Statements

Mission

Our mission is to serve our Gold Star & First Responder families left behind after the loss of their hero. Fallen Heroes Family Camp was developed and operates in Nashville TN. Here we want families to gather and find solace and support, experience common interests, and take steps to gain focus on life again. We will have different program/experiences throughout the year, they will include, music by having songwriters sit down with a family member and create a song from their experiences. Maybe an outdoor adventure, recreation, relaxation & social interactions with other affected families. There will be events around the city and support from caring individuals. The ultimate goal is to help strengthen the family after a loss, help children understand their opportunities and potential and give all members of the family of all ages including the immediate family members a positive outlook for the future.

Background

Fallen Heroes Family Camp was a dream of one of the three owners of the original working horse farm where camp used to be held, JML Farms in Springfield, Tn.. Al Stein was a Vietnam veteran and he was the founder of the organization. He always knew he wanted to do something for his brothers and sisters in the service, using the farm as a place for solace. While discussing this with his partners and a group of others, a friend, was in attendance and mentioned that after her husband lost his life serving our country, she and her two small boys had a really hard time adjusting to their new reality. She was invited to a horse ranch in the Montana with her boys at the insistence of her friend. Once there, she had noticed an almost immediate difference in her boys demeanor. There was a spiritual connection with the horses, a calm, it was very emotional to see happening. It was a very healing experience for her and her boys, a" family" experience. So, the rest is history, from her story, Fallen Heroes Family Camp found their mission to serve Gold Star families through equine assisted therapy. As years progressed being in music city, it was only natural to add music as a healing tool to our activities. Songwriters of Nashville come and write songs with the surviving members of the family. It is quite special!! In 2019 we lost founder Al Stein to cancer. Since his death, the JML Farms where we held all of our events had been sold. Because of this, we had to shift our original mission to accommodate our needs, so we now put together different kind of events throughout the year to still include all family members and ages as well as First Responders and their families too. There will be fun and interesting events within Nashville TN and surrounding areas.

Impact

By standing up for our Military and First Responder families, you are helping to support the emotional needs of families grieving the loss of a loved one who valiantly sacrificed their lives for our country. Your generous donations to Fallen Heroes Family Camp allows us to host Gold Star & First Responder families to gather and share their common experiences, to focus on the future, and begin to move on with their lives. Your support means we can continue to give children an opportunity to spend time working through confusing emotions with different interactions & events and music therapy, learning coping skills and finding that they are emotionally stronger than they ever knew they were. I can tell you firsthand how the surviving parents feel and the comfort they have when they see their children managing their grief and just being kids.
"When my son's father was killed , he was still in my womb. Since he was born, he has been to one memorial service after another, watching me get a folded flag in honor of his father. He is at the age now where he is expressing frustration, not knowing where his daddy is. He is too young for clinical therapy and that is not something I want for him at this time, so coming to Fallen Heroes Family Camp is a great way for him to be with other children who lost their daddy or mommy and not feel singled out or different." Gold Star mom 2019.

"There are many organizations that will help those who return, but who helps the families of those that do not return? I feel better knowing that Fallen Heroes Family Camp is there for my family should the worst happen." Marine serving in Afghanistan

Needs

Fallen Heroes Family Camp is free to our Gold Star and First Responder families who lost a loved one in service to America. All activities, food, lodging and a portion of transportation if needed are provided to participants. Fallen Heroes Family Camp offers to include immediate and sometimes extended family members to attend an event. Applicant's that are chosen for events are according to our budget for the year. In the past we had a dedicated facility free to us to hold events. Since 2019 due to death of our founder & the sale of JML farms., we now have to hold events at different venues and that is an added expense, as well as lodging that we didn't have to incur since we first started. This limits the amount of families we can include in each event, and our purpose is to include as many families together as possible. That is so they can bond and freely talk to each other, how losing their Hero has affected their lives, and maybe they won't feel left out and forgotten! We want the kids to feel empowered and safe to just be able to see their potential, and for the spouses to feel free to bond as well, in a non clinical and forced environment. We want our Families to have fun and forget about their daily stresses and burdens since their Hero's have paid the ultimate sacrifice.

CEO Statement

Each time I have a conversation with a spouse of a Fallen Hero, I ask what else do they think Fallen Heroes Family Camp can offer to them and their families. I am constantly told that what we are doing is very special. I have been told that there is not much out there that includes the entire immediate & extended family members, like the parents, sisters and brothers or aunts and uncles and cousins. We also allow younger children, I am told most of the other organizations that are child related, tell them the child must be 8 years old and up. We allow younger children because there is a family member present as well as our many volunteers at all events. The Gold Star & First Responder Families sometimes feel left out and forgotten. I am proud that we can offer some solace and bring hope, healing and a little happiness to our Heroes loved ones left behind.

Service Categories
Primary Category:	Community Improvement, Capacity Building  - Single Organization Support
Secondary Category:	Youth Development  - Camp Fire
Tertiary Category:	Human Services  - Family Services