501129-campproject-ml-3.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F43%2F76%2F07e67e4141108765ddd926890856%2F202501129-campproject-ml-3.jpg" class="img" alt="Photo by Morgan Lieberman © 2025 All Rights Reserved" loading="lazy"/> Mission:Camp founder Mikey Latner talks to a camper. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6057x4363+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F22%2F03%2F2de3d0024775a81cd9782c31132d%2F202501129-campproject-ml-1.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6057x4363+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F22%2F03%2F2de3d0024775a81cd9782c31132d%2F202501129-campproject-ml-1.jpg" class="img" alt="Campers do handstands on the soccer field at Camp Bob Waldorf in Glendale, Calif." loading="lazy"/> Campers do handstands on the soccer subject at Mission:Camp in Glendale, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR With its first camp up and working three days after the Palisades fireplace ignited on Jan. 7, Mission:Camp ended up placing on a complete of 10 camps all through the area, welcoming 5- to 16-year-olds. Lots of the camps lasted for 2 or three weeks.

This system provided typical day camp actions equivalent to arts and crafts, and video games like tag. Different actions drew extra immediately from the camp's trauma-informed method. Psychological well being professionals have been on web site as volunteers to assist handle emotional points that got here up for teenagers.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F4b%2Fc4%2F41a9580a4b188f9606a428013096%2F202501129-campproject-ml-16.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F4b%2Fc4%2F41a9580a4b188f9606a428013096%2F202501129-campproject-ml-16.jpg" class="img" alt="Campers and counselors make friendship bracelets together at Project:Camp in Glendale, Calif." loading="lazy"/> Campers and counselors make beaded bracelets collectively at Mission:Camp in Glendale, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc1%2F9f%2Ff4d87bcb41a091825b952a900211%2F202501129-campproject-ml-10.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc1%2F9f%2Ff4d87bcb41a091825b952a900211%2F202501129-campproject-ml-10.jpg" class="img" alt="Campers take turns with slingshots at Camp Bob Waldorf in Glendale, Calif." loading="lazy"/> Campers take turns with slingshots at Mission:Camp in Glendale, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR The disruption of routines, group and familiarity by the wildfires have taken a toll on kids's psychological well being, stated Kat O'Malley, an affiliate marriage and household therapist training within the Los Angeles space, who volunteered on the camp. Because the fires, she stated, dad and mom have reached out to her looking for remedy for his or her children after noticing indicators of emotional and bodily misery tied to the tragedy. Some children are experiencing a rise in panic or nightmares, are extra susceptible to separation anxiousness and temper swings, whereas others seem unaffected, based on O'Malley.

"Their sense of security, stability — that was all rocked," she stated.

For teenagers who expertise a pure catastrophe, O'Malley stated, it helps to seek out some sense of normalcy to start the therapeutic course of.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/1500x1000+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F9c%2F8e%2F8e8490a643cf90cf6f7cf292799f%2Funknown-1.jpeg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/1500x1000+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F9c%2F8e%2F8e8490a643cf90cf6f7cf292799f%2Funknown-1.jpeg" class="img" alt="Emory Stumme enjoys lunch with her camp group at Project: Camp in Glendale, Calif." loading="lazy"/> Emory Stumme enjoys lunch along with her camp group at Mission:Camp in Glendale, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR Becca stated Emory's time on the camp gave her daughter an opportunity to attach with buddies whereas her college was paused.

"The primary day that we picked her up from camp, I used to be like, 'Oh that is the outdated child once more,' " Stumme stated. "She was in a position to see her buddies and be exterior and play and simply be a child and never have to fret about, like, 'The place are we staying tonight?' or 'What garments do I've?' "

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F01%2Fec%2F95c81d8f42749bdf6f7e76638780%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-18.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F01%2Fec%2F95c81d8f42749bdf6f7e76638780%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-18.jpg" class="img" alt="The Eakin family in their temporary home in El Sereno, Calif." loading="lazy"/> The Eakin household of their non permanent residence in El Sereno, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR Marah Eakin stated sending her 6-year-old twins to the camp gave her some much-needed area to course of her personal emotions and deal with "grown-up stuff," like insurance coverage paperwork.

The Eakin household has been bouncing from one short-term rental to a different. The house they'd rented in Altadena nonetheless stands, about 100 ft exterior of the burn scar of the Eaton fireplace. However, whereas they work to get their landlord to scrub the place of ash and doubtlessly different poisonous chemical substances, she stated it is unclear if or after they'll be capable of return.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4672x7008+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5e%2Fd9%2Fb262864040c382e562a4babcd7de%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-24.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4672x7008+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5e%2Fd9%2Fb262864040c382e562a4babcd7de%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-24.jpg" class="img" alt="The Eakin family poses for a portrait down the street from their temporary home in El Sereno, Calif." loading="lazy"/> The Eakin household poses for a portrait down the road from their non permanent residence in El Sereno, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR When Marah's children' college resumed, not all of their classmates returned, the mom stated. "A variety of their buddies are scattered to the wind," she stated.

Her daughter Zella misses her stuffed animals that received left behind.

What may appear to some like an insignificant loss is usually no small factor to a baby struggling to deal with such losses, O'Malley stated. Whether or not it is stuffed animals or the household pet, the therapist stated, children grieve every kind of issues that may form their sense of who they're.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F23%2Fb4%2F2e6742a946da9ff36875d6731fe9%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-11.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7008x4672+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F23%2Fb4%2F2e6742a946da9ff36875d6731fe9%2F20250424-projectcampfamilies-ml-11.jpg" class="img" alt="The Eakin kids play with stuffed animals in their temporary home in El Sereno, Calif." loading="lazy"/> Eugene and Zella Eakin play with stuffed animals of their non permanent residence in El Sereno, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR "The largest factor I believe that comes up in grief work is when one thing modifications your identification," she stated. "Oh, I've seven guinea pigs, six of them are hairless — that is my enjoyable reality — and one in every of my guinea pigs died final month, and I maintain going, do I've to say six now as a substitute of seven? It modifications the best way you introduce your self, it modifications a lot about your identification, to have these shifts."

Youngsters in the end information this system at Mission:Camp, O'Malley stated, whereas the adults enable them the area to speak via emotions that may come up all through the day. There are frequent psychological wellness checks, throughout which children are inspired to select a quantity representing their emotions, in a 1 to 10 vary. ""Gratitude circles" invite children to share what makes them grateful; generally they're grateful for the meals, or seeing buddies. By means of workout routines like this, the camp's program can provide children alternatives to have their very own story heard, stated O'Malley.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4672x7008+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F85%2Fbc%2Faae999f448008d967ea883a7d214%2F202501129-campproject-ml-8.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4672x7008+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F85%2Fbc%2Faae999f448008d967ea883a7d214%2F202501129-campproject-ml-8.jpg" class="img" alt="Project:Camp counselor Becca Grae and Zella Eakin at Camp Bob Waldorf in Glendale, Calif." loading="lazy"/> Mission:Camp counselor Becca Grae and Zella Eakin in Glendale, Calif. Morgan Lieberman for NPR cover caption

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Morgan Lieberman for NPR "When anyone else goes, 'Oh, this all occurred for a motive' — it isn't for another person to inform you what your expertise was," she stated. "That may be actually diminishing. However while you your self make that means of an occasion, that may be very highly effective."

Typically, the therapeutic — sharing their emotions, telling their story — occurs through the in-between moments, she stated.

"You are like, 'Does anybody have to share?' And persons are like, 'No, we need to get to lunch,' " O'Malley stated. "After which on the best way to lunch, anyone goes, 'Oh wow, this jogs my memory of my kitchen that had this actually lovely tile in it, and I am unhappy that tile's gone. That was actually significant to my household — Oh yay, scorching canines!' "