Camp Rising Sun shines light on special group of kids

MILLPORT, Ala. (WCBI) – Camp Rising Sun has been shining a light on a special group of kids in the region for decades.

The camp was started to give kids with cancer or who have had cancer, a chance to do something they sometimes miss out on: just be kids.

When you think of summer camp, you don’t typically think of it being a life-changing experience. But campers at Camp Rising Sun might say otherwise.

Camp Rising Sun isn’t your ordinary summer camp. It’s a summer camp for the kids who need it the most.

Camp Rising Sun is specifically geared toward providing for children with cancer.

Originally based out of Columbus, Miss., it provides a weeklong oasis while still meeting their medical needs.

Camp Co-director Dana Butler said the staff treats every camper the same, regardless of medical conditions. She said allowing them to have supervised freedom like any other kid, keeps them coming back.

“They go into arts and crafts, they look around and they ask, ‘Can I do this or can I do that?’ Yeah, girl, this is camp. You can do whatever you want to. You can do 10 projects at one time if you want to. You can tell the moment we sell it and they’re in it. And they’ll keep coming back and back,” said Butler.

Spencer Hanskiewicz, diagnosed with cancer close to 20 years ago, knows firsthand how it feels to attend this special camp because he was once in their shoes.

“As a camper, it’s really awesome to have fun, to make friends, and then to see the joy you can put on people’s faces and these kids’ faces as a counselor, it’s a different type of joy,” said Hanskiewicz. “It’s a different type of fun. There’s nothing really like it: being able to know like hey I used to be able to do that for the first time. I remember my experience then, and coming back and doing it for somebody else and passing that along year after year– it’s pretty awesome.”

Once a year, Andy Miller steps out of his full-time job as a superintendent at a construction company to serve as a part-time counselor at Camp Rising Sun.

Miller’s introduction to Rising Sun came when he attended the camp with his younger brother who had cancer.

An experience that still affects him today.

“This camp was the best time of your life at eight years old, still is,” said Miller. “That’s why I’m still here.”

Butler said no matter the camp’s location, the goal is to always be a home away from home.

“No matter where our camp facility is, we’re a home. We’re gonna treat your babies just like our babies. And like I said, the doctors can take care of the body, but we are here to take care of the mind and the spirit. We wanna make you feel comfortable and we want to make your kids feel comfortable and we just want to love on them all week,” said Butler.

The camp serves children who have cancer, who have gone through treatment, or who are in remission. Visit camprisingsunms.com for more information on how to enroll and how to get involved.

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