Camp Braveways
Camp Braveways Camp Programs · About this organization
What you get
Your child gets free overnight camp each June with volunteer nurses on site, and brothers and sisters get their own overnight camp. Teen camp and a family camp are free too. You pay nothing.
How to start
Your care team starts the request. Ask them to fill in the request form with you.
Good to know
- Camp Rainbow is now called Camp Braveways; it is the same camp.
- Each application is talked over with your hospital contact before your child is accepted.
The details, as published
Seven free St. Louis-area camp and year-round tracks (the camp formerly called Camp Rainbow) for children with cancer or blood-related disease treated at the St. Louis children's hospitals, their siblings, teens and families, with volunteer nurses and a pediatric hematology-oncology medical director.
What help you may get
Camps And Retreats
Free oncology, sibling, teen, and family camp admission
Cost-free overnight, day, teen, and family camp experiences adapted to track-specific ages and audiences.
Noncash help · Recurring
Can cover
- oncology overnight camp
- SIBS overnight camp
- Teen Camp
- Family Camp
- Caretaker and Me day camp
- All programs are free.
- Track timing ranges from annual sessions to quarterly TNT events and multiple Camp-In visits.
Peer And Emotional Support
Teen and family peer connection
Camp and quarterly TNT events help teens, siblings, parents, and patients maintain supportive connections.
Noncash help · Recurring
Can cover
- peer connection
- quarterly teen events
- parent connection
- TNT holds quarterly half- and full-day events.
Wishes And Family Experiences
Hospital Camp-In recreation
Camp-style recreation is brought to oncology floors and treatment clinics at three St. Louis-area hospitals multiple times each year.
Noncash help · Recurring
Can cover
- hospital-based camp recreation
- Held multiple times throughout the year.
Check the main eligibility rules
Diagnosis
B-ALL is in scope. B-ALL is both pediatric cancer and a blood-related disease and fits the published scope.
Age
Age 0 to age 20, measured at service date.
- Track-specific ages: Caretaker and Me 4–6; Oncology Overnight 6–13; SIBS 7–17; Teen 14–18; Family Camp infant–18; TNT 14–20; Camp-In all ages in treatment/inpatient.
Treatment status
Newly Diagnosed, Active Treatment, Maintenance Treatment, Post Treatment, Survivorship
- Camp-In requires the child to be in treatment or inpatient; other tracks use diagnosis and hospital-referral rules.
- Applications are discussed with the family's hospital contact before eligibility is determined.
- All camp programs are free.
Where you live and where your child is treated
Where your family lives
Residence coverage is not published clearly; confirm with the program.
- The organization says it serves St. Louis and surrounding regions, but does not publish a residence boundary.
Where your child is treated
Treatment must be connected to: SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital; St. Louis Children's Hospital; Mercy Hospital.
- Campers are referred or treated through one of the three named St. Louis pediatric oncology departments.
Where the service, camp, stay, or experience happens
- Camp Sunnyhill — Camp venue only. — Venue for oncology and SIBS overnight camps on the current page.
- St. Louis-area Family Camp and Teen activities — Event destinations only. — Family Camp hotel and rotating teen activities in St. Louis.
- Three St. Louis-area pediatric oncology hospitals — Hospital service sites; eligibility is separately captured as a treatment-location rule. — Camp-In delivery at Cardinal Glennon, St. Louis Children's, and Mercy.
How to get started
Does a social worker or care team need to start it? Yes. Ask your child’s social worker or care team to begin the request.
Who can start: Parent Or Guardian, Healthcare Team
- Ask the child's treatment team at Cardinal Glennon, St. Louis Children's, or Mercy about the appropriate Camp Braveways track and referral.
- Complete the official CampBrain application.
- Discuss the application and eligibility with Camp Braveways staff.
- Determine eligibility and communicate next steps.
Ways to apply or ask
- Online Portal · Open form or page — JavaScript-only CampBrain registration portal.
- Hospital Workflow — Talk with the hospital treatment team; eligibility is reviewed with the hospital contact.
Documents to prepare
The program does not publish a document checklist. Ask before gathering paperwork.
Availability and timing
| Program | Active |
|---|---|
| Applications | Call To Confirm |
| Funding or space | Not Published |
| Application window | Not Published |
| Last checked | Sep 29, 2026 |
- The live 2026 site links a REGISTER FOR CAMP portal; the portal needs JavaScript and an account, so which tracks are taking applications now cannot be read.
- Summer camps run in June; Family Camp is usually the third week of October and Teen Camp in fall or early winter.
- Current dates and deadlines are not published on the static site.
Limitations and things to confirm
- Restricted to patients/referrals through Cardinal Glennon, St. Louis Children's Hospital, or Mercy pediatric oncology.
- Current session dates and application details are gated or unpublished.
- Track-specific age and audience rules differ; choose the correct track with the hospital team.
- Confirm current session dates, deadlines, portal questions, forms, and signatures.
- Does any residence boundary apply in addition to the three-hospital treatment/referral restriction?
- GPT Pro run56 (2026-09-25): Obtain the current track descriptions and registration requirements, including session dates, medical forms and signatures.
- GPT Pro run56 (2026-09-25): Does a parent apply directly, or must the hospital team initiate the request? The old how_to_start and parent-submitted steps need reconciliation.
- GPT Pro run56 (2026-09-25): Do the named three-hospital restriction, ages 0–20 and any residence boundary still apply after the rebrand?
Official sources
Program details were last verified Sep 29, 2026. Availability can change, so check the official program before applying.
- Camps · checked Aug 27, 2026
- FAQ · checked Aug 27, 2026
- Camp Rainbow / Camp Braveways · checked Aug 27, 2026
- CampBrain · checked Aug 27, 2026
- Year Round Programs · checked Aug 27, 2026