Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form

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Organization Name: Happy Trails for Kids
Legal Name (if Different): N/A
Also Known As: N/A
Mailing Address: 2525 Ocean Park Blvd, Ste 104
City: Santa Monica
State: CA
Postal Code: 90405
Main Phone: 310-452-7979
Main Fax: N/A
Organization Website: https://www.happytrailsforkids.org
Employer ID Number: 95-4453586
Organization Tax Status: 501(c)3

Proposal Information

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Today’s Date: March 28, 2025
Requested Amount: $10,000

Project Title: Happy Trails for Kids: Overnight Summer Camp Program 2026
Project Description:

Happy Trails for Kids provides transformative experiences for foster youth in Southern California through overnight camps and year-round programming. For the past 16 years, we have run an Overnight Summer Camp for multiple one-week sessions each summer, which has often been the first introduction foster youth have with Happy Trails’ overall program. Each year, we have rented camp facilities, bringing in our trained staff and programming to complement the traditional camp activities on-site such as swimming, archery, horseback riding, canoeing, hiking, stargazing, and more.

Over time, the number of youth interested in attending our camps has grown immensely, with our waitlist far exceeding the number of Campers we could accept. Additionally, the logistics of renting facilities each year presented more challenges. As a long-standing partner of the LA County Department of Child & Family Services, we worked with the Board of Supervisors to identify available space that could be repurposed as a permanent location for our camp program. After 2.5 years, our hard work paid off and in January 2025, the County bequeathed a 135-acre property and facility that had been used by the County as a substance rehabilitation center. We are currently in a public phase of a capital campaign to revitalize and retrofit this property to meet our program needs.

We believe that any youth experiencing foster care should have access to the excitement, adventure, and self-reliance found from being in the great outdoors, as well as the friendships and memories made from a cherished childhood experience like summer camp. Our request through this opportunity is to support our transition from our camp program as it exists today to one that will be a premier model in the country offering access to nature, recreation, and important extracurricular experiences for hundreds more foster youth each year.

Total Project Budget: $1,663,616

Other Funding
Sources For The Project (Committed & Potential): Current fundraising efforts are heavily focused on the capital campaign to renovate and prepare our permanent location in Acton, CA, where we plan to deliver our first summer camp sessions in 2026. Funds secured or being sought from the following will be applied towards our Overnight Summer Camp Program in 2026: County of Los Angeles – committed California Natural Resources Agency: Youth Community Access Grant – pending American Camp Association: Character at Camp Initiative – potential Ralph M. Parsons Foundation McGee Family Foundation Sky Ranch Foundation Clif Family Foundation Kathryn B. McQuade Foundation Robert Nelson Foundation US Bank Foundation The Felix Organization Carrie Estelle Doheny Foundation Johnny Carson Foundation Goodwin Family Memorial Trust Tailwinds Foundation

Project Duration: January 1, 2026 – September 30, 2026
Geographical Area Served: One hundred percent of our Campers are experiencing foster care and are considered a vulnerable and low-income population. The vast majority (77%) come from Los Angeles County, with others coming from surrounding counties such as San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange, Kern, and Ventura.
Age Group To Be Served: Campers range from ages 7-15, with many becoming Junior Leaders through ages 16-17.

Contact Information

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Contact Prefix (Mr,Mrs etc.): Ms.
Contact First Name: Lindsay
Contact Last Name: Elliott
Contact Title: Executive Director
Contact Phone: 310-452-7979
Contact Email: Lindsay@happytrailsforkids.org