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A Place Where Kids Can Reach for the Stars
For kids in Michigan, summer is sacred. It is a time to forget about the rigors of school and life, enjoy the outdoors and meet new friends. Children with serious medical conditions are no different; yet, opportunities to enjoy the summer months can be few and far between. Growing up with cerebral palsy, I was fortunate enough to attend a camp in Grand Rapids. While it was always a highlight of my summer, I wondered about
other kids with medical challenges and if they could have an opportunity like mine to go to camp.
Wonder no more, the development of North Star Reach has begun and I am thrilled to be a part of it. Located in Southeast Michigan, North Star Reach will provide children with disABILITIES the opportunity to forget about their daily adversity and just be kids. With state-of-the-art facilities, children will be able to enjoy a tree house, arts and crafts center, fishing, archery and more! To support a child’s medical care, North Star Reach has teamed up with doctors and nurses from area pediatric hospitals, who will be on-site at the Health Center.
Facilities are just a part of what will make the North Star Reach experience special. The friendships with fellow campers and counselors will last a lifetime. There is also a tremendous opportunity to learn from your peers, knowing you are not alone in facing challenges. At age 33, I have lived independently for many years now. Much of my confidence, self-esteem and social development stems from attending a summer camp like North Star Reach.
For more information on how you contribute to North Star Reach and its bright future, please visit www.northstarreach.org.
Carey Larabee
North Star Reach Marketing Committee Member
This is Camp and Camp is a Prescription for Fun
Last weekend I volunteered at Flying Horse Farms for a Spring Family Camp Weekend. Located in Mount Gilead, Ohio, Flying Horse Farms belongs to SeriousFun Children’s Network, a family of camps that provides traditional camp experiences to children with serious illnesses. Flying Horse Farms describes its camp as magical, transforming, fun. I have to say those three words describe my experience exactly.
I set out to camp to better visualize what North Star Reach will be like once the buildings are built and we welcome our first set of campers. Walking up to the dining hall for my training Friday morning, I began to envision through Flying Horse Farms what North Star Reach will be like. This is camp I thought to myself. I got goose bumps dreaming of the day when North Star Reach is built and operational and our first campers arrive at camp. What an awesome day that will be.
I was assigned as a “sidekick” for the weekend to an amazing family of six. My role was to ensure the family experienced the magic of camp. My fellow sidekick and I met the family at their car upon arrival. As their four daughters were stepping out of the car, one of the girls grabbed my hand and said with a huge smile, “This is AWEsome”. This is camp. I think she held my hand most of the weekend, leading me from activity to activity.
The family is currently living at the Ronald McDonald house so the girls don’t have much opportunity to run and play and just be kids. That first night the four year old had me doing sprints back and forth outside the dining hall because the running and fresh air felt so good! This is camp.
Watching my camper friend go from craft to craft in the arts and crafts building was so much fun. Seeing the joy in her eyes over her tie dyed pillow case and freshly painted bird house was priceless. This is camp.
On Saturday afternoon, I took three of the girls over to the lake for some fishing. It was a beautiful spring day and we were all so happy to be outside. I was in charge of baiting the big, fat crawler worms on the hook which they loved watching me squirm over. This is camp. The girls caught a bunch of fish that day and I caught a glimpse of how camp was transforming us all.
After dinner, I realized I hadn’t emailed, texted, posted, tweeted, pinned or face-timed all day – I had completely uplugged! This is camp.
By the end of the evening Saturday, I was feeling tired, but refreshed. I was feeling sad camp was ending, but happy to have experienced it. I couldn’t image how I was going to part ways with my new camp family on Sunday. This is camp.
But when Sunday came, I said goodbye knowing that I had helped give this family the gift of a magical, transforming, fun weekend; one that we would all remember for the rest of our lives. This is camp.
I keep this t-shirt on my office wall that my camp friend made me that weekend to remind me of what is important.
My job is to tell the story of the healing powers of camp and the magical transformations that occur. I hope you follow along with me on North Star Reach’s journey as we fulfill our mission to offer life-changing camp experiences to children with serious health challenges and their families. This is Camp and Camp is a Prescription for Fun!
Marji
North Star Reach Marketing Specialist