Et cetera : NCCC Team Comes to Summer Camp

By: Justine Miller

Members of NCCC team Maple 5 arrived at Camp One Heartland in Willow River, Minn. July 16 with some faint memories of bug juice and camp songs.

Camp One Heartland, a non-profit, began in 1993 as a camp for children infected with HIV/AIDS to come and simply be kids again. Since then the camp has grown to host other camps addressing issues such as transitional housing, Chron’s Disease and Colitis, and Camp Camp Revolution, a camp for kids ranging from 13 to 18 who identify themselves as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, Questioning or Ally (LGBTQA).

The 11 member team worked mainly behind the scenes at several camps, helping in the kitchen preparing meals and maintaining the facilities with staining, building and improving infrastructure.

Camp Camp Revolution, which took place between July 23 and 26, gave members of NCCC team Maple 5 the opportunity to be camp counselors and plan activities and nighttime events such as dances and a camp-style spin-off of the Olympic Games.

Maple 5 team member John-Luke Rivera, 24, of Tracey, Calif., said working with LGBTQA youth was the most rewarding part of the project. “It was only for a short period of time but you get attached to these kids,” he said. “Having personal knowledge of their background, I can understand what they’re going through to an extent, so being able to provide a safe and supportive space, which may not be outside of this camp in their own lives, was rewarding in itself.”