Camp Can-Do

Camp Can-Do, sponsored by the Commonwealth Division of the American Cancer Society for over a decade, gives young cancer patients a break from the often scary and monotonous time spent in hospitals and in treatment routines. Camp Can-Do places the young campers in an atmosphere that promotes comfort and self-confidence, surrounded by others who are sharing similar experiences.

More than 100 children who are undergoing cancer treatment converge on Camp Can-Do each August for one of two week-long sessions. These children are treated at the Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, and the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center: Pennsylvania State University Children's Hospital. The Camp takes place in Mt. Gretna, PA, on a beautiful wooded lakefront site.

The Camp gives the children who attend the often never-realized chance to be completely uninhibited. It is a place where they wont feel pressured to keep up with their healthy friends, and it is a place where they need not be self-conscious about their appearance or therapy.

Campers at Camp Can-Do "can do" anything their friends can do at camp, including swimming, hiking, arts and crafts, running, singing, games, archery, fishing, canoeing, rocketry, and much more! The volunteers designed the camp to be a non-threatening yet challenging experience that would optimize the abilities and strengths of the children who attend.

Supervising the campers are volunteer counselors, who are trained and sensitive to the physical and emotional dimensions of childhood cancer. A physician and four nurses are also on duty around the clock to administer prescribed medication and provide first aid and emergency medical services.