CAMP KESEM OPEN TO CAMPERS AGES 6-13

Forty spots remain for the summer camp for children of cancer patients

Camp Kesem is a free, week-long overnight summer camp for children of cancer patients.   The Camp, held at Camp Young Judea in Wimberley, Texas from August 14-20 has 40 open spots remaining for campers this year.

Camp Kesem is organized by Texas A&M University student volunteers under the guidance of its Advisory Committee of local professionals and Camp Kesem National, its parent organization.  Texas A&M University students serve as counselors and undergo over thirty hours of extensive training prior to camp. 

The Camp Kesem program model was founded in 2000 at Stanford University.  It has since gained a national presence, with camps at over twenty college campuses.

Campers participate in a host of fun activities including sports, drama, arts & crafts, team-building, scavenger hunts and talent shows.  In addition, each night before bed, the campers have “Cabin Chat,” a time for the campers to talk and open up to their peers and counselors. 

Children who have a parent who has or had cancer often lack sufficient external support because they are neither physically ill nor visibly distinct from others.  The complexity of emotions they experience can easily go without attention.  It is often challenging for these children to find peers with whom they can relate, resulting in feelings of isolation and fear.

“It gives both my child and myself a week to spread our wings separate from each other. He’s exactly where he wants to be, surrounded by kids in similar situations and the warmth and support of the counselors,” says a parent of camper, age 12.

Kesem advisor, Dr. Michael Amylon, pediatric oncologist at Stanford Hospital emphasizes the importance of an experience like Kesem.  “These kids have their world knocked right out from under them, and often they have no where to turn to get help and support.  Camp Kesem provides a magical place of respite and play, and a group of other kids in the same situation who understand what they are going through.

Camper applications and more information on Camp Kesem at Texas A&M University can be found at www.campkesem.org/tamu

Contact:
Michelle Wilson
Texas A&M University
P.O. Box  14413 College Station, TX 77841
tamucampkesem@gmail.com
www.campkesem.org/tamu