By Garrett, Camper and Scholarship Recipient —

There have been lasting social barriers from my experience with cancer. Occasional odd glances from the outside world or snarky comments on how I look due to the fact that they didn’t know my situation, but Camp is a place where you have people who understand where you have been, what you have gone through and why you are who you are.

I had no idea what to expect when the opportunity was raised to go to Camp. It was hard for me to leave my parents after going through cancer but they were the ones pushing me to go. But, with my bags packed and the bus revved-up, I stepped into one of the most understanding experiences of my life and got to meet people who have experienced the same situations or have been through even more than me.

Every activity at Camp Rainbow Gold is used as a tool to bring people together, create relationships and show each other that they are not alone in their hardships. The people I have met through this program have become as much of a family to me as my own blood and as the years have passed, every year I have come back.

Now, I have begun my trek through college, but taking this next step in my life requires large amounts of money to pay for my education and it won’t be easy. My parents face a lot of debt after having five kids and dealing with all the bills, including ones from the hospital, but feel it was their obligation to have money put away for my college career and don’t want me to have to pay a single dime out of pocket. However, they can’t offer me as much as they would like.

Camp Rainbow Gold’s scholarship program offered to me as a former camper and volunteer with the organization has provided a huge step toward my education and it has brought mass amounts of relief to my parents knowing that they have a hand to help in guiding me and keeping me afloat over the next four years.