Low Stress Summer Fundraiser

Be a Ray of Sunshine for Kinship and Grandfamilies

Low Stress Summer Fundraiser image

Can you imagine raising your grandkids on a fixed income and trying to explain why summer experiences aren’t in the budget?

For the kinship and grandfamilies supported by ISDD, that’s not a hypothetical. It’s reality.

School is almost out, and while most families are planning vacations, trips to the pool, and cookouts, grandparents raising their grandchildren are facing an entirely different summer.

They're wondering:

  • "How will I feed the kids without free school lunches?"
  • "Can I afford new clothes now that they’ve outgrown everything from last year?"
  • "How do I give them a real summer when there’s no money for extras?"

These are grandparents, aunts, and other relatives raising children without the support of the biological parent, often unexpectedly and on limited incomes. Many never expected to parent again, but stepped up out of love. Now, they’re doing their best every day with what little they have.

That’s the heart behind Family Fun Day and why it continues to matter so deeply.

Carol, a 72-year-old grandmother raising her two grandsons, had never been able to take them to a real arcade. “They see kids talk about stuff like that at school,” she said, “but I always told them maybe next year.”

Thanks to donors like you, next year finally came.

Carol and the boys spent a full afternoon at Main Event playing laser tag, eating pizza, and laughing until their stomachs hurt.

“I haven’t seen them smile like that in a long time,” she said. “It made me feel like I could finally say yes to something.”

You can give that feeling to more families this summer.

We’re aiming to raise $5,000 by June 30 to host this year’s Family Fun Day outing and provide summer essentials like groceries, new clothes, back-to-school supplies, and hygiene items to the families who need it most.

Here’s how you can help:

  • $25 provides a backpack full of back-to-school supplies for a child
  • $50 covers a full day of fun for a child
  • $100 provides clothing support for a child
  • $250 provides food for a grandparent-led household

Whether it’s a $10 gift or a $1,000 one, you can be the reason a child gets their first real summer memory. You can be the reason a grandparent breathes a little easier.