This week’s memory comes from Kathryn Graves, a longtime Camp Sunshine volunteer and board member. Kathryn currently serves as a Unit Head during Teen Week at summer camp.

Lake Burton Day! Just the phrase made our hearts beat a little faster in anticipation.  During the years Camp Sunshine was in North Georgia – and when campers ranged from 7-18 – we all looked forward to Thursdays when we would spend a magical day at Lake Burton at Dr. and Mrs. John Woodard’s beautiful home, Chantilly.

One of our great friends, Mason Whitney, fell in love with Camp Sunshine during our first year at High Harbour, a camp at Lake Burton.  When we moved to Camp Coleman, Mason wanted to make sure that Camp Sunshine always had a “home” on his favorite lake.  He began by rounding up a platoon of pontoon boat driving Lake Burton folks.  After an early breakfast and bus ride, every camper, counselor, nurse and doctor boarded a fleet of pontoon boats where we were greeted with bags of fireballs and bubble gum for our trip across the lake.

Once at Chantilly – so named because it was an old cabin with many additions just as Chantilly lace is pieced together – we spread out literally and figuratively to relax, play, and eat.  For the energetic, there was an annual tennis tournament. For others, a neck massage chain was about as active as it got. We all enjoyed bicycle boats, swimming and skiing. And one year, the younger campers were treated to a treasure hunt on a nearby island complete with pirates!

No day at Chantilly was complete without the delicious fried chicken and watermelon from LaPrades set up on checkered tableclothed sawhorse tables and eaten picnic style all over the Woodard’s shady lawn.

After a totally unstructured day of fun and camaraderie, we all piled back on the buses for a much quieter ride back to camp. Counselors and campers were easily lulled to sleep and the lucky ones had precious seven-year-old campers dozing off in their laps.

One of the few downsides of our wonderful Camp Twin Lakes was its distance from Lake Burton.  While we could no longer enjoy Lake Burton Day at Chantilly, Mason brought watermelon to us for many years.  Many of us still think of Thursday as Lake Burton Day and quietly celebrate the memory of a very special friend and our lake days together.

This week’s post is by Ali Karimi, a former Camp Sunshine camper who attended summer camp, whitewater rafting, the Washington D.C. trip and young adult programs. Ali was diagnosed in 1998 at age 12 and it took his social worker quite a while to convince him to give Camp Sunshine a try!

My favorite memory of Camp Sunshine (although all my memories of it are extremely fond and well regarded) would have to be my first time at camp.  It was such a powerful experience for me and is not a day that I will ever forget.  Camp Sunshine made a lot of memories and impacted my life in many ways. Not only did I get to go white water rafting, but I also got to meet and shake hands with the President of the United States and visit the FBI academy – all thanks to Camp Sunshine.

I remember that my social worker would always approach me near the dates of Camp Sunshine and ask me if I wanted to go.  She would never leave me alone about it (for very good reason!).  I was never open to participating -  but then again, I really didn’t know how much of an impact it would have on my life and recovery.  I was very apathetic and didn’t have enough willingness to go.  After the missing out on opportunities to go to camp for the longest time, she again asked me if I wanted to go. I finally gave in and asked her what it was and for some more info on it. I was a different kind of patient at the time.  I was very positive and energetic even while I was undergoing chemotherapy and numerous knee surgeries. I always wanted to be around a positive and loving atmosphere.  I used to hate going to the hospital – any child would dislike it – but I knew that I had to go to recover from my illness. I really disliked the energy and the atmosphere of quiet, sad and sick children and parents around me.

My decision to go away for a week was a nerve wracking experience for me and my family.  On the bus I met friends with whom I still keep in touch to this day. I was presented with a lot of faces that would soon become familiar and friendly faces to remember for years to come.  As I arrived to camp, I gathered my things and crutched myself out of the bus.  I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of people gathered at the gymnasium for meet and greet.  As I moved slowly toward the gym, I was immediately welcomed by a staff member.  She smiled at me, asked if I was okay and told me not to worry.  She hugged me and assured me that I would really enjoy my time there as she put on the first of many more camp bracelets around my wrist and made a name tag for me. I still have that name tag – it is over 10 or 11 years old now.   Its very odd recalling those moments, because my smile and the smile of others is what helped me recover from cancer.  It was my anti-cancer, so to speak.  Without laughter and positivity the world is a scary place, especially for children that have gone through what we did. And after seeing that staff member’s genuine smile, I noticed the energy around me in that place that they called Camp Sunshine.  Now I finally realize why they call it Camp “Sunshine.” Seeing so many smiles and breathing the air of positivity was the cure to my body and spirit.  At that moment, I quietly observed my surroundings and noticed the smiles on everyone’s faces.  I realized this wasn’t some average ‘send your kid to summer camp’ kind of ordeal.  This would become a pivotal life-changing experience for me so from then I never questioned it.  Every day I sent letters back home to my mother and sister. The positive vibe and attitude grew stronger day by day for the entire week. It’s funny because they thought I would write to them and tell them how much I wasn’t enjoying it or how much I missed being home… but instead I was writing about how much I was enjoying my time there and how much of great and fun place it was.   It fueled me with enough positivity to make it through my ordeals for the entire year until I came back.

For me, Camp Sunshine wasn’t really all about the activities or having fun.  I think the real lesson from camp was to teach me how to make sunshine in my own life and heart. For all the friends I have made and lost (due to relapse), I now have to keep the sunshine alive for them. I ask myself what I would have done, and where I would be now, if Camp Sunshine wasn’t a part of my life.  It gave me inspiration, light and joy. The will to pursue a life without cancer. It really was the air beneath my wings.

For a lot of people the real fight begins once they heal from cancer. As one of my heroes once said to me, “It’s not what kills you that is hard to live with. It’s really what you have to live with.”  Moving on without cancer can be just as hard as enduring it, especially if you have a radical type of surgery or repercussions to deal with. One cannot fathom the strength that these special children possess. They have survived such an ordeal, especially when they have their whole life and long list of ordeals and experiences to go. But I can only pray that they can continue fighting through and become role models for others. We all know life isn’t easy but life when enduring cancer at such a young age becomes that much harder.  Its not easy going through what we have been through… In my eyes, it’s not the car that takes the driver to where he is going. It is the driver who takes the car to where he is headed. In that sense, Camp Sunshine was my never ending supply of fuel. It is such an invaluable asset to have in one’s life. I wouldn’t be able to think back on my experience with cancer and express a genuine smile towards life if it wasn’t for Camp Sunshine and the memories that it filled me with.

THANK YOU FOR ALL THE MEMORIES AND LOVE!

This week’s memory comes from Gary Palgon, a longtime volunteer, board member and Chairman of the Keencheefoonee Road Race!

This week’s post comes from Jay Beck, a close friend to Dorothy and Hamilton Jordan. Jay has been a volunteer and a board member of Camp Sunshine.

In the late 1980’s when Camp Sunshine was renting Camp Barney in North Georgia for our camp site, a young camper came from Warner Robbins named Michael.  Michael had a slowly expanding brain tumor that was taking his eyesight, and by the second year he was totally blind.

When he first came to camp, ten year old Michael was very angry about what was happening to him.  He was difficult, usually in a bad mood about his limitations, and feeling sorry for himself.  As he could not participate in most of the activities, he required individual attention.  During that period I had miscellaneous duties that included carrying campers like Michael around in a golf cart.  Because I had gotten to know Michael in the golf cart and also to allow his regular counselors some time off, I offered to spend time with him.

He was sullen and quiet as we listened to other kids play, and then I got the idea to challenge him to wrestle like the professionals did on TV.   He was about 2 ½ feet tall, but I let him grab me on the arm and throw me around like a rag doll.  I would land with protests that he was cheating and that he could not do that again right before I went flying to the ground again.  Michael found that wrestling or using karate on me was his given calling, and he threw me about for much of that camp.

Jay and Michael at Camp Sunshine

By the next year, he was totally blind.  He was still angry and felt as though he had limited value.  We developed a pattern of playing mind games together while we talked during our time two to three hours a day.  Michael had a great memory, enhanced by his need to remember space relationships and live in his head.   He could recite all the states, the capitols and many other things.  When we found a harmless snake, he would hold it and feel its muscles as it wiggled around on his arm.  We threw rocks at the woods, listened to bird and water sounds, and did tactile things.  I bought him small metal cutouts of animals so he could feel their shapes when he and his mother made cookies.

By his third year at Camp Sunshine, at 12, he had learned to play the guitar and keyboard and he was not angry anymore.  He practiced the instruments and played together with a blind girl, Martha.  We all sang.  During this time, Michael’s cancer was getting worse; his head was starting to show the pressure effects of the tumor’s growth and we knew he would not be back.  But instead of being angry or morose, he talked about becoming a counselor of other blind kids when he got older and teaching them Braille.  He talked about playing music.

On the last full day of camp, he leaned into me closely and said, “Can I ask you something?” Then he said, “Can I touch your face?”   So we sat there for several minutes with his small hands going carefully over my head and his making expressions indicating that he was putting those touches in his memory bank.  He ended with my eyes and mouth.  And he leaned back satisfied and smiled and said, “You have a moustache!”

Michael left me grateful for several things, perhaps the most important was the gift to be with these remarkable young people who had to learn to live their lives fully and more quickly than most of us. He showed how to overcome hardships and find courage.  And he reminded me the value of looking forward and having dreams.

Shelli James is the author of our memory for Week 2. Shelli’s son Ricky was a Camp Sunshine camper until he passed away in 2010, just before his 5th birthday . Their family continues to stay involved through our Remember the Sunshine program.

The James Family at Spring Family Camp in 2010. (l-r Ricky, Rick, Erin, and Shelli)

In 2012, Camp Sunshine celebrates its 30th Anniversary. To spread the fun out, we’re posting one memory each week from campers, parents, volunteers, alumni and staff. We kick the series off with a memory from Sally Hale, Executive Director of Camp Sunshine…

We recently received this kind note from the mom of one of our campers… read on to see what kind of impact Camp Sunshine has had on this remarkable young man.

Dear Camp Sunshine,

The unbelievable profound impact Camp Sunshine has had on these wonderful children I think is underestimated. Josh has been attending Camp Sunshine since he was 4. We went to Family Camp until they finally threw us out after 4 or 5 years (just kidding). It was the glue at the most difficult time in our lives that helped us keep it together. Even my husband who usually is not one for groups of people came to that first camp and couldn’t wait to come back each season. We chose not to participate in the circle groups of parents baring their souls, but never felt like we were lesser because of it. We dealt with it in our own way. We had fabulous weekends making crafts, fishing, panning for gold, fishing golfing, fishing eating and fishing. There was no TV, food was prepared and no clean up was required. Massages, I lived for the massage, thank you for them.

Then it was time to send Josh to summer camp. His first year, while not on therapy any longer, he had about 15 stiches in his head from a horrific fall in a pool in Florida. I worried not for his safety, but for the stiches to bust open and for him to not to wear his ear plugs. As the years progressed I never ever worried about him, I just missed him like a hole had been ripped out of my heart for a week. I had a brief experience of what my life would be like without my child. It was awful. I knew he wouldn’t shower everyday, wore his swim trunks to bed, slept in his contacts one time the whole week, got off the bus wearing a karate suit another year!

Then came Teen Camp. You wouldn’t have thought it would make that much of a difference for a child who has been attending summer camp since age 7, but not so. This second year at teen camp was an amazing experience for Josh. It was the equivalent of an epiphany! He came home from camp so much more excited, with so much more to tell, had so much more fun. He was floating on cloud 9 for a week after. He told me multiple times he wished he was still at camp. It took him a couple of weeks to even talk to some of his regular home friends as he just couldn’t make the connection. He would say they just don’t understand like my camp friends. He really ‘got it’ this year. The connection that these kids have that no one else can understand. They are from all kinds of back grounds, race, religions, interests but they all get each other. They understand without having to explain a thing. He loves these boys like brothers. I quit looking at summer camp pictures at work as I would be in tears – I could feel the love and joy radiate off the screen. The counselors have an amazing dedication and I can’t wait for the time when Josh, Shelby and I will hopefully be counselors ourselves to experience this joy these kids radiate first hand. I truly believe the experiences he has had at camp have shaped him to be the wonderful young man he is turning into. His willingness to except anyone regardless of appearance, background, ethnicity are evident in the recognitions he has received in school. Last year he received the 2011 Citizenship Award, and just this week received the ‘Tiger Award’ for enthusiasm for learning, putting forth the extra effort of doing a great job and demonstrating a willingness to help others achieve. I believe Camp Sunshine has had a very big impact on his life. I thank you, thank you, thank you. While I am so glad to have a cancer survivor, I am thankful to have a cancer survivor who is an amazing person inside and out. Please share this with all your staff, counselors, board members as I want to thank them and believe you all deserve commendation for running a truly life changing amazing program.

Will all my heart,

Sally, mom of Josh

Today’s guest poster, Kelli Hopkins, is a longtime friend of Camp Sunshine. Her daughter, Michala, was diagnosed with angiosarcoma when she was just a baby. Their whole family participates in Camp Sunshine’s year round programs, including our Spa Sydell Nights at Camp Sunshine House.

With joyful tears my heart knows exactly how to express what Spa Sydell night at Camp Sunshine means to our family. Putting it into words may be another story.

Anyone who has a cancer diagnosis in their family knows that it never goes away. With each bump, bruise, cold or cough there comes wonder & worry. No place to escape that wonder & worry? So not true! Camp Sunshine house is just that. An escape. A safe haven. Now combine that with Spa Sydell. What a perfect combination.

Driving the hour there we talk about which services we will choose. We wonder who will be there and of course what we are going to have to eat. The closer we get the more the anticipation builds. We are greeted at the door with smiles and hugs. We are welcomed into this world where it’s ok to put our guard down and be us.

We sign up for services and as we sit down the layers of stress being to peel away whether by another parent, a camp volunteer, the staff, laughter of a child or Sydell herself. I remember the first time I met her. I was so blown away by this tiny beautiful woman. In awe of how she is able to walk around with the huge heart that she has to have to provide all this for us.

As the night goes on and services are being done you hear others or even yourself say oh wow. For those few hours we are inside safe from all that harms, to be comforted and rejuvenated to once again face the world of uncertainty.

As we walk out the door we are standing a little taller, stronger and definitely more relaxed. Thank you Camp Sunshine! Thank you Spa Sydell!!!!

Camp Sunshine has a Teen Council that helps us makedecisions and plan certain aspects of camp and other programs. To join the Teen Council, teenage campers must write an essay about camp. Today, we’d like to share with you one of these essays by Justin Markowitz of Cabin 14!

Camp is a unique place.  From the waterfronts to the dining hall, to the playing fields, Camp offers a unique atmosphere.  Camp Sunshine, at a glance, is like any other camp – with boys and girls running around participating.  But, at a deeper examination, Camp Sunshine is so much more.  I used to see Camp as the above description; however, as I have matured, my view as well as changed.  I no longer see Camp as the playground I formerly had.  Camp, to me, is a place to help others and even yourself.  Camp provides the setting for campers to confide in other cancer patients and survivors, and is the basis for growth and development of strong and supportive character.

Camp is the opportunity for children (who can rarely leave their house for anything but chemo) to get out and have fun.  To see kids in such a condition having fun makes Camp worth it in itself.  The opportunity to attend Sunshine is truly a privilege for me.  The fact that for an entire week campers have everything free of charge is an inspiring and touching notion.  Overall, to me Camp is one of the most special places in existence.  Camp Sunshine allows you to act like yourself without judgment, to help those in need while giving back, and even help some less fortunate than most.  Camp is a great place, and I would be honored to be a part of Teen Council and make it even better.