Andy and the rest of the counselors-in-training at Camp Dakota 2014.
Tucked back in the wonderful nature just northeast of downtown Lapeer, Mich., is a summer adventure just waiting for children and teens. But not just any kids — kids with special physical needs, especially those who are deaf and hard of hearing, visually impaired, or have juvenile arthritis.
Lions Bear Lake Camp’s summer programs are centered around providing these children incredible activities designed to challenge, engage, and overwhelmingly include all of these children and help them feel normal among peers with the same special physical needs.
The Arthritis Foundation's Camp Dakota, the juvenile arthritis summer program at Lions Bear Lake Camp, is especially dear to us. My son, Andy, has been attending every year since age 7. I’ll never forget dropping the boy off that first day of camp so many years ago. It’s almost like he knew he was where he belonged. He couldn’t wait to get rid of mom and dad and get busy with camp life. We knew this was the best place he could be.
This year, he was excited he would be old enough to apply to become a junior counselor. Unfortunately, he had to pass on this when another great, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity came his way: Wayne State University C2 Pipeline Warriors Program. But that’s a topic for another blog post. Stay tuned.
So, back to the wonderful Camp Dakota…
Children with juvenile arthritis can feel left out among their peers. When they physically cannot keep up with friends, or when friends simply don’t understand what having juvenile arthritis is like, they may feel alone. Camp Dakota crushes that.
Kids attending Camp Dakota have fun, lots of fun, especially with the singing and dancing. Where else but camp can you sing about such silliness as working in a button factory, crazy elephants, and little red wagons and yet still have all campers ages 7-16, staff and adult volunteers completely engaged and having a great time! (Note to parents sending their children to Camp Dakota for the first time: You will know these songs inside and out within just a few days of your child returning home.)
Campers stay busy most of the day with activities like archery, swimming, boating, challenge courses, the nature center, campfires and s'mores. And I can't forget a fan favorite, the climbing wall and zip line. And yes, children with arthritis can do the climbing wall. It may take them a bit longer, but what an amazing achievement when the reach the top and zip line down through the trees. I happened to be at camp volunteering as the photographer and popped in when Andy was already half way up the wall. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think he would make it to the top, let alone be one of the fastest. The moral to this story is not to let your disease get in the way of your goals. Don’t listen to naysayers. You can do it!
At Camp Dakota, there is also time to learn about their disease with Dakota Quest sessions. These allow campers to better understand what their bodies are going through with juvenile arthritis and how to explain the chronic illness to their friends back home.
Expert young adult panelists often fill in during Q&A sessions, providing insight on how they have managed the disease, why taking medication is so important even when you don’t want to, how to make the best of every day, and understanding that everyone with juvenile arthritis is much more than this autoimmune disease label. Each child and teen is unique, special, and truly amazing.
Staffed 24/7 by pediatric rheumatologists and medical professionals, campers are well cared for by those who know the disease inside and out. From pills to eye drops to injections, the med staff stays quite busy attending to Camp Dakota’s 65+ campers, staff, and volunteers. And somehow, these great professionals also find time to have fun and interact with the kids. You can often find them down by the beach trying to win a water splash war, kayaking on the beautiful lake, creating an art masterpiece with the cabins during arts and crafts, or dressing up in fabulous costumes for the mid-week dance festivities.
During Andy’s first year at camp, a pediatric rheumatologist lead the session “Doc in a Box,” which allowed the campers to ask the doctor questions about their disease. After learning how important exercise is to managing arthritis, my kid asks, “Is making fart noises with your armpit considered exercise?” The doc’s reply, “Yes.” (Thank you, Dr. Adams, for making the rest of our summer at home filled with "exercise" noise.)
So, for one week each summer, Camp Dakota campers find a home away from home, a place to meet new and old friends, and time to have juvenile arthritis come second to true childhood. At the end of July (fitting since July is Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month), they will all meet up again at Lions Bear Lake Camp. As if time stood still, friends will pick up right where they left off, cabin cheers will ring loudly, and practical jokes will abound. Summer just isn’t summer without Camp Dakota. We certainly will miss it this year.
To all of those returning campers, staff, and volunteers, I wish you nothing but peace, love, and camp (which just so happens is this year’s theme.) Have an adventure you’ll never forget!
To find out more about Lions Bear Lake Camp or to donate and help ensure the success of all of its special needs summer camps, visit http://www.bearlakecamp.org.
For more information on the Arthritis Foundation’s Camp Dakota or other juvenile arthritis camps across the country, visit http://bit.ly/1dIK6Vp.
