Camp Wakchazi: Sibling Bereavement Camp

Camp Wakchazi is a summer camp dedicated to addressing the needs of bereaved siblings. It is an initiative of Palliative Medicine and Supportive Care at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

Campers are encouraged to make new friends and share their experiences while taking time to heal in a safe, supportive environment.

Camp Wakchazi 2023

Dates: June 10-16, 2023

Location: Sharpsburg, PA

(Video shot pre-COVID)

Volunteer Counselors Needed!

Volunteer counselors are needed for this year’s Camp Wakchazi.

This opportunity is open to college students in any field, but would be particularly valuable to students in:

  • Nursing
  • Pre-medicine
  • Social Work
  • Education
  • Therapeutic Recreation
  • Child Life
  • Occupational Therapy
  • Physical Therapy

Volunteers gain hands-on, diverse experience working with children. Volunteers will:

  • Facilitate a variety of interventions independently for individual campers and small groups in a supervised environment.
  • Lead groups, social and emotional interventions, outdoor activities, and programming through a recreation lens.
  • Be directly supervised by an interdisciplinary team from UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh (social work, child life, music therapy, art therapy, & medical providers).

Interested volunteers should contact Melanie Szigethy at 412-748-1596 or melanie.szigethy@upmc.edu.