Brave Trails 2024 Impact Report
WHAT A MILESTONE YEAR 2024 HAS BEEN FOR BRAVE TRAILS!
We proudly celebrated our 10th summer of camp, creating spaces where LGBTQ+ youth can thrive, connect, and lead. This year, we hosted 7 weeks of camp in California and New York, and a 7-day backpacking adventure on the West Coast. Our reach grew further with family camp programs in both Los Angeles, California and Atlanta, Georgia, welcoming families from across the country to celebrate connection and diversity.
Through it all, we’ve remained steadfast in our mission: awarding $135,000 in scholarships to ensure finances never stand in the way, providing LGBTQ-affirming therapy to over 40 youth, and taking major strides toward our Forever Home breaking ground on our first building. As we look ahead to 2025, we’re dreaming even bigger—with plans to launch a full 6-day camp session in Georgia, expand year-round programming, and serve 400+ campers. None of this would be possible without your unwavering support. Together, we are building a future where every LGBTQ+ youth feels empowered, valued, and inspired.
As we gear up for our next decade of programming, we kindly invite you to consider making a tax-deductible contribution to support our work and impact. Whether through a one-time donation or becoming a monthly donor, your generosity will help us continue making a positive difference.
Thanks to your unwavering support, we've had another incredible year of programming:
River (he/him)
Joining us for his fourth summer, River came back more ready than ever to be a leader in this space and take in everything that Brave Trails had to offer. As you’d hear him say, nobody loves Passion to Action (PTA) like River loves Passion to Action, and that was obvious from the very first day of programming. River jumped right in to their PTA group about harm reduction, something he works on within his community outside of camp, and helped lead his project to educate the rest of camp on harm reduction principles and practices. Outside of PTA, River was constantly engaging other campers and making sure everyone felt included and welcomed in the community. Post camp, River has chosen to work with his PTA group on continuing the work on harm reduction. Additionally, he has been chosen to be a member of our first ever Brave Trails camper board which aims to get a camper perspective on important issues and changes that we can make to Brave Trails.
Brave Trails hosted its first Family Camp weekend in Georgia in April 2024 and welcomed families from 8 different states. This marked our first formal program in the Southeast. Families participated in classic camp activities such as archery, rock wall, arts and crafts, and a campfire, as well as workshops and fun evening programs. Brave Trails is excited to continue our growth in Georgia in 2025 with another Family Camp weekend and our first-ever full Summer Camp session in the Southeast.
Remiel (any/all)
Remiel has been coming to camp for 7 summers, starting as a camper, and is a shining example of what it means to step into queer adulthood and truly “make it like camp”. Outside of camp, Remiel does a lot of work in the disability activism scene- especially around topics of neurodiversity, and this summer he got to bring that experience into camp in a brand new way as our very first one on one to a camper.
This camper came to us last summer and needed some more support than we had to offer, but this summer we worked with their parents and brought Remiel on board to work directly with this camper to support their needs while at camp. Whether that was stepping out of programming when the camper was having some tics, offering support when the camper needed to talk, or just meeting the camper where they were at- Remiel was always there. Remiel is a prime example of who our staff are and what our campers can grow up to be: a fierce advocate for all, a supportive staff member, and a pioneer when it comes to making camp accessible to everyone.
For our 10th summer of camp, Brave Trails wanted to create a tee that truly reflected the heart of our community. Over the past ten years, we’ve watched our campers and staff grow into courageous leaders, and we wanted to celebrate that journey. We collaborated with queer artist Lisa Congdon to design two meaningful shirts:
The camper shirt celebrates queer joy with the powerful motto, “Queer Joy is an Act of Resistance,” symbolizing Brave Trails as a beacon of hope and resilience for LGBTQ+ youth.
The staff shirt honors the inner child work that comes with volunteering, featuring the motto, “Be the Person You Needed When You Were Younger.”
Both shirts were printed by Trans Printing Co, a trans-owned printing shop, and made available to the public during Pride season! These shirts aren’t just apparel—they’re a celebration of our community’s spirit, strength, and commitment to creating spaces where LGBTQ+ youth can thrive.
