In 2026, Bright Lights will mark a major milestone: 40 summers of hands-on learning. For four decades, we’ve watched students build rockets, code robots, paint murals, solve engineering challenges, and discover that science, art, and creativity go hand in hand.
As we approach this anniversary, we invite our community — individuals, families and businesses — to help us make our 40th summer truly extraordinary. Your support helps us reach more students, offer more scholarships and deepen the impact of our camps.
Bright Lights is more than summer camp. It is a place where curiosity becomes confidence, and learning becomes doing. Every donation helps ensure:
- Access for All: We aim to provide scholarships so any student can participate, regardless of financial background.
- High-Quality Experiences: Supplies, materials and specialized equipment (from robotics kits to art tools) raise the quality of every lesson.
- Sustainable Staffing: Funds help us attract and retain passionate teachers who pour energy into every camp.
By supporting Bright Lights, you’re investing in Lincoln’s future and creating a pipeline of thinkers, makers and problem solvers ready to tackle tomorrow’s challenges.
There are several ways you can get involved, whether you’re an individual or an organization, small or large. Donations of every size are tax-deductible and play a critical role in our mission.
- General Fund: Your gift to our General Fund allows us to allocate resources where they’re needed most — whether it’s scholarships, materials, staffing or special projects.
- Student Scholarships: Each scholarship is $300 and gives a student the ability to say “yes” to camp, expanding access to everyone in our community and bringing new voices into our community of learners.
- Camp Sponsorship: Sponsor an entire camp for $700! This is such a meaningful way to connect your name (or your organization’s name) with a specific STEAM experience. Camp sponsors help cover curriculum costs, supplies and teachers for a camp.
- Star Level Donors: Our Star Level donors are local businesses that give at a variety of different funding levels to support camp sponsorships and student scholarships.
By giving in any of these ways, you’re making a dual impact: You strengthen existing camps and ensure equitable access to camps for all students.
Want to be part of our 40th summer celebration? Here’s what to do next:
- Donate Online— You can choose one of our sponsorship levels or donate an amount of your choice.
- Sponsor a Camp — This option is especially meaningful if there’s a subject (e.g. robotics, art, engineering) you care about.
- Promote Us — Share our mission and fundraising campaign in your networks, newsletter or on Facebook or Instagram.
- Provide In-Kind or Material Support — If you have supplies, tools or technology (e.g. robotics kits, unused art materials, ad space) to donate that could benefit our camps, let us know!
In whichever way(s) works for you, we would love to collaborate with your business, foundation or family to make our 40th summer unforgettable.
This summer, we’re not just celebrating 40 summers of learning — we’re inviting new stories, new discoveries and new opportunities for our campers. Your generosity will ensure that generation after generation knows the joy of learning by doing.