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Children's Grief Support Services 

Camp Erin Montgomery County

Camp Erin is an overnight weekend camp for children and teens, who are grieving the death of someone close to them.


Camp Erin Montgomery County 2025
Check Back Soon for 2025 Dates!

Who? 

Children and teens ages 6-17, who are grieving the death of someone close to them.

This opportunity is for those who have not previously attended Camp Erin. 

 

What? 

Campers participate in a wide range of activities including:

  • Sharing memories

  • Expressive arts

  • Trust and bonding activities

  • Campfire and drumming circle

  • Recreation and outdoor activities


When? 

In early May, Friday afternoon through Sunday afternoon. 

2025 dates to be announced soon!


Where? 

Bar-T Mountainside, 2914 Roderick Rd, Urbana, MD 21704.
​Round-trip transportation is provided to and from the
CaringMatters Cottage in Gaithersburg, MD.

Why? 

Camp Erin allows youth to: 

  • Tell their story in a safe environment

  • Process grief in healthy ways

  • Meet friends facing similar circumstances

  • Learn they are not alone

  • Build a toolbox of coping skills

  • Honor and memorialize loved ones

  • Have fun!
     

How? 

Camp Erin Montgomery County was created and is supported in part by The Eluna Network.

 

If you have questions, please contact Eva Cowen, 301-869-4673, evac@caringmatters.org.

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Sí su familia necesita ayuda para completer la aplicación, comuniquese con Maria J. Alvarez a su correo electronico; mariaja@caringmatters.org para poder ayudarle.​

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Interested in Volunteering?

Camp Erin Montgomery County depends on trained volunteers, who accompany and work with campers throughout the weekend. Meals and lodging are provided for all volunteers. Please consider applying to be a Camp Erin Big Buddy!

For information,

on Camp Erin Montgomery, contact Eva Cowen, 
301-869-4673 
evac@caringmatters.org

Download the Camp Erin Brochure

Thank you to Harriet Friedman for making beautiful, unique fleece blankets for each child and teen at Camp Erin!

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Experience Camp Erin Montgomery County

At Camp Erin Montgomery County, 50 campers participate in traditional camp fun combined with grief education and emotional support. A member of the national Eluna network of children’s grief support camps, Camp Erin Montgomery County provides friendship, comfort and hope to grieving children and empowers them with skills and tools to cope with their loss.

 

For three days and two nights, trained and caring volunteers lead groups, organized by age group, through interactive and introspective activities, such as therapeutic art activities, facilitated discussions and remembrance activities. While they explore their grief and learn essential coping skills, they are also able to make friends with peers who are also grieving. The transformative weekend helps them move forward in their grief journey with the knowledge that they are not alone.

 

“It’s amazing to see how quickly the kids bond,” said Eva Cowen, Director of Camp Erin Montgomery County. “From the youngest campers, away from home for the first time, to the reluctant teenagers, they become fast friends after realizing their shared experiences with grief and loss.”

 

“The magic starts the first night of camp when we do a memory wall with pictures to remember their loved ones,” Ms. Cowen continued. “You see kids, strangers a few hours earlier, comforting and supporting each other like family. These are the moments that touch our hearts and motivate us to continue doing this important work.”

 

Camp Erin, a core program of CaringMatters, is offered free of charge, thanks to the phenomenal teamwork of our volunteers and generous support from major funders, including Bar-T, The Dick and Jody Vilardo Foundation, Eluna and The George Preston Marshall Foundation. In addition, many individuals in our community contribute monetary gifts or donate goods, services, or time to support Camp Erin Montgomery County.

 

While most of the costs associated with providing a weekend at Camp Erin for a grieving child or teen are offset through generous support and donations, the experience itself is priceless -- the gift of a lifetime that helps grieving children and teens gently explore their feelings and learn to process the changes in their life due to their loss. Program costs also cover limited year-round programming, information and referral to other grief support services for the whole family and reunion activities.

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Thank you to our major Camp Erin sponsors:

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Camp Erin CM Logo.jpg

The George Preston Marshall Foundation

Camp Erin Montgomery 2023
Thank you to Audrey Rothstein, our Camp Erin Photographer

Camp Erin Montgomery 2022 

Camp Erin Montgomery 2019 

Thank you to our talented volunteer photographers, Audrey Rothstein and Jim Griffin, for documenting the magic, the impact and  the healing spirit of Camp Erin!

Camp Erin Montgomery 2018

Video by Montgomery County Council Television

Camp Erin Montgomery 2018 Photo Montage

Thank you to our volunteer photographers,

Audrey Rothstein, Joe Richardson, Marvin Sirkis and Tomy Pinto,

for capturing the magic of Camp Erin 2018!

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