Because of medical or financial limitations, many children
living with cancer do not have the opportunity to attend a typical summer
camp. Before Camp Care at Cancer
Services, there was no local resource for children living with cancer to have a
normal summer camp experience. In 2012, Cancer Services hosted the 18th
Annual Camp Care for kids like Courtney Ross and her siblings. When doctors
discovered that Courtney had leukemia at age 5, her and her family’s lives
dramatically changed. Before her diagnosis, her life was full of crayons, toys,
and simple joys. Now hospitals, needles, medicine and feeling sick overshadowed
all of this. Courtney went to Memphis to receive treatment but once she felt
better, she was able to attend Camp Care right here in Baton Rouge with her
siblings and new friends. Under the careful eye of Camp Director Jana Poché, 20 volunteer counselors and oncology
nurses to provide medical oversight, Courtney and 40 other children attended
camp for a week in July. They enjoyed rock climbing, fishing,
bowling, movies and art projects but mostly, the children enjoy just being kids.
Courtney testifies, “I love camp!”
In addition to Camp Care, monetary grants, medical equipment
and supplies, Cancer Services helps families affected by cancer experience as
normal a life as possible with our monthly children’s events. Families are able
to surround themselves with supportive friends and spend time as a family
outside of that world of childhood cancer. Things like riding go-karts at
Celebration Station, witnessing the wonders of Disney on Ice, enjoying a day of
fishing or horseback riding can seem small, but it can mean so much. These
families are able to have a life, an almost-normal life, a life removed from
the world of cancer.
