At Camp Odayin, our mission is to provide fun, safe and supportive camp experiences and community building opportunities for young people with heart disease and their families.
Kids play. Worries rest. Fun happens.
Camp is Life-Changing
Our goal is to improve the quality of life, mental health, and overall well-being of children with heart disease and their families. We provide a fun and adventurous environment, while giving parents and children peace of mind knowing medical precautions are in place. Campers are engaged in empowering activities that improve their self-concept, self-confidence, independence, and social skills.
At Odayin, you are welcomed into a heart family. Members of the whole family benefit from the sense of community that comes with connecting with others who share similar health, emotional, and social concerns.
What We Value
- Celebrating Life – We play with purpose, create fun, and share hope.
- Commitment to Community – We remove barriers and build connections, knowing we are stronger together.
- Emotional Safety – We create an environment that honors mutual respect, trust and acceptance.
- Personal Growth – We try new things to build confidence and encourage gratitude.
Everyone is Welcome
We recognize that families of a child with heart disease manage additional emotional and economic stress. Our Pay-What-You-Can (PWYC) model for camp registrations supports our commitment to make our programs accessible to everyone in our community. There is a $50 registration fee per camper and there is always an option to pay $0.
We are committed to creating a safe space where campers, staff, and volunteers feel welcomed, respected, and valued. We are dedicated to promoting equity in our programming and in our organization. We welcome people of any race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status. We ask our Camp Odayin family and our entire community to join us in an ongoing commitment to reject hate, racism, and intolerance. If you see an opportunity where we can learn (or unlearn) we appreciate you bringing it to our attention.
We are an independent 501c3 nonprofit, unaffiliated with any hospital or parent organization. Many of the camp sites we rent for our programs hold religious values. We do not share or incorporate any religious practices into our camp programs. We lead with our hearts and our programs are shaped by The Odayin Way.
“My daughter said she made new friends and felt a sense of inclusion with same-aged peers at Camp Odayin. This is something she has not experienced in the school setting with same-aged female peers. It was so refreshing and heartwarming to hear her talk about feeling included and not left out.”
Parent of a 12 year old camper
Our Campers’ Special Hearts
The majority of our campers with heart disease were born with a congenital heart defect (CHD). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), congenital heart defects are the most common type of birth defect, affecting nearly 40,000 births in the United States each year. Watch the following video to learn more about CHD from our MN Medical Director and Mayo Clinic Pediatric Cardiologist Jon Johnson, M.D.
