Portland-based nonprofit Ukandu's The Loft is a 21,000-square-foot community center for children with cancer and their families, located in Portland's Lair Neighborhood that opens on Oct. 21, 2026. A mother is shown helping her son ascend a two-story climbing wall inside The Loft in this undated, provided photo.
Courtesy Ukandu
Since 1986, the Portland-based nonprofit Ukandu has offered a week-long, free camp for children with cancer, ages 8 to 18, and their siblings. In 2022, Ukandu began offering a free week of camp on the Oregon coast for the entire family.
Ukandu is now about to expand its programming year-round with the opening of The Loft on Oct. 21. The roughly 22,000-square-foot community center in the Lair Hill neighborhood of South Portland includes a two-story climbing wall, an arts and crafts room, a lounge for caregivers and other amenities. Free mental health counseling for children, adolescents and parents will also be available on-site, along with support groups and upcoming workshops on financial literacy and cooking.
Jason Hickox started as a volunteer with the organization as a camp counselor in 1988 and is today the CEO of Ukandu. Shauna Lugar is a mother whose 8-year-old son, Mason, has brain cancer and attended Camp Ukandu for the first time this year with his older brother, Avery. Hickox and Lugar join us, along with the mother of a 16-year-old daughter who is a brain cancer survivor, to share their hopes for The Loft.
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