Benefit market to raise funds for Camp Hayden in Idaho Falls

Jason and Kami Chapa are asking Idaho Falls to turn out for a free benefit market that could help Camp Hayden double what it raised last year, keeping the camp’s family adventures available for children with special needs and their parents.

The second annual Camp Hayden Benefit is set for April 18 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Park Avenue Grill, 3950 South Yellowstone Highway. Organizers say the event will be free to the public and will send all proceeds back to Camp Hayden, with more than 20 local vendors, kid activities, food and more than 70 raffle items planned throughout the day.

Camp Hayden carries a deeply personal mission. The Idaho Falls-based 501(c)(3) was founded in 2018 by Jason and Kami Chapa in honor of their son, Hayden Chapa, who died at age 3 from microlissencephaly, a rare congenital brain disorder. The camp was built to give children with special needs and their families the kind of adventure experiences Hayden enjoyed.

That mission took years of hands-on work. Jason and Kami Chapa spent three summers rebuilding a long-unused camp and making it wheelchair accessible, transforming the site into a place where more families could participate together. By July 2024, Camp Hayden had grown enough to host families of 20 children with special needs in a single weekend, the most the camp had ever hosted.

The organization’s reach now goes beyond summer camping. Earlier this month, Camp Hayden held a free Easter Adventure at Taylor’s Crossing in Idaho Falls for families with young children with special needs. Organizers said the sensory-friendly egg hunt featured more than 10,000 eggs, and they said the event drew more than 500 attendees the previous year.

For East Idaho families navigating disability and the cost of specialized recreation, Camp Hayden has become more than a weekend getaway. It has become a place built around connection, support and shared experiences, and Saturday’s fundraiser is meant to keep that model growing for the next round of families who need it.