For a 24-year-old charity with plenty of national exposure, it’s hard to imagine that Camp Sunshine of Casco could be on the rise.

Camp Sunshine received a $50,000 donation from Hannaford supermarkets April 4 towards to help pay for expanding the headquarters on the shore of Sebago Lake.

Matt Hoidal, the camp’s executive director, said adding a second floor will give the organization more office and programming space.

“It was getting congested in here,” said Hoidal. He said the single-floor space was too cramped with the staff office, medical bay, assembly hall and resource rooms for kids and land space was limited, so the organization decided to build a second floor.

Hoidal said the new rooms will be tailored to suit specific age groups of children, such as a play house for tots and arts and craft space for children ages 9 to 12.

Camp Sunshine is a national charity based in Casco that provides free weeklong retreats for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

Hoidal said there are a number of charities that provide retreats for children with serious illnesses, but Camp Sunshine is the only one that focuses on the family. More than 16,000 guests have visited since the camp’s inception in 1984.

“It’s a magic you can’t explain unless you’ve been here,” said Joe Pappalardo, 80, of Raymond of the Camp Sunshine board of directors.

Camp Sunshine has a year-round staff of 12 people and enlists the aid of about 2,000 volunteers each year, according to Hoidal. These volunteers help with a variety of tasks, from college students who lend a hand with cooking and child care, to doctors and nurses who stay a week a time to help with medical care.

Construction on the expansion began in November and it is estimated the project will cost $1.2 million when it is completed in May.

Nate Sprague, communications specialist with Hannaford Brothers, said the money his company donated was raised last November at the ninth annual Hannaford Charity Auction held in Portland. Sprague said the Hannaford Charitable Foundation also provided money from the 2006 auction, bringing the donations for this expansion project from Hannaford to $100,000.

Hoidal said other donors for the project include Shaw Brothers Construction of Gorham, which contributed $250,000, and a plethora of individuals.

Sunshineexpansion1-3: Executive Director Matt Hoidal, in the tie and jacket, shows Nate Sprague of Hannaford supermarkets one of the new rooms being constructed at Camp Sunshine in Casco. Sprague was there to drop off a check for $50,000 for the expansion project.Sunshineexpansion1-3: Executive Director Matt Hoidal, in the tie and jacket, shows Nate Sprague of Hannaford supermarkets one of the new rooms being constructed at Camp Sunshine in Casco. Sprague was there to drop off a check for $50,000 for the expansion project.Sunshineexpansion1-3: Executive Director Matt Hoidal, in the tie and jacket, shows Nate Sprague of Hannaford supermarkets one of the new rooms being constructed at Camp Sunshine in Casco. Sprague was there to drop off a check for $50,000 for the expansion project.