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July 16, 2005
Ripley Camp Brings Fun to Muscular Dystrophy Sufferers
by HNN Staff
Ripley, WV (HNN) --Cassandra Bays, 20, of Tornado, WV is attending the Muscular Dystrophy Association's fourth annual summer camp at Cedar Lakes Campground here. Cassandra is living with nemaline myopathy, a disease characterized by weakness of the muscles in arms, legs, trunk and throat. However, this camp is providing her with an opportunity to enjoy all of the fun summer camp has to offer without holding back due to her physical limitations.
The theme of camp is "Super Heroes". Cassandra gets to be her own Super Hero by taking advantage of the myriad of activities going on at Cedar Lakes. Throughout the week Cassandra is heavily involved with fishing, arts and crafts and playing games. This one-week retreat a long way from her favorite TV shows, computer and macaroni and cheese, but she is finding plenty of other outdoor festivities to occupy her time.
Each camper is provided with his or her own personal counselor for the week. These counselors are volunteers that often come back year after year to maintain the friendships formed over the campfire, mess hall, late night chats, and of course, the camp pranks that are typical whenever you place any group of young people in a open-air environment. It is not uncommon at Cedar Lakes to see a tattered pair of oversized underwear dangling from a flagpole or a young male counselor wearing a women's cheerleading uniform performing a cheer at breakfast as a result of a dare. The above mentioned shenanigans are just a few of the many that Cassandra is partaking in this week.
The Muscular Dystrophy Association is a voluntary health agency - a dedicated partnership between scientists and concerned citizens aimed at conquering neuromuscular diseases that affect more than a million Americans. It costs $600 to send a person to summer camp and is funded entirely by MDA as one of the many services and programs offered to those living with muscular dystrophy.
