Liberty Outdoors, parent company of Little Guy Trailers, is donating a Little Guy Max valued at $20,000 to KOA Care Camps. The trailer will be at the Care Camps live auction on the final day of the KOA Annual Convention in Fort Worth, Texas, being held Nov. 12-15.
“We will be forever grateful to Liberty Outdoors for their generous donation of an amazing Little Guy Max to help us raise money,” said Karen McAndrew, executive director of KOA Care Camps and owner of Cardinal/Ottawa South KOA Holiday in Canada.
“The funds will allow us to send more children with cancer to the 133 oncology camps we support,” said McAndrew. “These camps provide a life-changing experiences to sick kids and their families, allowing them to have fun, make friends with others that have gone through similar challenges, and help them heal their souls.”
In a statement, Godfrey Mendes and Joe Kicos, who co-founded Liberty Outdoors in 2017, said they are “incredibly excited to be teamed up with KOA Care Camps.”
“It is a wonderful organization, and we relish the opportunity to contribute to their mission of making a difference in the lives of children with cancer,” said Mendes and Kicos. “As an outdoor company, we sincerely appreciate the dedication KOA shows in providing kids with outdoor activities to help them heal and enjoy the freedom of the outdoors. We hope our involvement in the Care Camps program can help inspire a new generation of children to truly enjoy the outdoors as much as we do.”
McAndrew said expenses for these specialized camps continue to skyrocket, with the average cost for a child for a week is now $1,800. “As the result of Liberty Outdoors’ big heart and compassion, this gift will have a huge impact on the individuals who get to go to camp,” she said.
“When the folks at KOA approached us about getting involved at Care Camps, we couldn’t say ‘yes’ fast enough,” said Chris Baum, chief brand officer for Liberty Outdoors. “I know firsthand that cancer is a family disease that makes these camps so special, not only to the kids but their parents, too.
“I’m not sure our company has been involved with something as important in our history and it’s my hope that the entire Little Guy community makes a commitment to supporting KOA Care Camps on any level they can,” Baum continued.
Since 1984, when the KOA Owners’ Association created KOA Care Camps, more than $13 million has been raised so kids can attend camp free of charge. In 2017, $1.15 million in operating and capital grants was disbursed serving 42,000 people.