Family Camp
Horizons in Hemophilia, October 2010
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By Kim Wilson, Camp and Activities Coordinator
It was a perfect September weekend for the 160 family members, staff, and volunteers who attended HoG’s Family Camp at Camp Twin Lakes. Families arrived on Friday evening and were greeted by volunteers and staff to assist with luggage and check-in. After dinner, the families participated in some icebreakers to get to know one another.
On Saturday morning the day began with some camp activities and then the families were divided into age groups for educational sessions. A nursery was provided for kids up to age three, while fun on the playground and game time were offered for everyone ages four to nine.
Parents of children up to age 15 were invited to a presentation on Legal Rights as Healthcare Consumers presented by Tina Sarkar, an attorney at Health Law Partnership. The 10-13 year olds went in the gym to play the Fitness Game which is a life-size board game relay. With every roll of the dice, each team had to complete a series of exercises or answer questions about bleeding disorders.
Teens ages 14-17, along with their parents and young adults, attended a session led by Jeff Cornett, HoG’s Director of Training, Research and Advocacy and T.J., one of our Leaders in Training. Their presentation covered the details of the new health insurance reform law and how it will impact this age group. At the end, Jeff and T.J. led a Jeopardy® game to review the information.
After lunch, families participated in a variety of camp activities including paddle boats, archery, biking, fishing, arts and crafts, tennis, mini golf, cooking, and swimming. In arts and crafts, each family made a personalized team pennant to be used later in the day during the “amazing race” activity. They also had a chance to decorate a t-shirt, make a headband, or create a memory keeper from a mailing tube. The families enjoyed the activities and spending the afternoon together.
During the “amazing race” activity that was developed by our community partner, GUIDE (Gwinnett United in Drug Education), families were challenged to complete a series of puzzles and team building activities. Family Camp participants were grouped into ten color-coded teams to play the “amazing race”. Each team was equipped with a color-coded bag including a clipboard and pen, a camp map, game rules, special information and a score sheet.
The teams raced around camp participating in a scavenger hunt and completing physical and mental challenges related to team work, HoG information and services, and family bonding and leadership. At each of the five locations the teams visited around camp, they had ten minutes to complete two activities to earn points for their team and raffle tickets for their families. At each location, they received a clue to where the team should go for the next activity.
Later, the Family Camp participants enjoyed an ice cream social. There was ice cream, chocolate and caramel syrup, M&Ms, sprinkles, cherries, and whipped cream for topping.
On Sunday morning, everyone had breakfast together and the weekend ended with a raffle drawing. Families earned raffle tickets by participating in the educational sessions and by completing the weekend evaluation.
The families, staff and volunteers thoroughly enjoyed the weekend. Families told us that they always have a great time and particularly like meeting and sharing with other families. Others said it was a very informative and fun weekend. They learned about bleeding disorders and spent quality family time together. This was an amazing collection of families because of the way they reached out in the spirit of support and fellowship.