About

Background

Being a child of a service member comes with its own unique challenges and culture—it’s a very specific lived experience, and one that can be tough and isolating. Oregon is one of five states without a major military installation, and many of our campers come from communities where they and their siblings are the only military children they know. OSS is currently fiscally sponsored by Tsuga Community Entrepreneurs. Our program grew from a partnership with the National Military Family Association through Operation Purple® Camp, and a desire to include families of veterans, the National Guard, and kids with other military connections. We serve Oregon’s military kids by building community, teaching resilience, and instilling pride in their heritage. We offer trauma-informed, wrap-around programming and we work hard to custom-tailor our camp to serve our kids.

Military Heritage

Many elements of camp relate to the military experience, culminating in a final day of military-themed rotations. We raise and lower the flag, follow our guidons, do service projects, and sing Taps at the end of each day. But it’s summer camp, not boot camp! We play games, we sing songs, we dance, we talk about our feelings, we are incredibly silly together, and we make life-long friendships. Read more about the military elements of camp:

Flag

We begin and end each day with an all-camp flag ceremony. Each cabin group gets a chance to serve as the Color Guard, raising or lowering the flag for the whole camp. Flag is an introspective time where campers reflect on their military identities.

Squads

Our participants are placed in age-based cabin cohorts or “squads” led by 1–2 counselors, often former campers. Squads must work together throughout the week to accomplish challenges and earn beads that mark their progress.

Guidons

At all times as they move around camp, squads are expected to carry their cabin flag / squad guidon (modeled after a military guidon). A guidon comes with a sense of responsibility and squad pride.

Beads

Each day we work to earn a Daily Mission bead: Personal Outreach, Environmental Stewardship, Selfless Service, and Community. Participants also earn Programming beads for workshops. There are additional Honor beads awarded for exemplary service and leadership among their peers. Beads are more than pieces of colorful plastic on a safety pin—they’re significant milestones of community engagement.

Wall of Honor

At registration guardians can submit a photo of campers’ military family member(s). In their squads, campers put all their photos on a poster together and share about their military connections. This OSS tradition kickstarts a week of squad bonding and helps establish the common ground of military identity—everyone at Oregon Summer Star “gets it” in one way or another.

Duties

Squads are assigned a rotating daily duty like Color Guard, table-setting, meal clean-up, or a campfire skit. Duties teach us teamwork, communication, and community responsibility.

Military Rotations

Our Thursday Military Rotations are the capstone event of OSS, when most of our military personnel visit site and interact with campers. Participants travel in squads to military-themed rotations where they are tasked with missions that require them to work together to complete tasks, take time to reflect on what it means to be military kids, and do community service projects. Participants are expected to support each other and work as a team, as any military unit would. Squads are scored on their communication, team collaboration, co-opetition (a healthy blend of competition / cooperation), and participation to earn their purple Community beads.

What sets us apart?

Camp Culture

Oregon Summer Star has worked hard to foster a culture that is, above all, safe! We value kindness, service, courage, leadership, learning and reflection. Most of our campers are returners and often report feeling like camp is their second home, or the holiday that resets their year—we all look forward to camp eagerly all year long. 50–75% of our counselors and senior staff are former participants in the program, with some members being a part of the program for over 17 years. ❤

Equity Purpose Statement

We at OSS are committed to creating a space where campers can be their most authentic selves while connecting with each other and the outdoors. We welcome participants and staff from all races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, religious backgrounds, abilities and nationalities in the hopes that we can honor and uplift the wide range of identities within the Oregon military community. You can read our Equity Policy here.