Camp Care

 
 
 
 

Two night ago, my older boys participated in a camp wide activity with two cabins of children ages 6-8 who have been struck by cancer. Some are in remission, others currently in treatment, others are the siblings. Camp Care has been coming to Lurecrest for over 20 years. They bring their team of doctors, nurses, goofy clowns w big hats, musicians and child life specialist to create a week of camp for these sick kids...a week where a bald head is not glanced at twice...a week where everyone in your cabin is receiving some type of medicines....a week that allows these kids to do what cancer often robs them of...being children.

I love Camp Care. I love their energy. I love their staff. They all have a story. Many of the staff have lost a child to cancer or are cancer survivors themselves. They bring a huge dose of reality to our summer yet with such joy. I love seeing these bald kids, not hooked up to IV's but swimming in the pool, singing goofy songs, eating ice cream.

During one of the music times....a nurse, who I now consider a friend, was telling me about the different kids and all their stories. It took everything in me not to loose it. It was evening, the sun was setting behind the mountains, all the kids were lining up doing the "locamotion" around the chapel...a typical camp summer evening, and I was allowed access to parts of the stories of these kids, it really was heartbreaking. One little boy has had cancer since he was "months old," another the treatment caused his eye to fall down into his cheek (he has been on hospice for three years now....and is a star here as he has survived the odds once again), another the treatment has grossly stunted his growth. As I looked around the chapel that night, I was struck at the resilence of these childrens hearts. They are not letting cancer destroy them...not who they really are. I also deeply mourned at how fast they have had to grow up and the experiences they have had to endure at such a young age.

I am thankful that my boys will be exposed to Camp Care and to see that hard things happen but there is joy in it. I hope it will sew on their hearts a knowledge that this world can not be all there is...it is too painful. I hope it will point them to Jesus to help make sense of so much suffering. I love seeing them with these kids...they have no clue they are different...they have not even asked about the boy with the drooped eye (and they have seen him)....they just see them all as kids. Keller told me that the camp care campers were his favorite so far...when I asked why, he said "because they really have fun." wow....there is alot to be learned watching these kids.