“I always just try to keep moving forward. It’s the best thing you can do.” Ellena was born with CLOVES Syndrome, a condition so rare that only around 300 people in the world share it. She had brain surgery at six weeks old. She grew up with a prosthetic foot she calls her “super foot.”…
“I feel like camp made me much more hopeful and accepting of life.” Adam was born with multiple serious heart conditions, including hypoplasia of the aorta, described in medical literature as an exceedingly rare, and Ebstein’s anomaly, which occurs in less than 1% of all congenital heart disease cases. Within days of his birth, he had…
In the U.S. alone, 1 in 5 children live with special healthcare needs. For these kids, childhood often includes hospital rooms, treatment schedules, and long stretches of isolation. They face nearly double the risk of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) compared to their peers, leading to poorer physical health, mental health challenges, and reduced well-being later in life. This is why positive childhood experiences (PCEs) matter even more for kids facing illness. These positive experiences act as a protective antidote to traumatic childhood events—promoting…
“Since it was a camp for all people, I knew that I would really belong here.” ~Liam Born weighing just 13 ounces, Liam entered the world with a mere 6% chance of survival. His early life was a delicate balancing act of 14 surgeries, countless blood transfusions, and constant support from breathing devices. Every day…
“I never thought a child would come up to me and say, ’Look, Mom, he shakes like me.’ It really moved me.” Federico’s mom Riccardo and Federico’s story begins not at camp, but at a place most families never want to know well: the pediatric ward. It was there that both boys faced leukemia together,…
A sudden loss of balance on a family holiday was all it took to turn the lives of Áine and her family upside down. At seven years old, Áine was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Overnight, her new normal became one filled with hospitals, seemingly endless months of chemotherapy, and the long road of recovery. During treatment, Áine had lost much…
