Eluna's Camp Mariposa Addiction Prevention and Mentoring Program for Youth Impacted by the Substance Use Disorder of a Family Member

Eluna provides targeted mentoring services to youth ages 9–13 at high risk for using opioids and becoming involved in the juvenile justice system. All youth have a family member with a substance use disorder (SUD) and are at high-risk for developing an SUD of their own. Camp Mariposa utilizes a group mentoring model to serve youth in both rural and urban locations. Camp Mariposa will prevent and reduce delinquency by delaying onset of the first use of drugs and alcohol, preventing or reducing involvement in the juvenile justice system, connecting program participants with trained adult mentors, creating a positive peer support network for program participants, and providing opportunities for youth and families to participate in positive social activities. The primary vehicle for the group mentoring will be free overnight camps offered six times a year for youth ages 9–13. These camp sessions offer traditional camp activities enhanced with evidence-based prevention curricula and activities that focus on boosting protective factors. Additional activities will be held for youth participants, their families, and the adult mentors in the months between camp weekends. A portion of the funding will be used to support existing Camp Mariposa locations in Irvine, KY; Philadelphia, PA; and Mercer County, WV. In addition, Eluna will expand the Camp Mariposa network to include a new location in Phoenix, AZ. Eluna will partner with WestCare Kentucky (Irvine), JFCS of Greater Philadelphia (Philadelphia), and Community Connections (Mercer County). Eluna will partner with a subawardee in Phoenix that has experience serving the Latino community. Eluna will also partner with substance use providers in each community. It is expected that 350 youth will be served through this grant. Three hundred of these youth will attend the camp weekends and be matched with trained adult mentors in a group setting. The remaining 50 youth served will be the younger family members who attend the additional family activities. Eluna intends for 210 trained adult mentors to support these youth at the camp weekends as well as activities in between camp weekends.