UCLA Camp Kesem First Annual Food and Wine Festival

In order to appreciate the Food and Wine Festival put on by Camp Kesem you need to who they are and what they represent.

Camp Kesem UCLA was founded by students at Stanford University in 2000. UCLA chapter was founded in 2004 by UCLA students and Camp Kesem Stanford Alumni. They support children in the greater Los Angeles community by providing two week-long summer camp experiences and year-long peer support. Camp Kesem at UCLA is operated by over 85 student volunteers and serve over 230 campers ages 6-16 per year. They strive to continue enhancing the quality and experience of their camp with their unique camper to student ratio, which is maintained between 2:1 and 3:1. Thus creating lasting bonds between counselors and campers to foster a safe and welcoming environment for all participants.

Camp Kesem is a nationwide community, driven by passionate college students that are natural leaders, they support children through and beyond their parents Cancer.

They serve children who have lost a parent to cancer, have a parent undergoing cancer treatment, or whose parent is a cancer survivor. Let that sink in, they help children whose parents are fighting for their lives. This is the most difficult time for a child, they are terrified of losing a parent and Camp Kesem provides a source of comfort and safe haven for these children. Camp Kesem runs over 80 weeks of fun, action-packed and 100% free-of-charge camps from coast-to-coast every summer. Serving children ages 6 to 16, their campers experience a warm and loving environment with other children who have similar life experiences. This community, as most of their campers experience, provides the foundation for confidence building, improved communication skills, enhanced life outlook and attitude

UCLA Camp Kesem held a thrilling festival with an abundance of local food vendors, beverages and entertainment. The First Annual Food and Drink Festival featured local brewery's, wines and a variety of locally sourced foods to taste. The magic of this evening consisted of every vendor present was from our own backyard, the community was supported and promoted. From local bands playing into the wee hours of the night, to the fabulous food.

If you weren't able to join our local LA residents to enjoy delectable bite size morsels produced by our local restaurants , don't fret! They are having another fundraiser in May, Make the Magic. All proceeds benefit Camp Kesem at UCLA, which supports children through and beyond their parent's cancer by providing them free week-long summer camps.

If you're unable to attend any of the events please donate to this worthy cause, it's for the children who need to find a little bit of piece of happiness however short it might be. Thank you Camp Kesem for organizing fundraisers to keep hope alive.