sign me up to volunteer!

We share the love and hope of Jesus through our care, compassion and actions at camp. We believe Jesus, the son of God, walked the earth more than 2000 years ago and loved on and cared for people who were hurting. As Christians, we want to follow His example to serve others and bring hope and comfort to those in need throughout each day at camp. That may be lending a listening ear, setting up the beach, throwing the football with a dad, riding a rollercoaster with a little one, helping a mom with her kiddos, splashing in the pool with fellow campers, or even sharing an ice cream with a new friend.

Volunteers (adults, and their children who serve) are paired with guest families and serve as their Family Host Team. This team greets, welcomes, and befriends our guest families. Throughout the retreat, their job is to help our guests feel welcome and cared for and assure they have the best week ever! Volunteers also are part of a service team such as beach, food, hospitality.

There will be around 100 people (volunteers and guests) at each Blue Skies camp - around 10-12 guest families along with 30-40 volunteer adults and their children.

We are looking for volunteers who have put their faith in Jesus as their Savior and are willing to share His love and hope through serving others. (see https://redeemermarietta.org/beliefsandguidingprinciples)

• Volunteers should be in good health physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

• As a part of the application process, volunteers agree to abide by our guidelines and commitments to serve. Personal references are required for volunteers and criminal background checks are required for all volunteers every other year.

• Volunteers must be at least 18 years old and high school graduates to serve without their parents.

• Anyone who has issues of anger or violence; challenges with or involvement/use of illegal or prescription drugs or alcohol abuse; sexual offenses or pornography; theft or crime, are not eligible to attend Blue Skies. Anyone who has a history of any of the stated issues, challenges or offenses must disclose those to Blue Skies before applying.

• Students who have behavioral issues, have been expelled from school, have been involved in any illegal activities or are having other significant challenges should not attend until the issues have been discussed with Blue Skies and are resolved. Please feel free to contact our office for additional information.

• Any staff, guest family or volunteer who is found to or has history of any sexual offense will be terminated from employment or volunteer services/retreat attendance immediately.

Yes, please! Your kids will make camp even better for the children with cancer and their brothers and sisters! We encourage families to serve together! It’s so much fun and an incredible way to teach your kids how to serve others and help them to practice putting others first. There are countless teachable moments for your children at camp.

We are humbled by the parents who share with us that their children picked returning to serve at Blue Skies over Disney or other wonderful vacations. When we give of ourselves for the good of others, it just feels good because God created us in His image to love another. Deciding to serve at camp with your children can be a life changing decision. Our student volunteers have gone on to become pediatric nurses, social workers, worship leaders, men and women following God as a result of the impact Blue Skies had on their lives.

When trying to decide if your child is old enough to serve with you, it seems to work best when they are fairly independent in their daily activities (around four to five years old) but children of all ages are welcome to serve! If you have questions about your child/children serving with you, feel free to reach out. We are happy to talk it through with you! Email us at info@whereskiesareblue.org and we will give you a call!

Your child’s primary role at camp is to be a friend maker and help the other kids have fun! Your children participate in our gatherings and program activities with you. Our days typically begin around 8am and end around 9pm but there is plenty of free time throughout the day for your little ones to rest and have some down time.

Just a friendly reminder, each volunteer family will share a bedroom and one bathroom. (that means mom, dad and all the kiddos are sharing a room together - that might be the biggest challenge of camp but also one of the fondest memories you'll make as a family).

For the safety of our guests and volunteers, all children under 18 must be accompanied and supervised by their parent(s) at camp.

Parents who have children with special needs should contact our office before applying.

Please keep in mind that if your child has been struggling with making good choices or is having/recently had behavior problems at home and/or school, this is not the right season to bring them with you to serve at Blue Skies. If you have questions as to whether your child is “ready to serve”, please contact our office.

Volunteers will receive an email within a few days of applying to camp that includes all the details you need to know about camp from funding details, what to pack, info on childhood cancer, the camp schedule, and more!

Each camp has a volunteer host to answer questions before and during camp. Your volunteer host will call you to introduce themselves and help you get ready for camp!

The retreats are made possible through donations by our camp volunteers, individuals in the community, along with businesses and churches. It costs Blue Skies about $75,000 to host each camp. This covers the rental of the facilities, camp activities and supplies along with everything else needed to bring children with cancer and their families a week of hope, joy, and laughter!

The support volunteers give or raise not only helps offset the cost of the volunteer, but MOST IMPORTANTLY, the funds they raise allow children with cancer and their families to attend camp at no cost! We are super grateful for their support!

Details on the cost of each trip are on the retreat specific page. Support is due one week prior to camp.

As a domestic mission trip, volunteers give personally or raise their support for camp. We ask volunteers to use the Blue Skies online personalized giving campaign (FundraiseUp). Our staff will create a page for each volunteer upon their registration for camp. When volunteers self-fund their trip, we ask that they reach out to their friends and family through social media, calls, letters, etc. allowing others to know about their trip to Blue Skies so they can pray, learn about Blue Skies and have the opportunity to give directly to send a child with cancer and their family to camp. So many people are unable to serve at camp yet want to help and are glad to support others who can serve in their place!

Our goal is to bring down the cost of camp for volunteers. Costs are continuing to rise but we are doing all we can to hold and hopefully decrease the expense for volunteers. If you need help with funding, don't hesitate to contact us. We also have a limited number of partial scholarships available.

The question we get asked most often is, "Will it be sad?"

Blue Skies is actually one of the most joyful places you will ever go! The reason we have camp is heartbreaking, but once you get there, it is filled with smiles, hope, fun and laughter. The children who are sick get to be “free” from the hospital, their brothers and sisters get to spend uninterrupted time with their mom and dad, and parents find out they are not alone on their journey as they meet others who truly understand. We hope you won't let your fears or reservations hold you back from one of the best weeks you'll ever experience.

If you’re still not sure… click here.

We no longer require testing prior to camp. We do ask all volunteers and campers to refrain from attending camp if feeling ill or have a known exposure to an infectious disease. If you become ill at camp, please quarantine and notify staff right away.