Hi, my name is Stacy. I am a registered nurse that has been involved with ACPA since 2017. I also have been active with Camp Riley, Camp About Face, recruiting campers, collaborating with IU recreation therapy on programing, and working with Riley Children’s foundation to ensure funding.
I see an opportunity to partner with ACPA in identifying campers with craniofacial differences that attend our Camp about Face Leadership Academy as potential scholarship candidates.
I want to share a little bit about this amazing camp for kids with craniofacial differences and the impact that Camp about Face or as we call it, Camp about Family has.
Camp Riley is located on a beautiful, wooded property in Martinsville Indiana. The Bradford Family donated 2,300 acres, what we now know as Bradford woods in 1937 to Indiana University to be used in as a safe place for children. https://bradfordwoods.iu.edu/Programs/rectherapy/campriley/index.html
Indiana University partnered with the Riley Children's Foundation and Riley Hospital to create Camp Riley. As a result of this intention, Camp Riley began in summer of 1955. A place for children with physical and/or intellectual disabilities that is designed for universal accessibility, staffed by experts in recreational therapy, guided by Riley medical teams. There are now 8, week+ long residential Camps at Bradford Woods that comprise what we call Camp Riley. Camp about Face is one of the 8 camps. https://www.rileychildrens.org/support-services/camp-about-face
What is amazing about camp riley is the interaction between the kids and the kids and the staff. They lift each other up. They become more confident, is a place where they can just be themselves, just be a kid. The entire camp space designed so that kids of all abilities can navigate with ease and limited assistance. Campers can do all the things, ziplining, climbing, challenge courses, wheelchair basketball, swimming, scuba, boating, fishing and more. My favorite times were the meals in the dining hall. It is so loud and so joyful with camp staff leading chants and songs. Every evening after dinner there is programing in the amphitheater that is led by the camp staff with a lot of audience participation. On the last evening campers are given awards for their special gifts, contributions, and completing challenges. This was extremely moving and highlighted the changes that can occur in just a few days of camp. New confidence and lifelong friendships.
Within Camp about Face is a weekend intensive that is for kids 15-18 with a craniofacial difference, who have been a previous camper, and who exhibit the qualities for leadership development. Most kids that attend Camp about Face strive to become a part of the Leadership Academy. Adult mentors with craniofacial differences and camp staff work with Leadership Academy attendees in team building and social skills. After their weekend intensive, Leadership Academy campers guide and lead the younger campers ages 8-15 who attend Camp about Face.
Camp Riley is life changing for many that attend. To witness the evolution of self-confidence, team building, and the formation of lifelong friendships is more than words can say. Camp Riley is what happens when we create something that is for the good of our most vulnerable children, our communities, and our society. Camp Riley provides experiences that create the kind of people that you want as friends and neighbors.
Please enjoy a few photos from Camp about Face 2024. Please consider giving to ACPA as this provides direct support to additional opportunities for scholarship and growth.
Join me in supporting the American Cleft Palate Craniofacial Association during National Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month. I'll be participating in their 60 mile run/walk challenge during July to raise awareness and support for ACPA. Your donation will help provide funding for ACPA programs and services that support patients affected by cleft and craniofacial conditions, their families, and the professionals who provide their care.
With your help, ACPA can:
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Ensure college scholarships are available to students born with cleft and craniofacial conditions for years to come. At the current rate of funding the Randall/LaRossa Fund will run out in seven years.
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Update and expand family resources to include additional diagnosis and treatment information and translate them into additional languages to ensure all patients and families have access to the information they need.
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Expand professional scholarships to include additional disciplines to ensure all cleft and craniofacial professionals have access to the latest research and clinical innovations, and the opportunity to attend ACPA’s Annual Meeting which provides accredited continuing education.
