Trailways Camps awarded $20,0000 grant from Golisano Foundation to grow operations, outreach to adults with special needs and their caregivers
Trailways Camps, Inc. provides camping experiences for adults with unique support needs and overnight respite for their caregivers. Trailways Camps is honored to receive a grant of $20,000 from the Golisano Foundation to increase staff capacity for reaching these adults and their caregivers. The Golisano Foundation is one of the nation’s largest foundations dedicated to supporting programs for people with intellectual disabilities.
Jerry Miller, co-founder and board chair said, “We are grateful to the https://golisanofoundation.org/ for this generous grant. Approximately 1,000 adults exit from special education services in the five-county area each year and have few opportunities for participation in community life. The Golisano Foundation grant will enable us to add staff capacity for reaching out to the adults exiting special education services, enabling them to participate in the unique camping activities we provide.”
Jamie Senkeleski, Trailways Camps executive director said, “Overnight camping experiences provided by Trailways Camps help the participants continue to grow through continued peer connection, introduction to new members of the community, learning about healthy lifestyle activities in an overnight setting where appropriate personal supports are provided. The heart connection is the focus on enabling participants to bring their unique histories and traditions to a special place where they are celebrated for who they are and challenged to take the next steps in their personal growth journey. Every camper who has participated at Trailways Camps has expressed a desire to return on the satisfaction surveys completed at the end of each camp session.”
The Golisano Foundation is one of the largest private foundations in the U.S. dedicated to making the world a better place for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The Foundation is devoted to opening doors to opportunity, changing negative perceptions and stereotypes and forging unprecedented partnerships to ensure individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities have pathways to personal dignity, independence, and the best possible expression of their abilities and talents throughout their lifetimes. Founded in 1985 by Tom Golisano — entrepreneur, philanthropist, civic leader and founder of Paychex, Inc. — the Foundation “imagines the possibilities,” advocating for families, fighting for their dignity, and giving people with IDD the opportunity to thrive in their communities. With more than $120 million in gross assets, it awards about $3 to $5 million annually to non-profit organizations in Western New York and Southwest Florida.
Trailways Camps were founded in 2007 by the Miller Family in honor their sons Robert and Benjamin, born with rare disease and resulting progressive, multi-system disabilities. Thirty camps were operated in Texas through the Miller’s donor advised fund grants to specialty service providers. Forty camps have been provided in Southwest Florida since initiation in 2012. In 2021 the Millers made the decision to establish a non-profit organization, TrailwaysCamps, Inc. EIN 88-2818905, with a focus on future sustainability. A camp director was employed and has successfully directed camp operations since 2022. Along with raising a family of four children, Sharon and Jerry Miller were successful professionals with experience leading organizations in the private, governmental and non-profit sectors. Mrs. Miller directed community placements programs in Michigan for four years before moving out into the community to direct comprehensive community programs serving adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities for 10 years. As parents of children who participated in special education services through their early 20s, they also directly experienced the joys, challenges, and collaboration needs for leading them into participation in community life.