Camp Squamish 2003

HD Lighthouse Contributing Editor's Comment: For the affected by Huntington's disease in BC, Canada there is Camp Squamish. It is all about living well with HD. Kelly attended Camp Squamish for many years. Kelly writes well about her adventures.

Now I know why her friends seems so happy and excited about Camp Squamish 2003. It is always a great success. It is a model for HD camps. --Jerry
Posted to the HDL: 17 Jun 2003

It was another fun year at the BC Lions Camp Squamish this year. It was great to see old friends as well as making new ones. Most of us had waited all year to reconnect and wasted no time getting down to some serious visiting.

This year there were four new campers and one new staff. It is always a wonderful experience to be able to add more people to our HD family. These newbies fit in right away. I was especially proud of John when he locked Susanah and I out of the dining room on the first day because it showed his comfort level was high enough to take on two 4-year camp vetrans. A sense a humor is always in fashion at Camp.

We discovered the new trampoline out back. A few of us ventured over to check it out and then quickly spread the word. Before you know it there were acrobatics left and right. Dean and Katy were simply amazing as they did flips. Some people, like my self had either never been on a trampoline or it had been 20 years or more. I was amazed how quickly these people went from being really nervous to step on the trampoline, to knee drops, L's, backdrops, and donkey kicks within the hour. It was a great time, but hell on white socks.

It was strange for there to be no pool this year. Due to structural damage it has been deemed unsafe until further notice. Pool basketball has always been a huge part of Camp. The competition is always incredibly fierce.

Instead we focused on our baseball game. The bat was one of those plastic numbers that kids have. The ball was pink and about the size of a small soccer ball. Unfortunately every time it was thrown the wind caught the ball and sent it in a different direction than what it had been thrown. It was hilarious. When I stepped up to bat, I nailed the ball and then ran in the wrong direction for first base. The second time I was standing in the line up, next up at bat and when the person ahead of me hit the ball, I ran for first base. I got about halfway there before I realized it was not my hit. The Squamish Native Chief and his family came out to sing and tell stories again. Dale had a beautiful new drum with two killer whales, an eagle, and a wolf on it. It was a work of art. One of the songs had us all looking like idiots as we were divided into sections and given animal parts to play. There were rabbits, salmon, something else.

My crowning glory is a picture of Staffer Jim using his fingers for bunny ears. He had remarked afterward that he was thankful no one would ever know, I just smiled and told him that was not true as I had gotten a picture /proof on my camera. So I guess you know what kind of T-shirt you are getting for Christmas, eh Jim?

The chocolate making was a big hit, as always. We had a new lady this year. And if I did not have Huntington's I could remember what her name was. At any rate we dipped to our hearts content and came up with all sorts of interesting combinations. It was delicious. We took the chocolates back with us for movie night. Kaitlin brought Monsters Incorporated this year. What an awesome movie choice.

Music therapy was noisy as usual. We of course did our yearly song parity. We wait until almost the last day then write a whole pile of stuff that happened at camp on the board. Then we work the memories into a pre-picked tune and we create a masterpiece. We sing it on banquet night. Massage was wonderful as usual. That Jill knows how to hit all the right spots. You can always tell when the camper you are looking at has just had a massage, they have that "if I got anymore relaxed, I'd slip into a coma" look.

Sandra helped to fill the void of Jessica not being with us this year. She told us to look at life as a journey. There will always be unexpected curve and roadblocks along the way. It paralleled life in many different ways. The first day Sandra posted a short but powerful message on the wall. "We must be willing to get rid of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us". The more I thought about these words the more sense they made. We did a deadly banner again this year. It is amazing how quickly it fills up and how neat it is to sit there on banquet night and look at your past artwork, as well as remember other campers who did not make it back that year. Ed's famous orange two-piece bikini hangs from one the banners. Who could forget him wearing it to the HD clinic staff lunch last year? It was a haunting image.

Banquet night was a lot of fun. Except for making me wear a dress, it is always one of the camp highlights. This year Susan T handed out hoodies. Dark blue sweat tops with pouch in front and hood on the back, and a Camp Squamish 2003 logo. A very nice gift as well as fully functional. We also got Huntington's coffee mugs big enough to hold half a pot of coffee!!!

A few of us camper got very spoiled this year by bedtime stories and tuck ins. When Susanah and I found out that our staffer buddies where Sheilagh and Sue we set out to drive Sheilagh insane with bizarre requests. We were told that if we have needs not being met to talk to you Sheilagh, we told her that first night. I have this booboo on my finger, aren't you going to tuck us in, aren't you going to read us a bedtime story? (Of course we meant right after Sheilagh stopped laughing.)

The next night we complained Sue and told her we had brought our unmet needs to Sheilagh's attention and all she did was laugh. Sue sympathized with us and offered to tuck us in and read us a bedtime story that second night. (Sue totally called our bluff). Susanah was already in our room and I was getting ready for bed in the bathroom and Sue was on her way. When I got to my room it was full of people, word of the bedtime story had gotten out and there was a crowd of campers and staffers alike. There was even someone in MY bed. Poor Sue had expected two of us, but what a trooper. She told all 8 of us a story that will stay with us the rest of our lives. And came back after everyone had left to tuck us in. How dedicated is that? We were far from the only ones wanting tuck ins after that.

John and I ended up getting into a water fight the day of the HD clinic staff lunch. I was sitting outside minding my own business when John came out of the dining hall. He held his HD coffee mug above my head and pretended he was going to dump it. I never thought for a moment that he would do it; I realized I was wrong when the warm water hit my lap. I wrestled that still half-full cup away from him, and he tried to hide behind one of those plastic chairs. As John wore the remainder of the water I looked up in that brief moment and saw that everyone in dining hall was watching. I hoped Dr G would not interpret it as aggressive behavior?

I vowed revenge on John, as the water was his second offense. I told him to expect a payback by the end of camp. So when I found him asleep and snoring softly on the cement deck I did what anyone with imagination would do, I hit the art room for a washable marker. I took great delight in filling in the star on his forehead while he slept. As well as a heart and happy face. When John woke up he sat and chatted for about 20 minutes. I was lying on the lawn signing camp annuals looking straight at the ground. I could not look at him without a grin on my face. I had a couple fits of the giggles. When John went into the bathroom to wash up for dinner he got one heck of a shock. I drew a replica on the 2003 banner to live on forever. Thanks for the memories John. Our last group discussion on our last night together was a mix of funny and sad. They had a new twist on it this year. Susan told us we would be writing a tribute to the person on our left-hand side. And from my left I heard Dean say, "I'm dead". I cackled like a witch at him. Then I looked to my right and there was Lorna, with an enormous smile on her face, who would be writing my tribute. I was suddenly very nervous. There was 5-10 minutes of frantic writing and then it was time to share. The tributes were amazing. To have someone else's summary of how they see you is always so very different from how you see yourself. Lorna did me proud. And I was kind to Dean, well; maybe I meant some of it. The experience created some very powerful soul food. Too soon it was time to go back home. I caught a lift to the Vancouver Island ferry with Bob, Norma, Sandra, Chris and Lorna. We met Geri, Pat Pat, Victor, Cheryl and Sandy at the terminal and since we had over an hour to spare wandered town and ate. Geri told us that we were no longer at camp so she was no longer a staff person, just a person. I asked her "does that mean we can tell you what we really think of you then"? Poor Girl. How I love to tease Geri, good thing she is such a good sport and likes to dish it right back!

Lorna and I were on the ferry standing in the cafeteria lineup for lunch. Lorna leaned too close to the fellow standing in front of her and just missed goosing him with the camera bag on her hip. I caught the camera bag by millimeters. We laughed. Then I grabbed a tray and Lorna stepped to the side, and as I stepped forward and raised the tray I got the same fellow in the butt with my tray. As I apologized, red-faced, he told me that he thought I should at least have to buy him lunch. I could have died.

When Lorna, Andy and I got to the other side there was no sign of Paul. Of course Paul had worked out the ferry time using his HD timetable to figure out when to pick us up. He arrived at 3 PM sharp, except we had arrived at 2pm sharp. We'd made a huge pile of our bags and waited. Lorna was inside the terminal and Andy and I were guarding the pile of bags outside. This fellow walking into the terminal says to Andy "let me guess buddy only one of those bags are yours and the rest belong to your wife?" I smiled sweetly at Andy and said "you know me sweetheart, I always pack everything but the kitchen sink". Andy came back with "I keep telling you we need to downsize". We both roared with laughter after the fellow left.

It was great to see Paul again. I also went over to Salt Spring Island for part of a day to visit him and Lorna while I was on Vancouver Island. They have a beautiful place. Spectacular view. They took me out for lunch at the café. Lots of laughs while we swapped camp stories and looked at the pictures I had had developed.

It was a great trip. It was a great camp. Thanks again to everyone who makes it happen and the campers for all they bring to share.

Osiem,
--Kelly , 13 Jun 2003

Source: Kelly, Camp Squamish 2003

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