Why Camp Kudzu Matters

Camp Kudzu was listed as one of Georgia's

top 7 summer camps of 2023 by Newsweek.
Our ongoing research with Clemson
University has found that children and teens
who participated in Camp Kudzu Programs
showed growth in areas of communication,
independence, knowledge, and social skills.
We have been officially accredited by the
American Camp Association (the ACA).

This is all well and good, but it doesn’t

show how much of a lifelong impact
Camp Kudzu has on its community.
Nor does it show how absolutely
terrifying it can be to send a with T1D
child off on their own, especially for
the first time since getting a T1D
diagnosis.

No amount of data is ever going to be

able to express how much of an impact
camp makes, or what it means to those it
has touched. Speaking from personal
experience, I didn’t truly comprehend
how much Camp meant to its community
until I attended Teen retreat and was able
to see how passionately the campers
talked about it. Therefore, rather than
show a bunch of hard data, I thought I’d
do exactly that: let the community tell
their stories.

In the following page(s) you will find

testimonials from parents, volunteers,
and campers about their experiences
with Camp Kudzu and what it means to
them, as well as a word collage made up
of all the words people think of when
they think of Camp Kudzu.
 What Do Campers Have
To Say?
"Camp Kudzu means that
for one week I get to be
normal. I get to take a
break from all the
"As a child living with type 1 diabetes, I often felt
pressures of being a
isolated and misunderstood. However, attending a
diabetic. It’s one week
diabetes camp changed everything for me. For the first
where I feel at home. One
time, I was surrounded by other kids who were going
week where I’m with some
through the same challenges that I was. We were able to
of my closest friends. My
share stories, compare strategies, and support each
and My older sister are
other in a way that I had never experienced before. I
both diabetic and we
remember feeling like I had finally found my "tribe" - a
always go to camp the
group of people who truly understood what it was like to
same week. We both love it
live with diabetes. This sense of connection gave me the
so much. It has made such
strength and confidence to take control of my health in a
a a powerful impact on our
way that I never had before. I am grateful for the
family but a bigger impact
experience of attending a diabetes camp and the lifelong
personally. Camp Kudzu is
friendships that it helped me to form."
my home and it means the
world to me."

"I have gained a community

like no other. One where
people can truly understand
you and what you go through
"I learned to work through and can share in that, but
my low blood sugar's I had can also truly celebrate
in my sleep and during diabetes victories because
night time and how they know what kind of work
important it truly was to goes into those. I’ve also
check before going to bed gained more connections in
and making it a habit" the diabetes and healthcare
world through networking
"I’ve learned how to be
than I would’ve ever thought
confident with being a
possible. It’s amazing the
diabetic. I’ve learned new tips
knowledge and resources a
and tricks to manage my
few hundred friends can
diabetes while growing up and
have."
experiencing new things."
 What Do Volunteers
Have To Say?
"My favorite memory as a volunteer
would have to be my first summer at
Camp Barney when the volunteers
with T1D lined up in order from most
recent diagnosis to longest time with
T1D... I bawled my eyes out and the
looks on campers' faces were
invaluable."
"My all time favorite moments of
camp usually consist of singing
and dancing time, or cabins being
sung to sleep. I love watching the
evolution of first day singing and
dancing and last day. Kids that
wanted to sit and read the first
day can be some of the most
hardcore singers and dancers on
the last day. As a clinician and
type 1 for over two decades, I also
love dosing time. Most of the time
I can have a kid try a new
injection/pump site or do their
own injection or site change by
the end of the week. It’s amazing
how much confidence they gain by
doing that and overcoming that
fear. I had one girl several years
ago that wanted to do something
new diabetes related every single
day, and we did! She got a golden
syringe award every day and she
was so excited to tell her mom all
about it!"
"Personally, I have gained joy and
peace as a parent from our daughter's
years as a camper and I've gained
fulfillment in a giving-back sort of way
as a volunteer. Professionally, as a life
long educator and youth advocate, I've
gained ideas and inspiration for my own
work with young people."
"One time, I had a cabin of 12 year
old girls and they were very
restless one night so I challenged
them to be quiet with a meditation,
a full body meditation that I found
on Youtube it was like 15 mins long.
They were all out like lights
afterwards. The next night they
asked for this again because they
just got the best nights sleep
"ever" but my phone would not
connect to the internet or data so I
could not pull up the video to play
so I had to talk it through. I was like
19 or 20, talking a room of 12 year
olds in calm tones to sleep. I
laughed so hard. I also had to
continue this for the rest of the
week. At least I earned not having a
voice at the end of that week."
 What Do Parents have To
Say?
"Working as a PICU nurse, I tell every one
"There is no better place (or community)
of my new diagnosis families about camp. I
for your family and your child to be when
tell the child that it is so fun, we do every
faced with a T1D diagnosis. Your child
thing a summer camp does, including zip
builds a network of lifelong friends, your
lines, horseback riding, boating, and arts
family finds connections within the
and crafts and that they get to learn from
community...for tricks and tips, friendship,
kids who are just like them. I tell the
and an empathic shoulder to cry on when
parents that the kids will learn so much
things aren't going according to plan."
about type 1, and it’s probably the safest
place for them to be diabetes-wise. That
we have endocrinologists, nurses, so many
counselors, and all kinds of people to keep
an eye on their child and keep them safe. I
mention family camp is an amazing thing
for new families as well because the "I was nervous about sending him to
parents get to learn and make connections camp because he’d never had a
with other families, which is so important sleepover at anyone’s house. I was
when dealing with a chronic disease, and worried he’d have a low or a high, but
the child and siblings get to have fun! I tell because I knew there would be
them that I’ve only missed one year since Endocrinologists, nurses, and parents of
2003 and that I still look forward to going Type 1, parents who volunteer their time
back every year. " at the camp, I knew my son was in safe

hands."

"Send your child to camp.

"I first came to Camp Kudzu when we dropped our precious
They will learn so much at
daughter off at the Twin Lakes site for summer camp 22
camp. They'll learn that they
years ago! We were scared to death to leave her in anyone's
can accomplish anything
hands but ours and this was the first time she'd spent even
they want to do. There are
one night away from us other than with my parents (her
no limitations. Type 1 has
grandparents). I spent the week worried she was going low,
come so far since my son
staying high, or otherwise being out of sorts due to T1D.
was diagnosed back in 2006.
When we arrived to pick her up she announced, as she stood
Make no mistake, this
between her cabin counselor and Jon the music guy, "I want
disease can be hard and
to LIVE at Camp Kudzu!!!" I knew at that point there was
frustrating, it will be a part of
something very special about this place, in particular the
them for the rest of their
people who made Camp Kudzu happen, giving love and
lives, but it doesn’t have to
growing community, bringing normalcy and building agency,
define them. "
so that our daughter felt empowered by and less burdened
by T1D."
Camp Kudzu In A Word