"Books break the shackles of time. A book is proof that humans are capable of working magic." -Carl Sagan
We're Josh and Emma, and we need your help to work the magic of publishing a huge array of art and writing into a book that captures the joy of a summer spent at camp.
Each year, the youth of Camp Brave Trails create beautiful works of art as they spend the summer participating in programming and a community that cultivates their artistic self. From fiber arts to songwriting, at the end of the summer, hundreds of campers have created thousands of meaningful and insightful works that convey these experiences as both LGBTQ individuals and youth. This year, we offered campers the opportunity to submit those pieces of art for publication in the first Camp Brave Trails anthology! Campers from all five sessions submitted paintings, collages, poems, pictures, and more that they want to share with the world.
As camp volunteers, English major friends, and people passionate about the power of books, we're thrilled to become the publishers of this work. But we can't do it alone.
We've started this fundraiser to support the production and printing of this anthology of nearly 100 works into a book that Brave Trails campers and the greater community can have and hold. This publishing project began with a village of young artists and writers and can only thrive with a village of support from our community. 100% of funds donated here will go towards printing and distribution costs of the largest possible print run (we're starting with 500 print books, to ensure that every camper gets a copy) as well as the creation of an e-book to broaden the reach and accessibility of this work.
Help us give our campers the chance to put “Published author/painter/artist” in their bios. Now more than ever, Brave Trails campers deserve to know their art has a voice and their creativity an inherent value that should be celebrated.
We hope to have the book in the hands of campers in the summer of 2025, and in your hands shortly after! Stay tuned for fundraiser updates!
About us:
Josh (he/him) is a lover of all things sci-fi. As a high school English teacher, he has made it his life’s goal to inspire young people to both read and create written works of art.
Emma (she/her) works in independent publishing, local journalism, and digital communications. The highlight of her year is always volunteering with Brave Trails in the summer, doing silly crafts and facilitating an amazing camp experience for the youth.
We met in the English department at Widener University in 2015 and have been friends ever since. Our favorite book is Love in the Time of Cholera, and we enjoy drinking boba or eating Mexican food as we work on this book project in our free time.