Our Mission
The mission of Sibling Strong is to reunite brothers and sisters who have Washington ties and who are separated because of foster care and other out-of-home care for camps and events that reinforce their sibling connection, encourage social development, restore hope, give a sense of normalcy and reduce feelings of isolation.
Brothers and sisters typically experience the longest and some of the strongest life relationships. Being separated from their siblings increases the trauma of being removed from their homes. Visits between siblings helps them heal and move forward. That is why Sibling Strong believes it is vital to keep siblings connected when they are separated by placements in foster care, relative care or adoption.
Since 2009, Camp To Belong Washington has been creating opportunities for these brothers and sisters to laugh, cry, begin healing and create positive new memories together that will last a lifetime.
did you know...
Youth living in foster care often have very few photos of their childhood. At Camp To Belong Washington, each child creates a scrapbook filled with photos of themselves and their siblings to remind them of their time together.
Youth in foster care often miss family celebrations. At camp, one night is devoted to a camp-wide birthday party at which brothers and sisters exchange presents and enjoy their own family cake to celebrate the birthdays that they may have missed during the year.
One week at camp provides more sibling time together than an entire year's worth of state-mandated visits.
Many children in foster care feel an overwhelming sense of isolation and have reduced self-esteem because of their experiences. Sibling Strong works to create normalcy by providing them time together and experiences with others who have faced similar challenges and understand their feelings.
It costs roughly $850 per camper to attend Camp To Belong Washington. These costs and the cost of other sibling reunification events throughout the year are never charged to campers. Instead, we work hard to raise the money each year so cost does not prohibit a youth's attendance.
Celebrating 13 Years!
Campers
1,072
Siblings reunited since 2009
Time Together
122,564
Number of hours
CTB WA has given brothers and sisters together since 2009
Volunteers
90,630
Number of volunteer hours
since 2009
369 full-time volunteers
742 event volunteers