HUNTINGTON LAKE, Calif. – At Camp Sunshine Dreams, having cancer is secondary to being a kid.
For one week each summer, children impacted by cancer gather to experience something rare: a place where everyone understands their journey.
Held at Camp Keola near the shores of Huntington Lake in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, the camp welcomes children ages 8 to 15 for a week filled with connection, creativity and adventure. This year, 50 kids attended camp.
“It’s the one week a year these kids can be with people who understand their journey,” said Yvonne Wood, a manager at Valley Children’s Hospital who serves as the camp nurse. “Here, cancer is secondary to just being a kid.”
Camp Sunshine Dreams offers the classic summer camp experience: arts and crafts, boating, archery, music and more. But what sets it apart is the deep, meaningful bonds formed between children who have faced the unimaginable.
“When they come up here, they’re strangers. And by the end of the week, these kids, you’d think they’ve known each other 100 years.”
The camp isn’t just for children who have battled cancer themselves – it’s also a haven for siblings, who often walk their own difficult path alongside a loved one.
Jennifer Shoener, an intensive care technician at Valley Children’s Hospital, is one of those siblings. She lost her brother to cancer in 1999 and began attending Camp Sunshine Dreams in 2002. Today, she leads the arts and crafts program.
“Camp is important because in the Valley, nobody understood where I was coming from, and they didn’t understand my journey,” Shoener said. “Here, in some way or form, we all understand what cancer means to us.”
That sense of shared experience is what makes the camp so powerful. Jardina, a camper who beat cancer in 2017, attended for the first time with her sister this year.
“I definitely recommend it because it could get you away from the fact that you’re struggling with cancer,” Jardina said. “Here, they treat you like a regular person. They all understand that we’re all going through the same thing.”
“I knew what she was going through, so I wanted to be there for her,” said Jardina’s sister Jazmin. “I didn’t want her to be by herself.”
When campers turn 17, they’re invited to return as counselors – continuing the cycle of support and giving back to the next generation.
“We all love what we do,” Wood said. “It’s all about making these kids’ lives a little bit better.”
Every camper attends free of charge thanks to fundraisers, donations and the counselors who return year after year. To learn more about Camp Sunshine Dreams, click here.
