At Camp Fire, we welcome everyone.

Today, we’re excited to share two small pieces of a large project. Earlier in the spring, in the wake of unprecedented activism and our program cancellations, our team had an opportunity to devote time into implementing changes we wanted to see. This large project is an overall movement towards a more inclusive Camp Fire Central Puget Sound. These two pieces are simple: a new and expanded Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement, and a new Land Acknowledgement. Both of these additions are excellent jumping off points in helping us hold ourselves accountable to ensure that we are fulfilling our Mission.

The beginning of our Mission, which reads that “we inspire and enable youth of all backgrounds,” will always be our priority. So, we’re not changing much of that here! We’re emphasizing what, and how, we can do better. With our expanded Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement, we will be highlighting multiple benchmarks that serve as commitments. These goals will help make our programs and organization more accessible, especially to our black, indigenous and people of color youth and families; communities that have historically been underserved in the Summer Camp world.

The Land Acknowledgement recognizes the history of the first peoples of Vashon Island; the Duwamish,  the Suquamish, and the Puyallup tribes. Camp Sealth resides on unceded ancestral lands, and we are prioritizing honoring our Native participants, families, and their communities. The name Sealth is a namesake from a Duwamish and Suquamish chief, Chief Si’ahl. The general Land Acknowledgement recognizes our use of the land and name, and honors the history and namesake.

This Land Acknowledgement along with our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion statement reaffirms our commitment to creating a better program, where all can feel seen and heard. When we recognize where we are and how we got there, we can use that to guide us where we need to go.

An important thing to note here: This work is dynamic. It will always be a moving target. Creating equity will never be a finished task. We’ll never be able to clap our hands together and exclaim: “We’ve done it! What now?” All we can do is press on and continue holding ourselves accountable. There is still so much more work to do, and we are excited to get back to it! Our team will be back with more updates to our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work soon.

Find our new DEI Statement and Land Acknowledgement here