A sea of yellow T-shirts emblazoned with “There’s no place like Camp Quality! It’s not where you go, it’s who you meet along the way” greeted everyone who arrives at this year’s weeklong camp for cancer survivors near Bald Knob. Campers ages 5-17 were getting ready for a game of ga-ga ball, which is similar to dodge ball. There were no sad faces.
“We do not talk about cancer here. We do not say the word,” said camp director Chris Jennings, who has been with the camp during its entire 27 years in Bald Knob.
Camp Quality began in 1983 in Australia when a doctor who wanted to emphasize and highlight for children with cancer that it is the quality of life, not the quantity, one lives that is important, hence the name “Camp Quality.” There are 15 other camps of this nature across the United States.
This one is at a remote,
serene church camp, complete with a fishing pond, air-conditioned cabins and buildings — air conditioning is mandated for the campers — and volunteers galore. A new swimming pool was built in 2012 with a 29-foot water slide. Typical camping activities are available.
It has been a “good symbiotic” relationship over the 27 years between Camp Quality and the site, Camp Powderfork, just off Arkansas 258, Jennings said. Camp Powderfork is a Community of Christ church camp, the same church the founder of Camp Quality was a member of, but “Camp Quality is not really any denomination,” Jennings said.
Only three or four of the nationwide camps are held on church-owned grounds, he said, but the rate charged at Camp Powderfork is good, and the facilities are great, he said.
“We have full run of the place” when in session, which means little to no safety concerns caused by unwelcome guests, Jennings said. For the cost and the facilities, no other site could match this, he believes, so Camp Quality has stayed at the site. Powderfork has 160 beds, with 20 close to main buildings for the younger
ages, 4 through 6, which is also a plus, he said.
In the early 1990s, the camp was running out of space, so 80 more beds were made ready by Camp Powderfork for Camp Quality’s use. Insulation and new window air-conditioning units were installed in other buildings, Jennings said of the helpful nature of the church camp’s officials and their oversight.
Each child at Camp Quality has a companion, and there were three registered nurses on-site to round out this year’s staff of about 31. While there were no doctors on staff, there is quick access to Searcy and the medical facilities there, if a need arises, Jennings said.
This year’s number of children was 33, with two more companions than kids — 35. There is room for 65 campers.
Each year, the camp has a special theme with unique events. On Sunday of this year’s camp, there was a carnival with a dunking tank, games, snow cones and corn dogs. On another night, there was a storyteller coming from Jonesboro who would tell of “critters in the woods,” Jennings said.
Campfires and s’mores are favorites among the campers as well. They participated in a variety of activities that include Ker Plunk, broom hockey, archery, swimming and fishing at a pond full of bream and other sunfishes — just being kids.
These campers already have a special bond: They have cancer, which often sets them apart from other children in normal settings. Here, they don’t have to fear being called “Baldie,” as one child confided.
“They know everyone else is going through this,” Jennings said.
The campers have to have a release from doctors saying they are well enough to attend the camp, he said.
“I love interacting with the kids, getting to know the kids,” Jennings said. “It is amazing to see the strength and how they embrace life, [even] the siblings, [who often accompany campers when space is available]. They are less likely to take life for granted.
“If [the children with cancer]
have to lose hair, there’s no one here to say anything. They’re here to enjoy life. It gives them hope,” he said.
Meals are often provided by volunteers, such as employees from CenturyLink, who set up grills and cook hamburgers for the campers. Among other area eateries and service clubs who provide meals for the campers each year in mid-June are KFC, the Searcy Optimists and the Elks Club. Some donate food, such as eggs and sausage, for the camp staff to prepare.
Gifts given out to the campers include sunglasses and Frisbees. A group of Fairfield Bay women known as the Teddy Bear Ladies brought gently-used teddy bears for the campers.
Volunteers work all but the months of July and August. Jennings said they do year-round work and stay in contact with the families. Parents of children with cancer face special stress and really appreciate this week of knowing their children are being well cared for and are active at a camp that meets their needs.
“We have helped [families] remodel homes, move and [hold] birthday parties,” Jennings said.
His 16-year-old daughter, Lolly, came to camp to help out this year for the first time.
Communication continues among campers long after they’ve left this summertime oasis. One former camper saw a special device for filling water balloons.
“He thought of us, bought it and sent it,” Jennings said. There are many instances like that, he said.
Campers often later volunteer at the camp, and some become staff members.
“When 18, they will have to come as a staff member. … Some 16- and 18-year-olds are volunteers. When 16, if they want to volunteer, we will let them,” Jennings said.
Volunteers undergo background checks, of course, he said. Volunteers are always needed and welcome. Some spend their vacations as a volunteer at the camp.
Each year, before camp is even over, volunteers are contemplating what next year’s theme will be.
The 20th year of Camp Quality — a real “milestone,” Jennings said, there was a Big Top erected right on the grounds — “an actual tightrope” in evidence. There were elephants, the whole shebang. In 2011 there was a boot-camp theme, and the campers traveled to tour the Little Rock Air Force Base. One year, each day of the camping week became a specific holiday, complete with decorations and events — Christmas, the Fourth of July, Easter, Halloween — all were celebrated.
The camp is free to campers, and donations are tax-deductible. For more information or to make a donation, visit www.campqualityusa.org.